Searching for the Elusive White Squirrel
By Dani Halliday
THE HIGHWAY 64 PROJECT
Sun Day at Burkett Farms
Reporters: Molly Frank and Maddy Donner
One of our first stops while working on the Highway 64 Project was to Burkett Farms of Cary, NC. This climate-smart land conservation farm grows produce organically and partners with many other similarly focused groups to promote sustainable farming and community outreach, such as by donating to local food banks. As a part of their effort to create a farm with the smallest carbon footprint possible, they have made the switch over to [mostly] renewable energy sources such as solar panels and battery-operated equipment to power their operations. They also do their best to reduce their plastic usage, tillage practices, and pesticide use. On Sunday, September 21, 2025, Burkett Farms hosted an inaugural Sun Day festival. This festival was organized as a part of the National Day of Climate Action, created by author Bill McKibben, to celebrate the awareness of solar energy and bring community members together to advocate for more environmental progress toward clean energy. ​​​​​
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​Image of Burkett Farms sign, set up for Sun Day festivities, Sun Day 2025, Burkett Farms
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Image of Paul Safrit and a coworker from Southern Energy Management, Sun Day 2025, Burkett Farms
The event was hosted by Southern Energy Management, a solar panel installation company, and REdesign, a sustainable building company that specializes in sustainable infrastructure. There were also several speakers from various backgrounds who spoke about clean energy and shaping the Piedmont area to be more resilient to our changing climate. These speakers included: Will Alphin from REdesign.build, Paul Safrit with Southern Energy Management, Maria Kingery of 360Impact, Jessica Reid, a Senior Sustainability Strategist from the City of Raleigh, Matt Abele with the North Carolina Sustainability Energy Association, Ajulo Othow of EnerWealth Solutions, Brock Philips with Urban Grid, and finally, Cooper Godwin from the North Carolina State University North Carolina Plant Science Initiative.
In terms of Burkett Farms’ climate resiliency initiatives, one of the previously mentioned speakers, Paul Safrit with Southern Energy Management, had a lot to say about the different strategies the farm uses to combat climate change and how they prepare for extreme weather proactively. He explained that they aren’t super concerned about flooding because of the farm’s location, but they typically do deal with stormwater concerns. In undeveloped land areas, about ninety percent of water that falls on the land will stay there, while ninety percent of stormwater that falls on developed land leaves. On Burkett Farm, there are very few impervious surfaces; however, the impervious surfaces that they do have collect stormwater runoff in areas designed to catch the stormwater, such as their rain garden, flushing toilets, and irrigation systems. Safrit also highlighted how the buildings at the farm are built to last and to be as low-maintenance as possible. Since the Sun Day event mainly focused on their use of solar panels, he also shared that the solar panels at the farm are weather resilient and can withstand high-speed winds that might occur during a hurricane. Damages brought by tornadoes are harder to design for, but he suggested that hurricanes are their biggest concern, anyway.
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Image of the expansion of solar panels at Burkett Farms
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Image of Burkett Farms Barn created out of recycled shipping containers
Alongside these speakers, a setup of local and sustainable food, energy, books, and activity vendors was organized across the interior of the main barn. These vendors allowed community members attending Sun Day to recognize the effort being put into creating a sustainable future in the greater Raleigh area. Some of the most eye-catching vendors included the Sustainability Book Store, which carried books relating to the issue of climate change, supported by Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh. Another eye-catching vendor was the ‘A Place at the Table’ Food Truck, which had a system of “pay what you can” for the food services they were providing. This food truck had many different forms of payment. Customers could pay the suggested price, pay at least $3 for the meal ordered, pay using a PLACE card, or volunteer for at least one hour. Finally, the Atkowa Catering company was also in attendance at the event, showcasing the various uses of sunflower seeds in Indigenous culture and cuisine. They had tomato, corn, white beans, sunflower seed salad, and traditional sunflower “protein bars” along with a traditional tea that was delicious. Bringing together all these aspects of sustainability and community building through awareness was very powerful to see in the Piedmont area.
Overall, the Sun Day event at Burkett farm was well-organized, informative, and inspiring. We were able to learn about multiple effective strategies for implementing climate-smart infrastructure and farming techniques on agricultural sites. We talked to various community members, speakers, and employees of the farm in hopes of creating connections with them and the Highway 64 Project. We left the event grateful that we got the opportunity to participate in such a nice event and connect with the local community in Cary in such a positive way. It was so refreshing to visit an establishment such as Burkett Farms and meet people who are so passionate about sustainability and reducing their carbon footprint. If you are ever in the area, we’d recommend attending one of their events in the future to learn more about their mission and their climate resiliency initiatives.