Programs | Whom We Serve | Guiding Principles | Governance and Financial Documents | Map
Hidden Villa is a nonprofit educational organization that uses its organic farm, wilderness, and community to teach and provide opportunities to learn about the environment and social justice. Hidden Villa stretches over 1600 acres of open space in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, about 40 miles south of San Francisco. Our mission is to inspire a just and sustainable future through our programs, land and legacy.
Hidden Villa was founded by Frank and Josephine Duveneck, who purchased the land in 1924 and offered it as a gathering place for discussion, reflection, and incubation of social reform. Over the following decades, the Duvenecks established the first Hostel on the Pacific Coast (1937), the first multiracial summer camp (1945), and Hidden Villa’s Environmental Education Program (1970). The Trust for Hidden Villa was established as a nonprofit in 1960.
Every year 30,000 people participate in one of our formal programs. An additional 20,000 visitors come to our preserve annually to explore our farm and gardens or to hike on our eight miles of trails. Our constituents cover a wide spectrum of age, physical ability, geography, ethnicity, cultural and socio-economic backgrounds and our organic farm, rustic barns, newer sustainable structures and pristine riparian, woodland and chaparral wilderness provide opportunities to experience the beauty of our environment on a first hand basis.
Programs
Hidden Villa’s Environmental Education Program: teaches key concepts of ecology, organic food production and environmental stewardship through hands-on experiences on the farm and in the wilderness for elementary school children.
Summer Camp: builds relationships among youth from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds who come together for shared activities in Hidden Villa’s unique environment.
Community Programs: provides workshops, concerts, discussions, and forums for families and individuals interested in sustainable practices, animal husbandry, and nature.
Community Supported Agriculture Program: our local, organic, and sustainably grown produce supplies neighborhood shareholders, the Community Service Agency of Mountain View, and is also sold at the Los Altos Farmers Market.
Animal Husbandry Program: our local, organic, and sustainably managed livestock provides opportunities for program participants to connect with their food, experience a working farm, and provides a source for local, organic meat and eggs.
Hostel and Facility Rentals: private use groups, domestic and international travelers stay at the Hostel; local businesses, non-profits and private parties rent facility space for meetings, retreats and celebrations.
Resident Intern Program: provides training for young men and women interested in environmental education, community programs, social justice, organic farming, and animal husbandry.
Volunteers: About 600 volunteers, including individuals and groups from corporations, scout troops, and faith-based organizations, support Hidden Villa in nearly every department and program.
Whom We Serve
Most participants in Hidden Villa’s on-site activities live in Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties, although we do also attract participants and visitors from all around and outside the San Francisco Bay Area.
Guiding Principles
We deliver a wide variety of relevant educational experiences that teach respect for the environment and for each other.
We encourage program participation from diverse communities.
We engage diverse voices of the community in the design, implementation, delivery, and evaluation of programs and services.
We build alliances, internally and externally, between people, programs, and diverse communities to optimize resources and deepen our impact.
We care for and sustain the natural, human, and financial resources entrusted to us, as well as the living legacy inspired by the Duveneck family.
Maps
If you are planning to visit Hidden Villa, check out our
Hidden Villa Ranch Map and our
Hidden Villa Trail Map.
Governance and Financial Documents
