COOPERATIVE GARDENS AS SCIENCE OUTREACH EDUCATION SITES

Cooperative organic food gardens are ideal venues for: formal and informal science education; service learning; and outreach education. The SEEd (Sustainable, Edible, Educational) Garden created by students and faculty at California Lutheran University illustrates the potential of these gardens. Some educational functions are directly tied to curriculum: for example, an in-garden outdoor classroom is used for introductory level investigations in soil science, and is suitable for more advanced students investigating site-specific enironmental challenges. Other courses use the space for formal and informal exercises in land ethics and environmental literature. Campus life, athletic, and community groups fulfill service learning requirements there, and a regional body of college educators has used it as a service learning site. College student-mentors bring children from a nearby school to the garden for nature education in plants and soils. The public relations benefits to the Geology and Environmental Science programs, though not the original goal, have been considerable.

Affiliated gardens in the region (Ventura County and Santa Barbara County, California) are active in science education and serve as mentoring sites for college students interested in science outreach. These include 501c3 organizations, eco-education-oriented small commercial farms, historic sites, a county agricultural trust, and community gardens designed to serve food-insecure residents. Collectively, these gardens play a role in science education while serving altruistic functions in their communities.