Connecting to Community

The point of BACKYARDS is to connect communities to themselves and to nature. We can be intentional about that.

Tailoring to community needs

To make useful, beloved BACKYARDS, we need to start by understanding what the community actually needs. Community consultation should include activities - how people would like to use the space, what's missing from their local area, what would help support their passions.

The design of the landscape and facilities should then be tailored to suit these needs.

Examples of activities

Repair and upcycle workshops
Share/swap/trade markets
Shared meals
Cooking workshops
Classes
Art & craft workshops
Art exhibitions
Live music
Instrument classes
Movement classes
Dance or theatre performances
Film screenings
Book readings
Badminton/pickleball

ACTIVITIES INSPO

Extra facilities

Woodworking workshop
Bike repair shed
Book library
Tool library
Pantry (preserves, teas, herb mixes, etc.)
Art gallery
Outdoor kitchen
Music/theatre stage
Dance studio
Swings or hammocks
Sports nets
Projector movie screen

The local composting hub

Compost is the best fertiliser. Rich in nutrients, broken down to a composition readily accessible to plants, adding organic matter to support soil health. It's how waste becomes life.

Community composting hubs help close the consumption loop at the local level.

They're a great way to get the community involved, and to educate people on how we can reduce waste and take care of our land at the same time. Then the compost goes into the gardens, fertilising a new crop of food for everyone to share.

Local residents can bring their home food scraps.

This encourages them to visit the gardens more frequently, and saves their wheelie bins from the summer stink.

Local businesses can bring their commercial waste.

Reducing their waste fees, while contributing to the fabric of their community.

Integrating education

Sharing food, third spaces, and event facilities is a how we start supporting the community.

Sharing knowledge is how we start empowering the community.

By integrating education into the BACKYARD, we can increase people’s appreciation for their local environments, food sources, and the complex dance of nature. We can encourage people to care for their own gardens, to try new foods, to spend more time outside.

Knowledge gives people the confidence to connect with nature.

EDUCATION INSPO

Workshops

Workshops and educational activities are a focused way to share knowledge and upskill the community.

These could be hosted by Caretakers, local community members, professionals and educators. They could cover any range of environmental subjects, from gardening, to natural dyeing, to sustainability and conservation.

Educational signage

Signage allows people to explore the gardens and learn at their own pace, without having to book a workshop in advance. Signs should be placed throughout the gardens, explaining the purpose of different elements - compost, rainwater, plants, ponds, logs, etc.

Food information signs are particularly important since food can be harvested by anyone, at any time.

They need to include:

These signs could be made by keen community members - a workshop to paint the signs would be a great way to get the community involved right from the get-go. Everyone learns about the gardens together, makes their mark, and feels connected to the project.

Garden care events

Garden care events are a great way to bring the community together to get involved, care for their shared resources, and learn more about gardening.

Hosted by the Caretakers, these events could include:

Seasonal harvest parties
Seed collecting
Mulching musters
Making furniture/signage
Crop rotation
Community planning meetings

Access and exclusivity

Considerations to ensure the BACKYARD is accessible and responsive to its local community:

Extended operating hours

The gardens are open and accessible 24/7, but facilities and events need to be supervised by Caretakers. Having extended operating hours, captures both the early and late demographics, ensuring access to various members of the community - office workers, night shift workers, students, young families, stay at home parents, retirees.

Prioritising local hosts

The ability to book facilities should be limited to the immediate community (maybe a 1km radius).

This reduce external competition, uplifts the local community, fosters a sense of ownership and mutual responsibility for a shared resource, and ultimately creates stronger bonds between people and place. Attendees shouldn't be held to this limitation, only organisers.

Prioritising local services

Gardens and facilities should be designed and built by local professionals, materials should be sourced from local suppliers, signs and furniture should be commissioned to local craftspeople or made by the community. This reduces external competition, and stays more local and grounded than going to people who have no connection to the place.

Prioritising local Caretakers

Caretakers should be hired from the local community. Professional horticulturists, groundskeepers. Supporting local people and local economies.

Every BACKYARD should be brought to life by its community, which uplifts the community in return.

This exclusivity will cause FOMO for those outside these parameters - an additional push for councils to create more BACKYARDS. In an ideal scenario, there will be a BACKYARD within walking distance (<1km) of every urban household. A city grid of well-considered green spaces. This will allow each BACKYARD to be connected to its own place, people, community.

Trust and respect

BACKYARDS is open to everyone in the community. Everyone is welcome to enjoy the space, harvest the produce, participate in their community.

There will be a learning curve for the community. Many people have never interacted with a garden before, and will overdraw produce, accidentally damage plants, etc. Many are not used to sharing community resources, and might push back on management decisions, disagree with the use of space and facilities, or face more complex social issues like discrimination. We should expect this to happen, and be prepared to deal with these situations with patience.

Building trust and accountability

Reach out to all members of community to initial project consultation
Develop location-specific community policies collaboratively
Invite all members of the community to ongoing community meetings
Maintain Caretakers presence throughout the day as passive monitoring and safe contact
Host events that encourage community participation
Ensure educational signage is visible and accessible

By coming from a place of generosity, sharing knowledge and resources, and welcoming participation, we can cultivate a sense of common responsibility. Rather than surveillance and punishment, the system should encourage mutual trust and respect.