GREENFIELD — City of Greenfield and Salinas Valley Solid Waste Authority, also known as Salinas Valley Recycles, unveiled a new community mural, “El Alma de la Tierra,” last Tuesday at Patriot Park in Greenfield.
The mural, created by local artist Hanif Panni in collaboration with Blue Strike Environmental and guided by the Arts Council for Monterey County, marks the second installation in a regional public art series following “Black Gold” in Seaside, unveiled in December 2025. Together, the murals reflect a shared commitment to sustainability and cultural connection in the region.
Painted on a busy community center at Patriot Park, the mural visually lines up with the surrounding farm fields and mountain range, creating a seamless connection between the artwork and the landscape beyond it. The piece depicts the community’s food scraps held in hands that cascade like a waterfall into compost, nourishing the row crops that help feed the region.
“The City of Greenfield is excited to team up with Salinas Valley Recycles to bring our shared sustainability goals to life through the ‘El Alma de la Tierra’ community mural,” said Jamie Tugel, Public Works Director for the City of Greenfield. “This colorful art piece celebrates our community’s creativity and commitment to protecting the environment. ‘El Alma de la Tierra’ encourages everyone to do their part — reduce waste, recycle right and take care of the place we all call home. Together, we’re showing that when our community sorts with heart, we make a cleaner, brighter future for all.”
The project is part of the Sort With Heart campaign by ReGen Monterey and Salinas Valley Recycles, encouraging residents to participate in curbside food scrap collection. When food scraps are separated at home, they are turned into compost that helps grow local food. The celebration also included a compost giveaway and distribution of kitchen pails to help residents collect food scraps.
Following the March 10 mural unveiling, ReGen Monterey posted on social media, “We see projects like this as creative communications tools that will live on for years while adding beauty and meaning to a well-used community gathering place. Thank you to Hanif Panni for sharing his talents with our Sort With Heart public art projects in both the coastal and agricultural communities of Monterey County. Special thanks to Blue Strike Environmental, the Arts Council for Monterey County and CalRecycle for helping bring these projects to life.”
Sort With Heart, an educational campaign funded by CalRecycle, partnered on the project. More information is available at SortWithHeart.org.
