2020 Awards Finalist

One of the key aims of Seed Sprout Change is to foster a reconnection with nature during isolation through encouraging engagement with indoor gardening as well as building a strong sense of community by sharing knowledge and experience with others, and ultimately question our current food systems by exploring opportunities for self-sufficiency.

 

For this project we have designed an “intravention” during which we have encouraged people to grow their own plants indoors by distributing essential kits and sharing our knowledge on social media. The feedback we received was all very positive and we have shared a survey with participants to complete before and after taking part in our project. 

 

The design of the Gardening Kits sought to splice the consumer from the supermarket and encourage engagement with sustainable growing practices at home. The distribution of seeds through our gardening kits attempted to aid the consumer in crossing 'the barriers' we have created between ourselves and nature. Mimicking natural seed dispersal, we created a system of seed distribution amongst ourselves. Each of our kits included essential gardening materials: seeds, compost and a recycled glass jar or can if needed. The goal of providing limited materials was to encourage creativity and resourcefulness in the gardening process. 

 

Each participant received an email with instructions on how to plant the seeds, along with tips on how to reuse and recycle materials throughout the process. We wanted to encourage the participants to practice sustainable gardening techniques. Within the email we sent out to the participants we included  a survey for each of them to fill out before planting. We wanted to learn about the participant's experience and motivations with gardening. We sent out another survey a few weeks later to learn about the participant's experience after being part of SeedSproutchange. 

 

We created an Instagram and Facebook account with a hashtag in order to build a sense of community and stay connected with our gardening kit participants, with each other and with other gardening  groups. On our social media pages are sections where we post videos or photos to share with gardeners in the community different tips or ideas to implement at home. These sections help answer any gardening questions and offer ways to be creative with planting and harvesting. 

 

We encouraged others, and began ourselves, to utilise neglected spaces that had potential for gardening. We sought to spread the project to shared spaces at a time when social distancing makes sharing resources difficult. For instance, some of the rooftop areas in student accommodations had greenspaces that we used to plant seeds and to replant potted plants. Another option we considered as part of our project was to intervene in our urban environment by “Guerrilla Gardening” – an act of protest toward uncultivated areas and shared spaces around the city to assign a new purpose or reclaim land that is neglected. One of the participants actually decided to take over green spaces at the University of Edinburgh accommodation O’Shea North and South and plant seeds there.

 

“I think it is a positive activity to feel close to nature, especially at a time we cannot go out much. I hope I can learn some gardening skills through this as it is something I have always wanted to try.”