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Description
The project addresses the need to revitalise Zatorze, which is the oldest and, at the same time, the poorest district of the City of Olszyn. Despite its location (close to the city centre, in the neighbourhood of the largest park in the city), the district suffers from many social and communication problems. It also lacks modern, ecological solutions. In our project we want to increase the engagement of Olsztyn residents in activities aimed at shaping green areas in the city. We will carry out public consultations, workshops, training sessions and meetings with experts. We will show how to take care of the environment during everyday activities, change harmful habits and reduce the waste of resources. We will encourage residents of Olsztyn to repair broken equipment, renovate, remake and reuse old items, use eco-friendly cleaning products, cosmetics, etc. In the Zatorze District we will found an ecological community garden, which will become a place for meetings and civic education for the residents. It will support the creation of grassroots initiatives in the community, help develop neighbourhood networks, and above all, strengthen interpersonal bonds. The ecological community garden will enlarge the green area in the City of Olsztyn. Residents will meet there, grow vegetables, fruit and herbs, in line with the European Commission''s ‘From Farm to Table’ strategy. We will use the social character of the place to integrate the local community. We will also initiate cooperation between residents, NGOs, officials, neighbourhoods councils and other interested people and institutions.
Summary of project results
The main goal of the project was to increase the influence and sense of agency of Olsztyn residents in shaping the local policy of managing green urban infrastructure, through participation in animations, workshops and consultations. We also wanted the garden to become a place for meetings and civic education of residents, establishing grassroots initiatives, neighborhood networks and, perhaps above all, strengthening interpersonal bonds. The idea for the project was born because Zator is one of the oldest and poorest districts of Olsztyn. Numbering over 10 thousand. inhabitants Zator is an industrial district established in the first half of the 19th century. According to data (GUS, 2020), the Zator district has the highest population density in Olsztyn. Even though it is located in the center of almost 200,000 city, paradoxically, it struggles with many social, communication and urban problems. The key problem is the lack of modern ecological solutions as an element of social infrastructure, a platform for cooperation, and at the same time a place
meetings for residents (in Zatorz there is not a single open meeting place for residents, such as a cafe, restaurant, or gardens). Together with our design partners (official and less official ones), we met the needs of the residents of our district and our city. We organized many interesting events, celebrated Earth Day together, cleaned the City Forest and carried out workshops during which everyone found something for themselves. Zator is a district with soul, which is why initiatives such as the community garden fit perfectly into the local landscape.
Thanks to our consulting activities, approved by the local government, we managed to create a concept of community gardens for the city of Olsztyn, with ready-made garden designs that are currently waiting to find appropriate financial resources for implementation.
As part of the project, a community garden was created in the Zator district of Olsztyn. The garden is a place where ecological workshops were held (150 h), and we organized events there (e.g. Earth Day, Family Picnic, cleaning the City Forest).
We implemented a social campaign #dzikomiasty #dzikastronamiasta, the aim of which was to draw attention to undeveloped urban nature, we created a hibernaculum for amphibians, we established cooperation with local media, and we recorded a video promoting the project. The garden also became a starting point for consultations in various parts of the city, with various groups (neighborhood councils, schools, neighborhood groups and associations), resulting in the developed concept of community gardens in Olsztyn, along with their designs. As a social party, we also submitted, in cooperation with social organizations, suggestions for a simplified forest management program for 2024-2034.
We conducted a social survey that showed the attitude of Olsztyn residents towards community gardens, as well as social consultations and the residents'' influence on the development of green areas.
The educational patronage of the project was provided by the Drzewice Forest Education Foundation and the Nexus Foundation.
We welcomed guests from abroad and local activists who were interested in the subject of community gardens in our garden.
We designed and distributed 200 leaflets and 50 posters among residents and social activists of the Zator district and the entire city. In July 2022, during the opening of the garden, we recorded a video promoting our activities and shared it, among others: on Youtube.
From December 2022, we carried out public consultations (80 h) in the field of shaping the local greenery management policy (developing the concept of community gardens for the districts of Zatorze and Olsztyn). We have designed 5 gardens in different parts of the city, which will be implemented once financing is obtained.
Thanks to the pilot project of an ecological social garden, we trained 152 people on the concept of ecology, waste segregation, management of green areas, and we co-organized several mass events (e.g. Earth Day or Wild Meetings), so we interested audiences of various ages in our activities (approximately 1,800 people in total). ).
We managed to increase the level of knowledge and involvement of the district''s residents in the development of green areas (consultation and support in developing the concept of community gardens in Olsztyn).
Activities under the project also increased social and civic activity and independence among residents in the field of topics related to ecology, e.g. submitting suggestions from the social side to the Simplified Forest Management Plan.
Implementation of consultations and creation of the concept of community gardens in the city, we noticed an increase in the sense of agency related to the influence on the creation of green areas (an 88% increase in the number of respondents claiming that they have an influence on the development of greenery in their city), as well as an increase in awareness related to social consultations themselves in themselves and the willingness to take part in them.
The project stimulated interest in nature (high attendance at the meeting with Marcin z Lasu, sleepovers in the forest with Bartek Gunzel, construction of a hibernaculum, inventory walks).
Social consultations and a social capital study showed that there is a need for community gardens in Olsztyn. Initiative Groups that took part in the consultations and have designed gardens will raise funds to finance them.
Employees of the Workshop of Change Foundation will continue to take care of the garden and carry out activities around it. The increase in interest in ecology led to employees deciding to report to the Advisory Council (zero waste food concept) and a related project implemented by the Food Bank.