Language:
Search
 
Community in Bloom
National Parks Board
Singapore

The Problem

The greening of the island began when the then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew presented his vision of Singapore as a Garden City - with a series of government and civic activities to buffer the negative impact of urban growth, culminating in the garden city environment of today. In 1963, he launched a tree-planting campaign, which fostered communal bonding among grassroots leaders, politicians and their constituents. Today, the annual Tree Planting Day re-affirms the nation's commitment towards maintaining a clean and green environment. Recognising the need for a steering committee to coordinate and guide the greening efforts and to mediate among the agencies involved, the Prime Minister formed the Garden City Action Committee (GCAC) in 1973. Through rapid and tremendous development over the past 40 years, Singapore has transformed itself into a highly urbanized and industrialized nation. To buffer the negative impact of urban growth, our government actively pursued policies to ensure that greenery remains very much a part of its urban landscape. The National Parks Board (NParks) manages Singapore’s greenery and its related recreational services. It regulates the provision of greenery in both private and public developments, conserving Singapore’s natural environment, to result in the garden city environment of today. Moving forward, Singapore has reached a stage where strong public-people-private sector partnership is necessary to sustain our greenery developments. It is also important to cultivate an appreciation of greenery in the people of Singapore, and to garner their support towards Government’s greening efforts.Today, Singapore is often recognised globally as a premier Garden City and the challenge is to bring greenery closer to people and to create a sense of community and belonging. The challenge is to inculcate a better appreciation and awareness on the importance of community ownership of the common space and integration of our community. Building a community of people with passion for gardening complement well the great greenery infrastructure in the city, thus fulfilling the role of community bonding and environmental consciousness.

Solution and Key Benefits

 What is the initiative about? (the solution)
Gardening provides a form of emotional expression and release that helps people heal both mentally and physically. Just looking at trees and plants reduces stress, lowers blood pressure, and helps muscle tension. Even a small garden can relieve stress. Gardening stimulates the senses, especially for older adults. The interesting sights, sounds, textures, and scents inspire memories and connections to the past. The therapeutic effects of gardening are well documented and studies have shown that patients looking into a garden heal faster. There are many active community gardening groups island-wide, located among the residential estates, schools and organisations. The response towards Community In Bloom has been encouraging. The publicity generated by the media from exhibitions like the celebration of Clean & Green Singapore and Singapore Garden Festival has resulted in many new groups indicating their interest in starting their own gardening projects under this programme.Community in Bloom gardens are safe, beautiful outdoor spaces on public or private lands, where neighbours meet to grow and care for ornamental and flowering plants, vegetables, herbs/spices and other plant species. The gardeners take initiative and responsibility for organizing, maintaining and managing the garden area. Participation in ‘Community In Bloom’ builds skills and creates positive community development that is widely accessible to a diverse range of people. It brings people of different races and ages together in a fun environment. Gardening transcends racial and political boundaries. Gardening together as a community promotes interracial bonding which is crucial to Singapore’s multicultural society.Since its inception in May 2005, Community in Bloom has witnessed a number of positive changes to the communities it has affected. Examples are:· neighbours returning to outdoor green spaces; · school teachers using gardens as outdoor classrooms; · daycare providers integrating outdoor play with indoor activities; · senior citizens gathering and socializing in the gardens All of these are evidence that increased community involvement and improved environment provide better community bonding and better neighborhoods.

Actors and Stakeholders

 Who proposed the solution, who implemented it and who were the stakeholders?
NParks initiated the CIB programme, which aims to nurture a gardening culture among the population by encouraging and facilitating urban community gardening efforts. It is based on collaborative partnerships with both the public and private sector organizations, and volunteer groups to facilitate community gardening efforts in residential estates, schools and organisations. The key partnerships involve more than 50 organizations such as the 5 Community Development Councils, Peoples’ Association, Residents and Neighbourhoods Committees, Singapore Gardening Society, National Youth Achievement Award, Singapore Environment Council, Nature Society of Singapore, Singapore Institute of Landscape Architects, Institute of Parks and Recreation, Landscape Industry Association Singapore, Housing and Development Board and private plant nursery companies.With a seed funding provided by NParks’ parent ministry, the Ministry of National Development, CIB started with a handful of pilot projects across the island in late 2004. The 6-months pilot phase culminated in the launch of the programme in May 2005. The response towards CIB has been encouraging. There are now 250 active community gardening groups island-wide, located in residential estates, schools and organizations. The gardens are self-sustained by the participants.

