Founded in 1979, the American Community Gardening Association (ACGA) is the leading membership organization for the community gardening movement in the United States and Canada. The binational scope reflects ACGA’s recognition that community gardening movements in both countries face similar opportunities and challenges, and that knowledge exchange across borders strengthens both.
ACGA serves as:
- Advocate
- Resource Hub
- Convener
- Voice for thousands of community gardens and the millions of people who participate in them
Unlike organizations focused primarily on home gardening or horticultural excellence, ACGA concentrates specifically on community gardens—shared spaces where people come together to grow food, flowers, and community connections.
Mission
The American Community Gardening Association’s mission is to build community by increasing and enhancing community gardening and greening across the United States and Canada. Central to ACGA’s mission is community building—the recognition that community gardens create and strengthen social connections essential to healthy, resilient neighborhoods.
In an era of increasing social isolation, declining civic participation, and neighborhood fragmentation, community gardens provide spaces where people interact regularly, collaborate toward shared goals, and build relationships across lines of age, ethnicity, class, and background.
The organization recognizes that community gardens are more than agricultural spaces; they’re:
- Social infrastructure where relationships form
- Food security is strengthened
- Environmental stewardships is practiced
- Communities taking ownership of their neighborhoods’ health and vitality
Community gardens take many forms:
- Neighborhood plots where residents each tend individual spaces
- Collaborative gardens where community members work together on shared beds
- Youth garden providing hands-on education
- Therapeutic gardens supporting healing and wellness
- Market gardens generating income for participants
- Cultural gardens preserving heritage and tradition
ACGA serves all these models, recognizing that community gardening means different things in different contexts but shares core values of participation, collaboration, sustainability, and community empowerment.
The mission positions community gardens primarily as community-building tools that happen to involve plants rather than simply as food production sites.
Services
The American Community Gardening Association delivers a comprehensive suite of services designed to support existing community gardens, facilitate new garden creation, strengthen the community gardening field, build networks, and advocate for policies supporting community gardens.
National Community Gardening Conference:
ACGA’s flagship service is organizing the annual National Community Gardening Conference, bringing together hundreds of community gardeners, garden coordinators, urban agriculture practitioners, nonprofit leaders, researchers, policymakers, and supporters from across North America.
Growing Communities Curriculum:
ACGA developed and distributes the Growing Communities Curriculum, a comprehensive training program for community garden leaders.
The curriculum covers essential topics:
- Starting community gardens
- Organizational development
- Garden design and infrastructure
- Soil and composting
- Sustainable practices
- Programming and community engagement
- Fundraising and resource development
- Leadership development
- Addressing common challenges
The curriculum can be delivered as in-person training workshops or adapted for self-study, making it accessible to diverse audiences.
Technical Assistance and Consultation:
ACGA provides technical assistance to communities starting gardens, existing gardens facing challenges, municipalities developing community garden programs, and organizations integrating gardens into their work.
Online Resource Library:
ACGA maintains an extensive online library of resources supporting community gardens:
- Fact sheets on topics from composting to conflict resolution
- Sample garden rules and agreements
- Garden design templates
- Fundraising guidance
- Programming ideas
- Research summaries
- Links to additional resources
Growing Communities Database:
ACGA developed a searchable online database of community gardens allowing gardens to create profiles, share information, and connect with others. The database functions as directory, networking tool, and research resource.
Advocacy and Policy Support:
ACGA advocates for policies supporting community gardens at local, state, and federal levels. This includes:
- Promoting municipal policies that provide land access, water access, liability protection, and funding for community gardens
- Advocating for inclusion of community gardens in food secuirty, public health, and community development initiatives
- Supporting federal programs that fund community gardens
- Providing policy resources helping local advocates make the case for supportive policies in their communities
Networking and Connection:
ACGA facilitates connections among community gardeners through online forums, email listservs, regional networks, and conference networking.
