Rooted in the community:Tools for engagement at public gardens
Date
2013
Authors
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Public gardens are important cultural institutions in their communities but the
audience walking through their gates may not reflect the diverse demographics of their
local community. In order to remain relevant, public gardens must do more to become
socially inclusive and intentionally reach a broader audience. Every public garden
offers a different experience for its visitors but this research aimed to document how
public gardens can learn from one another in developing engagement strategies.
Primary objectives of this research were to document success stories in community
engagement and to create a toolkit of best practices.
This research surveyed 18 public gardens and included interviews with
selected staff from nine public horticulture institutions to identify how community
engagement programs are best created and sustained. The interviews also provided
specific examples of current programs that aim to reach a variety of underrepresented
audiences.
Recommendations for community engagement initiatives were compiled based
on key findings from interviews and survey results. Research indicated that successful
programs stand on the foundation of making community engagement an institutional
priority. Data emphasized the importance of having a clear understanding of the needs
and interests of the local community. Additional findings identified the most valuable
benefits of community engagement as increased public awareness and the ability to
extend the institution’s mission and messages to a broader audience. The most common obstacle to this is funding but the research revealed a variety of ways to fund
engagement efforts such as securing public and private grants and developing creative
partnerships. Strategy for creating successful programming included a willingness to
experiment and creativity in adapting current organizational capacities in order to
attract new audiences.