Canberra Organic Growers Society

Community Gardening Conference

7 – 8 October 2010

Promoting sustainability, health and inclusion in the city

Conference papers are now available online.  To download a copy of the conference proceedings click here.  To see a copy of the powerpoint presentations click here, then click on the underlined papers.

COGS in conjunction with Canberra University held its first community gardening conference at the University of Canberra on 7 and 8 October.  Community gardens play an important role in promoting urban health, social inclusion, active civic participation and practices of sustainable living in urban environments.  High quality, informed planning policy and practice improves the sustainability and liveability of our cities. The purpose of this conference was contribute to these goals by exploring community gardening practices, academic evaluations of local food systems and current policy initiatives.  It brought together representatives of different forms of community gardening practices in Australia to share knowledge, promote dialogue and assess best practice to enable policy makers and urban planners to engage more productively and sustainably with local food systems through community gardens and city farms.

Close to 100 delegates attended.  Delegates came from a wide range of backgrounds and geographical areas, all States (except NT) were represented, two from UK, many from ACT.  There were 37 speakers.  The speakers provided a broad perspective of views on the value to the community of community gardens and practical aspects of their implementation.  Topics included the contribution of community gardening to food sustainability and security, health, social inclusion and community building, the establishment of food communities, dealing with green waste, equity and access to local food.  Other papers also focussed on planning issues associated with community gardening and the practical issues of designing and managing community gardens successfully.  The importance of engaging in the political processes, particularly in relation to planning sustainable urban futures, were emphasised in some papers.

Greens Senator Christine Milne called for community gardens to find their place in the “big picture”, such as a role in contributing to addressing the challenges emerging from climate change. And one of the international speakers, Myles Bremner, provided a list of inspirational challenges for community gardens.

• Be clear what community gardening is and who its constituents are.
• Get credibility with facts and figures.
• Develop and deliver a compelling narrative about what community gardens achieve.
• Find spokespeople to deliver this compelling narrative, such as celebrities supported by “suit-wearing” individuals.
• Be proactive about showing stakeholders the value of community gardens, such as inviting councils, the media, and MPs to events.
• Recognise and celebrate that you are part of a national, and international, movement.

Finally, we would also like to acknowledge the financial support provided by our supporters:

• University of Canberra
• ACT Government through their Environment Grants
• Canberra Organic Growers Society
• ACT Land Development Agency

On behalf of the Conference Organising Committee

Joanna Henryks, David Pearson, Bethaney Turner from the University of Canberra and Keith Colls from the Canberra Organic Growers Society