(a) Strategies

 Describe how and when the initiative was implemented by answering these questions
 a.      What were the strategies used to implement the initiative? In no more than 500 words, provide a summary of the main objectives and strategies of the initiative, how they were established and by whom.
CIB is a bottom-up initiative. It is built on 5 key principles:a. Outreach: Creating awareness on the benefits of gardening through various channels of publicity such as roadshows, cyberspace, electronic and print media.b. Sustainability: Equipping start-up groups with the knowledge on how to start their community gardening projects on the right track.c. Partnership: Establishing strategic partnerships with the public sector (Town Councils, National Library Board, Housing Development Board, Community Development Councils, etc), the industry and NGO’s (such as Singapore Gardening Society and Green Culture Singapore), as well as connecting gardening groups together.d. Nurturing: Inculcating an appreciation for gardening in our youths through gardening projects in schools. Nurturing also extends to community gardening groups where they are given the opportunity to excel.e. Recognition: Recognising and rewarding good gardening efforts by the community, as well as contributions from individuals and groups towards the CIB movement.

(b) Implementation

 b.      What were the key development and implementation steps and the chronology? No more than 500 words
There are various types of community gardens in Singapore and these are sited in open green spaces within public and private housing estates, schools, organisations and in public parks. Depending on the location and the community involved, they can have disparate functionality and ways of managing them.Community Gardens in Public Housing EstatesResidents from public housing estates are encouraged to set up community gardens on common green spaces within their estates, together with support from the Residents’ Committees, the local association of residents. These gardens are usually small-scale, with plot sizes ranging from 30 m2 to 1000 m2. There is a preference for growing food plants such as vegetables, herbs and spices, which can be attributed to an instinctive need among the gardeners to relieve the ‘good old kampong (community village) days’. As such, these gardens become a means of bringing a sense of belonging, especially for the retired and senior citizens. Community Gardens in Private Housing EstatesCommunity gardening is largely carried out on small pockets of spaces available on the roadside green verge typically in front of their homes. Collectively, these individual roadside gardens make up a community garden. Volunteering residents formed the Neighbourhood Committees, supporting the community gardening initiative at their estate. For private housing estates, the key function of their community garden is to beautify their home frontage. Collectively, their roadside gardens can also enhance the existing streetscape greenery, adding splashes of colours and vibrancy to their estate.Community Gardens in SchoolsCommunity gardens within the green common spaces of schools allows students, teachers, parent-volunteers and non-teaching staff to have the opportunity to grow and care for their plants. Used as outdoor classrooms for experiential learning, schools often have more than one type of thematic gardens. These includes Herbs and Spice Garden, Butterfly Gardens, Cactus Gardens, etc., and many more. Gardening is included in the curriculum of the teaching programme to enrich topics such as science. With the urban youth becoming more detached from nature, experiences through gardening are beneficial to the young who hitherto had little opportunity in our urban city. Therefore, the love of nature and gardening is made fun and introduced to the kids, to start them from young.Community Gardens in OrganisationsOrganisations such as hospitals, welfare homes and place of worships, staff and volunteers are the ones who nurture the community gardens within the compound. The roles of the community gardens vary widely according to the needs of the organizations. For example, community gardening activity in hospital is one good form of therapy for patients. The garden setting provides a good therapeutic environment where patients relax and heal faster.Community Gardens in Public ParksCommunity gardens complement public parks in providing the population with the benefits of green spaces and recreation yet also fulfilling a role in community development. Set up and tended by park users who reside nearby, these community gardens become a focal point for the neighbouring community as well as providing for an alternative source of activities and attractions for the people.

(c) Overcoming Obstacles

 c.      What were the main obstacles encountered? How were they overcome? No more than 500 words
Changing mind-sets and influencing behaviour are real challenges, and take time to produce results. This includes a long-term commitment in educating people from young about the benefits of gardening. One way is through the involvement of students in schools ranging from pre-school to tertiary levels with garden-related activities. One strategy to address this problem is to build gardening and appreciation of greenery into the school curriculum. NParks developed teacher’s resource books and gardening engagement activities for students that value-add to the existing curriculum and encourage self-directed learning and nature appreciation. NParks cannot be alone in driving the community gardening movement. It is essential that we establish partnership with other government agencies to provide additional support for the communities. Collaborations with non-government organisations are also important, as these groups are valuable in cultivating the gardening culture and community gardening interest among the community. Galvanising support from the grassroots level is also central to the success of the CIB programme. These grassroots organisations are empowered to manage the community garden projects within their estate as well as facilitating to resolve problems at the local level.

