Community Garden Scholar

This week, at the C&S Workplace Organic Garden Project in Keene, Professor Sue Gentile, Garden Educator Madi Walter, and I co-facilitated a learning session as part of a course in Place-Based Environmental Education, part of the Environmental Studies Master's program at Antioch University New England. We toured the educational/demonstration garden, which was developed this year in conjunction with the Garden Resource Hub, focused on the learning goals of employee gardeners, and informed by the vision of Garden Educator Maria Dellapina, who worked with the Project in 2017. We discussed how principles of place-based education can translate into the practice of workplace and community gardening, and the students' ideas for extending the social, ecological, and personal wellness benefits of workplace gardens. The session was a valuable and enjoyable experience that builds on the tremendous work of many dedicated volunteers. Happy exploring!

I'm thrilled to be joining  The Cornucopia Project  staff part-time as a Garden Educator. The Cornucopia Project empowers our community to make healthy food choices. We do this by creating and delivering interactive experiential educational programs and teaching models, adapted to a variety of learning spaces, from gardens to classrooms and kitchens. These programs connect people of all ages to real food and to each other. We increase our impact by partnering with organizations that share our core values of: Good Health Effective Education Strong Community My internship experience with this organization in 2011 essentially solidified my sense of professional calling as an environmental educator in community food systems. I was especially proud that year to have researched and written a Community Impact Grant to build a learning and giving garden which has now been providing fresh produce for the pantry at the Peterborough Community Center for several years. I'm really...

I'm excited to announce I'll be co-presenting with my colleague, Rachel Brice , at the North American Association for Environmental Education ( NAAEE ) 2018 Conference in Spokane, Washington. Our poster presentation, based on our work with the C&S Workplace Organic Gardens Project and Community Garden Connections ' Westmoreland Garden Project , is titled, "Dig, Eat, Grow: Learning to Cultivate Connections through Community Gardening." Connecting people with nature and meeting local food security needs are often thought of as separate challenges, but community gardening can meet both at once. The key is healthy relationships that support the capacity to create and maintain community gardens. Participants will deepen their understanding of how to build and use their own networks to support efforts that strengthen connections between people and nature. Our projects both work with diverse and underserved populations. We have developed several educational co...