Community Gardens as Antidotes to Isolation

By Greg Cook, WHF Associate

Across the nation, more and more people are re-discovering gardening. Some do it to become self-sufficient, while others are concerned about food coming from far-away places. Neophyte gardeners are learning about planting, maintenance, harvesting, nutrition, and preservation. A related trend is the rise in community gardening. Networks of neighbors are pitching in to make vacant spaces in the urban landscape sources of bounty for families and individuals. Sometimes these community gardeners get assistance in the form of small grants, in-kind services or technical advice/expertise from municipalities and/or non-profits.

An example of that in our state is Tacoma’s 2010 initiative to help community gardens throughout the city. Tacoma partnered with The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, Pierce Conservation District, and Cascade Land Conservancy to hire a full-time community garden coordinator. A column from The News Tribune tells some of the story behind that position what it entails. Coordinator Kristen McIvor reports that there is widespread enthusiasm for the gardens, but not just for the obvious reasons. While growing nutritious local food would be an obvious result of the gardens, for many community gardeners “getting to know their neighbors” was important, McIvor said. That anecdotal evidence reinforces research that isolation has an impact on individuals in our society. Community gardens are a way for people to voluntarily get together to accomplish a common task and build local bonds of trust and cooperation while engaging in healthy activity.

An example of the possible links between isolation and chronic diseases comes in the field of immigrant health. Public health workers have found that many immigrants are in good health when they arrive in the U.S., but that their health can often decline as they live here and become acculturated in their communities if residence. Researchers believe one reason for health declines is the stress on family life and social networks. Immigrants typically come from vibrant families, but long hours of work fray those connections. In the film “Unnatural Causes,” one girl tells that when her family lived in Mexico, her mother was at home when the children returned from their school day. But in the U.S., her parents work long hours to support the family and arrive home hours after their children. Fortunately for that family, their community offers a welcoming place for children to come for recreation and tutoring after school. Many school-age children do not have healthy alternatives.

The Washington Health Foundation and the state Department of Health are reaching out to the private and public sectors to look at these issues and join together to fight chronic disease across Washington. It is all about exploring together the best ways to make healthy choices about diet, exercise and tobacco the easy choices.

To learn more about the Healthiest Communities Partnership, click here.