(d) Use of Resources

 d.      What resources were used for the initiative and what were its key benefits? In no more than 500 words, specify what were the financial, technical and human resources’ costs associated with this initiative. Describe how resources were mobilized
Exhibitions to educate the public on the benefits of community gardening are conducted frequently at community and grassroots events and road shows. Other outreach programmes including workshops, seminars, training sessions, promotional talks and conducting courses on gardening were also organised at various community centres and libraries.As part of its overall strategy to instill a gardening culture, NParks is developing a Horticulture Park to showcase demonstration gardens, plants, garden furniture and equipments. To be officially opened in mid-2008, it will also comprise features such as plant clinics and nurseries. Public education programmes will be organised to increase the public awareness of plants and gardening. This Park will serve as the hub from which future community gardening initiatives will be built and sustained.NParks also leverages on opportunities in mainstream media such as newspapers, as well as grassroots media such as newsletters, to reach out to the masses. With the world becoming more connected via cyberspace, information on the CIB programme can be found online. Two gardening blog sites, ‘Garden Voices’ and ‘Young Gardeners’, for adults and children respectively, were created as well. Efforts in promoting community gardening in Singapore are complemented and enhanced by the biennial ‘Community In Bloom’ Awards, a national gardening competition organised by NParks. The Awards serve to recognise and reward the efforts of the communities in setting up and maintaining their community gardens, and to showcase exemplary gardening efforts among the community, at prestigious events such as the biennial Singapore Garden Festival.

Sustainability and Transferability

  Is the initiative sustainable and transferable?
While it is vital that community gardening groups were given adequate support at the initial stage, their sustainability needs the strong support and involvement of the community. This includes the management, running and maintenance of these gardens, which is by the communities, as this promotes self-reliance and fosters closer community bonding among the participants. The cost of setting up and maintenance is also borne by the community as this again instills a greater sense of ownership, which will, in turn, ensure a greater chance of success. NParks facilitates community self-help through activities for sharing of gardening information and materials. Forums for gardeners from different communities are organized periodically to share and exchange knowledge. Interactions between communities through facilitating visits to other gardens is especially useful for start-up community gardeners as they can form partnerships with the more experienced gardeners in their gardening efforts. With such community self-help network, community gardens will become self-sufficient in times to come.

Lessons Learned

 What are the impact of your initiative and the lessons learned?
There is a need to develop and sustain a gardening culture in Singapore. A strong partnership between the people, public and private sectors, coupled with keen support and participation are vital in the success of the ‘Community In Bloom’ programme. ‘Community In Bloom’ provides excellent opportunities for people to come together to do gardening. NParks promote and spearhead community gardening in Singapore, with the underlying objective of developing a gardening culture among the people in Singapore. This provides for a structural framework, which ensures that adequate guidance is given to kick-start a community garden project, whilst encouraging sustainability at the grassroots level. These have helped to improve the participation rate of the CIB programme from the initial estimated 120 community gardens to 250 by 2007.The natural environment stimulates social interaction between people. Gardening offers a platform for spontaneous and attractive social interactivity that is engaging and therapeutic. One major reason for the success in gardening is that gardening also buffers the impact of life's stresses on people and helps them deal with adversity. The greater the amount of nature exposure, the greater the benefits. The community observed that gardening outdoors and exposure to the natural environment improves cognitive development by improving their awareness, reasoning and observational skills, particularly in children. Our key partners in schools and community realizes the value that gardening helps children develop powers of observation and creativity and instills a sense of peace and being at one with the world. Early experiences with the natural world have been positively linked with the development of imagination and the sense of wonder. Wonder is an important motivator for life long learning. Children who play in nature have more positive feelings about each other.While enhancing interaction and strengthening bonds as a community, ‘Community In Bloom’ allows people to share gardening knowledge and tips, using their creativity to beautify the place that they work, play and live. And it is this sense of joy and spirit of togetherness in gardening that will help to transform Singapore – ‘A Garden City’ into a ‘City in a Garden’.

Contact Information

Institution Name:   National Parks Board
Institution Type:   Government Agency  
Contact Person:   Anlyn Loh
Title:   Manager (Organisation Development)  
Telephone/ Fax:   +65 6471 7819
Institution's / Project's Website:   +65 6472 3033
E-mail:   anlyn_loh@nparks.gov.sg  
Address:   National Parks Board Headquarters, Singapore Botanic Gardens, 1 Cluny Road
Postal Code:   259569
City:   Singapore
State/Province:   Singapore
Country:   Singapore

          Go Back
Print friendly Page