Lakeside Drive Community Garden

The main goals of the LDCG are to: create an inviting, safe and respectful space that forges stronger links between the university and community; create a holistic, productive and sustainable community garden site that celebrates sharing, learning and enrichment; build resilience and capacity in the community through the teaching of food production methods and sustainable living practices that can be emulated in homes and organisations; provide a channel for students and staff to engage with the community in an activity that addresses environmental and social issues; and be sustainable, ethical, equitable and exemplary in responsible use of materials, resources, and land management practices.

The LDCG program was established in an effort to address issues of food security; social cohesion; lack of shared community spaces; and lack of accessible education for healthy sustainable futures in the context of the tropics. It is hoped that the program will improve food security in an area of Australia subject to food shortages, raise positive health outcomes for participants; sustain the local environment and increase social cohesion through the cultivation of a vibrant community space combined with capacity building activities.
Talloires students, in consultation with community organisations and members, identified these issues through research and by conducting a community diagnostic of Darwin. The diagnostic revealed a paucity of community spaces available for cultivation and a high demand for reasonably priced, organic and local produce. Interviews with various community groups, including the Melaleuca Refugee Centre revealed concerns that there were not enough opportunities for certain minority groups, such as new arrivals to Australia, to engage with the wider Darwin community.

Darwin's geographic isolation and the transient nature of its population presents serious challenges to residents' food security. The area relies heavily on food sources from outside the region, making basic goods quite expensive. If the roads are closed by flooding residents can be without fresh food for days. Darwin's location in the tropics requires different agricultural practices for growing food compared to other Australian towns and cities. The transient nature of the region has limited the growth of the agricultural sector as well as limited knowledge sharing and learning opportunities for organic production methods.

Darwin is a culturally diverse area, home to over 100 nationalities. With one third of the population being Indigenous, and a growing number of migrant and refugee communities, there is a high risk for social disharmony. This risk is compounded by the limited number of shared spaces and activities where culturally diverse people can gather, socialise and work towards a common cause.

The LDCG Management and Development Group, which forms the governing body for the garden, is comprised of community members and students. Decisions about the purpose of the garden, its activities and its future are made jointly and by consensus. University students and staff, organisations, businesses and community members outside of the LDCG Management and Development Group are invited to regular meetings and working bees so that everyone has an opportunity to discuss goals and voice their suggestions, ideas and concerns. This consensus-based model has been very effective in building understanding amongst the diverse participants and promotes tolerance and education about different viewpoints.
 

The program provides students with experience in a community engagement project where they can apply the knowledge and skills learnt in course work to proactively assist the development of the community garden. The LDCG program provides students with an opportunity to exercise and enhance their CDU graduate attributes within the realms of personal practical knowledge, citizenship and worldview. Students develop the skills and qualities of acquisition, application, creativity, knowledge base, communication, teamwork, social responsibility, flexibility and leadership.

Students completing projects as part of their course work learn to work with a community organisation and learn how the skills they obtain at University can be used to have a positive impact on the community. Additionally,
students involved with the management and leadership of the garden, strengthen their learning experience through the sharing of ideas, knowledge and skills across a multi-disciplinary group. For example, CDU PhD student Birut Zemits was able to share her knowledge in video production workshops. The ten students who participated in the video clip production process developed skills in planning and executing scripts for community based promotional advertising and extended skills in planning story-boards in a promotional context, using a video camera, as well as acting in the project.

As a result of the program, students finish their degree with a sense of confidence at having led or participated in a community outreach activity at the university. Many of the students involved, have gone on to work in community programs and found employment that relates to the skills they have built as a result of the program. Students take with them the ability to apply equity values and a sense of social responsibility into their chosen career. For example former CDU nursing student Leah Galvin has set up ‘Permablitz Gold Coast’ which transforms people’s backyards and school gardens into edible landscapes whilst building community networks.