The Rural Development Center (RDC) is a bi-lingual agricultural training and resource center located on a 112-acre farm just 8 miles south of downtown Salinas. The Center offers a six-month, Spanish-language training course for beginning farmers, practical, hands-on learning opportunities, technical and marketing assistance, access to land, as well as agriculture and land management research opportunities. The target audience of the Center’s programs is aspiring farmers that largely come from an agricultural labor background. We also collaborate with numerous partners that aim to reach the same audience and share our agricultural, conservation, local economic development and social justice objectives.
FIND US! -- In order to get a map to the Rural Development Center, please click here: Map This Location
DIRECTIONS -- From southbound Highway 101, turn left (east) on Potter Road. At the "T" intersection of Old Stage Rd, turn right (south) and proceed 7/10 mile to our driveway on the right. Turn into the driveway and proceed nearly one mile, take the curve to the right, and proceed to the office/classroom building (seen above).
The Farm Training and Research Center (FTRC) at
the Triple M Ranch is a 196-acre working demonstration and research
farm, located in the Elkhorn Slough Watershed – one of the most
ecologically important yet vulnerable regions on California’s Coast. The Center
was established through a unique partnership between agricultural and
environmental interests, guided by the
conviction that agricultural production
and natural resource conservation are not mutually exclusive – and in
reality, can reinforce one another. The FTRC aims to serve the
needs of and respond to the concerns of the Elkhorn Slough Watershed
community, as well as the larger agricultural and communities of the
region. Nearly one 
mile of the Carneros Creek, the Slough’s main
tributary, runs through the FTRC. This means that
agricultural and restoration activities here will positively impact the
health and ecology of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The target audience of the Center’s programs is
established farmers (largely Latino) looking to try organic farming and
conservation new techniques in a reduced-risk setting. In addition,
we collaborate with numerous partners that share our agricultural, conservation, local economic
development and social justice objectives.
FIND US! -- In order to get a map to the Farm Training and Research Center, please click here: Map This Location
DIRECTIONS -- Use the above map link! The driveway is south of the Sill Road intersection at Hall Road. Drive in and veer left an the "Y." Proceed about 6/10ths of a mile to the ALBA office, which is in a house located up a short driveway to the right.
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Environmental Justice and ALBA