Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens

The Phipps Conservatory will preserve staff positions threatened due to pandemic-related revenue losses while mitigating community inequality in well-being and food-security through the digitization of plant-based science and humanities outreach programming. The conservatory will build a framework for digital learning and archive materials for future use by students and researchers through its horticulture reference library. The project will extend more than 300 new public digital opportunities and engage homegrown networks of 300 household raised-bed vegetable gardeners in urban food-desert neighborhoods as a vital community food supply of garden-fresh produce and community beautification, while increasing program participants' social and knowledge capital. The conservatory will also train up to 40 of its staff and more than 150 other botanic garden and museum educators by exchanging knowledge in onsite and online workshops for best practices in community outreach and e-learning.