CultureSeed is a nonprofit organization in the Columbia Gorge region of the Pacific Northwest. A rural area with pronounced economic disparities, the Columbia Gorge is also the largest national scenic area in the United States, where people from around the world come to recreate. CultureSeed is the only organization in our region offering free and long-term outdoor experiences and mental health services for youth.
CultureSeed’s goal is to bring high quality services at the intersection of the outdoors and mental health at no cost to our community. CultureSeed addresses rural isolation through transportation, year-round programming, and access to a broad range of mental health supports. Our mental health approach is to decentralize and destigmatize mental health, by spreading the responsibility among caring adults, peers, and referrals as needed.
CultureSeed increases outdoor access in communities living in the nation’s largest National Scenic Area. Like much of the social inequality in our country, limited access to the outdoors also follows racial and economic lines. CultureSeed believes that in a world where we increasingly live our lives indoors, nature is not just a place to recreate, but a social determinant of health.
Our History
CultureSeed has always been shaped by the people who devoted their creativity, vision, and labor to it. The organization in its current form was co-founded by Carolina Pfister, who served as Executive Director from 2018–2025, and Kay Alton, Mental Health Director from 2018–2024. What began as a fiscal sponsor initiative within the intentional community Atlan has grown into the organization that it is today thanks to the efforts of staff, youth, board members, and community partners. Today, Yesenia Castro leads as Executive Director after a year of co-leadership with Carolina, carrying forward the mission into its next chapter.
