Local farms, Local food, Land access

Title: Bear Hill Farm Pilot Project Site Manager
Organization: Home is Where We Live - LifeCycles Project Society
Location: Victoria, BC

Start date: January 19, 2026 to December 22, 2028, with the possibility of extension
Hours/week: 20 hrs per week
Wage: $ 35 per hour

ABOUT THIS OPPORTUNITY

This opportunity is a partnership between LifeCycles Project Society and Haliburton Organic Community Farm Society, with funding provided by the Capital Regional District.

LifeCycles Project Society cultivates healthy communities by bringing people together to grow, harvest, and share local foods. We believe that food is at the heart of thriving, diverse communities and a healthy planet. Our programs distribute fresh local produce to community members and service agencies, while mentoring the next generation of food leaders. Through transformative learning experiences, we strengthen our connections with each other, the food we eat, and the land it comes from. In doing so, we are building a more resilient and equitable food future.

Haliburton Organic Community Farm Society has operated Haliburton Farm in Saanich for 23 years, overseeing and managing a Municipally owned farm within the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR). Haliburton is an incubator farm, where new farm businesses work collaboratively in a supportive environment. Haliburton is one of 14 community farms in Canada, 7 being on Vancouver Island. There are 4 separate businesses operating under the umbrella of the Haliburton Community Organic Farm Society.

The Bear Hill Pilot Project is a project in partnership with the Capital Regional District to develop and maintain the Bear Hill Farm Site, for an agriculture focused pilot project to activate underutilized lands for food production. Bear Hill Farm is located 20 km north of Victoria, on the Saanich Peninsula.

The Pilot Project’s primary goals are:

• Activate a 2 Ha (5 Acre) underutilized regional property to support agricultural use
• Explore approaches for supporting land access opportunities for small scale farmers
• Develop a model that can be replicated at other regional or municipal surplus lands in the future

Our projects operate on unceded Coast Salish Territories, specifically the lands of the Lekwungen and WASÁNEC peoples.

OVERVIEW

We are seeking someone for the position of Bear Hill Site Manager for the duration of the Bear Hill Pilot Project. The Bear Hill Site Manager will be responsible for being the boots-on-the-ground member of the Pilot Project team, overseeing all aspects of the operation and management that pertain directly to Bear Hill Farm. The job responsibilities will continue to be in flux over the contract term, as the pilot project progresses.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

SITE MANAGEMENT

• Lead Farmer site orientation
• Conduct ongoing site maintenance and general management, including but not limited to the following:

  • Regular site scouting visits

  • Regular Farmer check ins - point of first contact for Farmers

  • Contractor call out and supervision, as needed to accomplish pilot project goals

  • Consultant outreach and relationship building, as needed to accomplish pilot project goals

• Organize and lead the Farm Gleaning Operations on site, coordinating with recipient partner
• Assist with ongoing restoration projects, in partnership with outside organizations and stakeholders
• Assist with other site management tasks, at the request of the LifeCycles-Haliburton management team

COMMUNICATIONS and ADMIN

• Assist with Farmer selection processes
• Assist with grant applications and grant seeking research
• Set up and maintain marketing opportunity relationships
• Assist with the development of the Project Model Replicability Framework

  • Liaise with key members of Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s (KPU) Institute for Sustainable Food Systems

  • Conduct ongoing data collection, as required by the Framework, and in partnership with KPU

• Assist with the development of reports for the CRD, as requested by the CRD but not less than once a year
• Attend occasional evening meetings to provide update reports to the Board of Directors of LifeCycles, Haliburton, and potentially the CRD
• On an ongoing basis, assist Farmers with regulatory hurdles
• Assist Farmers with grant seeking and applications
• Assist with other communications and administrative work, at the request of the LifeCycles-Haliburton management team

EDUCATION AND OUTREACH

• Organize and lead farm tours, at the request of the CRD, LifeCycles or Haliburton
• Conduct outreach with other related organizations in order to organize and schedule educational workshops on site
• Conduct community outreach and relationship building, as needed to accomplish pilot project goals
• Attend outreach events to represent the Bear Hill Farm Project, under the banner of LifeCycles and Haliburton
• Assist with other education and outreach tasks, at the request of the LifeCycles-Haliburton management team

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND ATTRIBUTES

• Experience with and/or interest in small scale agricultural businesses
• Adept with basic farm systems repair, machine use
• Experience working with community-based projects and non-profit organizations
• Ability to work with a diversity of people
• Excellent organizational and communication skills
• High level computer skills - proficiency in word processing, data input, excel, writing, gmail, social media and report writing
• A valid BC Class 5 or 7 Driver’s License
• Must work well independently and as part of a team
• Commitment to and awareness of food, health, poverty and transforming our food systems - awareness of food security issues and sustainability on Vancouver Island
• Ability to liaise with Farmers, contractors and the community alike

• Must be able to lift and move up to 40 pounds

• Problem solver - you learn quickly; you can spot problems or gaps and are excited to find solutions to make systems more efficient/impactful

Please send applications by email to:
alexmcardle@lifecyclesproject.ca

We will begin reviewing applications on January 5th, 2026 and will continue to accept applications until the position is filled.

Please mention you saw this at GoodWork.ca.

Please email your application resume and cover letter (ideally as one pdf) with the subject line: “Bear Hill Site Manager”. **Please include your last name in the filename(s) of your application materials.**

LifeCycles Project Society is an equal opportunity employer. We encourage women, people of Indigenous ancestry, people of colour, LGBTQIP2SA individuals and members of other diverse communities to apply for careers with our organization.

We also understand that statistically, marginalized groups will only apply for a position if they meet 100% of the qualifications while dominant groups will apply when they meet only 60%. We encourage you to apply even if you do not feel that you meet 100% of the above job description qualifications.

LifeCycles runs programs on unceded Coast Salish Territories, specifically of the Kosapum, Songhees, and W̱SÁNEĆ Peoples.

We thank everyone for their interest, but only those selected for interviews will be contacted.