Awaken Garden Collective

Awaken Garden Collective

Organization: Awaken Church Community Collective
Website: https://www.awakenchurch.ca/gardencollective   
Contact: awakengardencollective@gmail.com

Project description

The Awaken Garden Collective was founded with the vision of promoting soil health, food security, and community cohesion in the Community of Bowness. This ongoing initiative is driven by the following values:

  • Soil Health: Healthy bodies begin with healthy food, and healthy food comes from healthy soil. That’s why we are learning about the soil and how to take care of it.
  • Food Security: We believe that everyone in our community should have access to healthy food. We are learning how to garden sustainably and locally, while sharing our knowledge and garden surplus with others.
  • Community Building: By working together and sharing what we know, we've created a diverse community that values gardening, growing food, learning from the land and valuing one another.

 

To fulfill our vision, our community garden members grow and harvest together in mounded beds. These beds are different than traditional ones, as mounded beds are in greater contact with the soil below, need less water and allow more movement of soil organisms.

Surplus harvests are donated to the nearby community cupboard, while our fruit orchard surplus is open to anyone to harvest from. 

We also offer a space for members and neighbours to gather in the centre of the garden. 

Benefit to Calgarians

  • We created a new natural space in the neighbourhood for the community and members to enjoy
  • We're building a local community where people can meet and connect 
  • We provide healthy local food to those who may not have access to it. We donate greens to the community cupboard mid-summer, share fruit from the orchard with everyone, and donate extra vegetables

Climate impact

  • We keep our carbon footprint low, thanks to our gardening methods (e.g. carbon sequestration) and members growing food locally
  • Healthy soils store more carbon. We create our own healthy soils and encourage members to do the same in their yards
  • We have three large fruit trees and many shrubs that will store more carbon as they grow
  • Members reduce food miles by growing food locally
  • We help ensure that all people in the community can get local, healthy food. This builds food resilience in the community

Innovation and inclusion

  • We strive to make our garden accessible to everyone 
  • We have raised garden beds available, for those who cannot reach ground level
  • We welcome all neighbours
  • We waive garden fees in cases of financial need 

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