Find uplifting stories about heroes, innovations, and solutions
20 results for "community gardens"
%2Ffile%2Fdailymaverick%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2024%2F07%2Fscott-warman-NpNvI4ilT4A-unsplash.jpg)
As food prices soar beyond what millions can afford, South Africans are growing their own vegetables, bartering with neighbors, and building community gardens to survive. This quiet revolution is teaching people to buy food with hours instead of rands.
A Mississippi doctor is transforming her childhood neighborhood with a free community garden offering fresh vegetables to anyone who needs them. Dr. Laveria Dent wants to make sure rising grocery costs don't keep families from eating healthy.
Over 1,200 volunteers donated 21,000 hours to restore Lake County's forest preserves last year, valued at $734,000. From reviving dying lakes to growing vegetables for neighbors, their work is bringing nature back to life. #
A 3.5-acre volunteer garden in Pennsylvania just kicked off its 16th season of growing fresh produce for food pantries, and this year they're planting strawberries in pyramids. From Girl Scouts to entire families, hundreds of volunteers are ditching screens to dig in the dirt for their neighbors.
Over 700 volunteer hours have transformed a Montana demonstration garden into a living classroom for wildfire safety and conservation. On Earth Day, volunteers upgraded the space that teaches homeowners how to protect their properties while saving water.
Behind the effortless beauty of Duke Gardens lies a coordinated team of 50 volunteers, staff horticulturists, and students who tend every bloom and pathway year-round. Their hidden labor transforms what could be a simple garden into one of the nation's premier university botanical spaces, welcoming over 650,000 visitors annually with free admission.
East London is building a 14-mile "nature corridor" to reconnect isolated wildlife across some of the city's most nature-deprived neighborhoods. The project will link community gardens, rooftops, canals, and even sports fields to help pollinators and urban wildlife thrive.
Young volunteers from Trapper Creek Job Corps spent Earth Day weekend transforming a Montana community garden that feeds families and teaches kids where food comes from. The spring cleanup continues a partnership that turns a former weed patch into a thriving space for learning and giving.
Unity Gardens brought together 40 volunteers for an early Earth Day celebration filled with workshops, nature walks, and community connection. The South Bend event highlighted how people are building healthier ecosystems while growing fresh food together.
A South Bend community garden is transforming Earth Day into a hands-on celebration where neighbors can learn, volunteer, and connect. Unity Gardens opens its doors April 18 with workshops, service projects, and free food.
A Mount Auburn hillside once filled with demolished homes is now a thriving community garden, thanks to volunteers keeping one neighbor's 25-year vision alive. WLWT crews joined the spring cleanup to honor Kay Schwartz's legacy.
Unity Gardens in South Bend is bringing volunteers together for a St. Patrick's Day planting tradition and Earth Day workshops. Two spring celebrations will connect the community through gardening and environmental education.
A new volunteer-run garden in Wayne, New Jersey will grow fresh produce exclusively for neighbors facing food insecurity. Thanks to a $5,000 grant and community support, the garden next to the Wayne Township Community Center will supply the local food pantry with healthy vegetables.
Vienna is removing parking spaces across the city and replacing them with trees, bike lanes, and community gardens. The result? Car use dropped 37 percent while residents gained cooler, greener neighborhoods.
A former coal mine in Texas now grows 10,000 pounds of fresh produce each year for people living in a food desert. The garden supplies six food pantries in an area where food insecurity is 51% higher than the national average.
Vienna is transforming hundreds of parking spaces into green parks, bike lanes, and community gardens—and residents are choosing cars 37% less than they did in the 1990s. The city is proving that giving people better options makes them happier to give up parking.
Thirty volunteers in Charleston turn tiny seeds into stunning flower displays across the city's parks, saving thousands of dollars while finding joy in every bloom. The greenhouse program has been quietly transforming public spaces since 2000.
Twenty-five lawyers from a 175-year-old Hong Kong firm spent their Saturday gardening alongside elderly residents, planting hope through urban farming. The event supports a charity turning unused rooftops into vegetable gardens that feed low-income seniors while building community.
When Michel Éprinchard inherited an overgrown field in western France, he saw something better than profit: a chance to bring his small town together. He donated the land to create a community orchard where all 560 residents can harvest free fruit for generations.
Kirtida Mekani transformed Singapore from a green city into a gardening movement, convincing 100,000 people to plant trees with their own hands. Her legacy blooms in 76,000 trees and 1,900 community gardens tended by thousands who learned that caring for nature isn't a chore—it's a practice.