Publications and Communications:
ACGA produces newsletters, email updates, blog posts, and publications sharing:
- Community garden news
- Highlighting innovative gardens and programs
- Providing practical tips
- Keeping the community informed about policy developments, funding opportunities, and field trends
Research Support and Knowledge Generation:
ACGA supports research on community gardening by facilitating:
- Researcher access to gardens and gardeners
- Disseminating research findings in accessible formats
- Contributing to knowledge development about community gardens’ impacts, best practices, and challenges
Awards and Recognition Programs:
ACGA recognizes excellence in community gardening through awards honoring:
- Outstanding gardens
- Exemplary leaders
- Innovative programs
- Supportive organization or individuals
Membership Services:
ACGA provides services specifically for members:
- Discounted conference registration
- Access to members-only resources
- Subscription to communications
- Networking opportunities
- Voting rights in organizational governance
Collaborations and Partnerships
The American Community Gardening Association’s work depends on extensive partnerships across sectors:
- Nonprofit organizations
- Government agencies
- Academic institutions
- Foundations
- Grassroots community groups
Local and Regional Community Garden Networks:
ACGA serves as umbrella organization bringing together local networks, facilitating peer exchange among them, and amplifying local innovations nationally. ACGA partners with local community garden networks, coalitions, and support organizations in cities and regions across North America.
Urban Agriculture and Food Justice Organizations:
ACGA collaborates with organizations working on:
- Urban agriculture
- Food justice
- Food security
- Local food systems
Municipal Parks and Recreation Departments:
Many community gardens exist on public land managed by municipal parks departments. ACGA partners with cities developing or supporting community garden programs, providing technical assistance on program design, sharing model policies and practices, and connecting cities with resources.
Cooperative Extension Services:
Partnerships with Extension offices nationwide connect community gardens with:
- Horticultural expertise
- Research-based growing information
- Master Gardener volunteers who often provide crucial support to community gardens
Public Health Organizations:
Recognizing community gardens’ health benefits, the ACGA partners with public health departments, health nonprofits, and healthcare organizations to promote:
- Fresh produce access
- Physical activity
- Stress reduction
- Social connection
Environmental and Sustainability Organizations:
ACGA collaborates with environmental nonprofits on shared interests:
- Urban greening
- Habitate creation
- Stormwater management
- Environmental education
- Climate resilience
- Sustainable practices
Organizations working on green infrastructure, urban ecology, or climate adaptation may partner with ACGA recognizing community gardens’ environmental contributions.
Academic and Research Institutions:
ACGA partners with universities and research institutions studying community gardens to:
- Document impacts
- Evaluate programs
- Identify best practices
- Examine social and ecological processes in gardens
University partnerships may also involve:
- Student internships
- Service learning projects
- Academic courses incorporating community garden work
Foundation and Corporate Funders:
ACGA relies on philanthropic support from foundations and corporations interested in:
- Community development
- Food security
- Urban greening
- Health promotion
Foundation partnerships provide:
- Operational support
- Enable program development
- Fund research
- Support capacity building
Corporate partners from gardening industry, food companies, or businesses with community investment priorities may provide:
- Financial support
- In-kind donations of supplies or equipment
- Employee volunteers
National Gardening Organizations:
ACGA maintains relationships with organizations like:
- The National Garden Bureau
- The National Gardening Association
- The American Horticultural Society
Food Policy Councils and Food System Organizations:
ACGA engages with:
- Food policy councils
- Food system planning initiatives
- Orgnaizations working on food policy at local and national levels
Partnerships advance food democracy by ensuring that grassroots food growing is recognized alongside institutional food system components.
Community Development and Neighborhood Organizations:
Since community gardens often serve community development functions, ACGA partners with:
- Community development corporations
- Neighborhood associations
- Community organizing groups
Outreach Services
Expanding community gardening and reaching diverse audiences requires strategic outreach to:
- Communities interested in starting gardens
- Existing gardens seeking support
- Policymakers who influence resources and policies
- Funders who can support gardens
- Researchers studying gardens
- General public whose awareness supports the movement
Conference as Outreach:
The annual conference functions simultaneously as member service and outreach opportunity.
Growing Communities Curriculum Dissemination:
Making the curriculum widely available—through workshops, downloads, and train-the-trainer models where local organizations deliver the training—extends ACGA’s educational reach far beyond direct service capacity.
Policy Advocacy and Visibility:
Advocacy work reaches policymakers and decision-makers while generating media coverage that builds public awareness. When ACGA testifies at hearings, comments on regulations, or advocates for supportive policies, organizational visibility increases among audiences who influence community gardening’s future.
Research Dissemination:
ACGA shares research findings through:
- Accessible summaries
- Blog posts
- Conference presentations
- Publications that translate academic research for practitioners and policymakers
Educational Webinars and Virtual Programming:
ACGA offers webinars and virtual events on community gardening topics, making professional development accessible regardless of geography or ability to travel.
Transparency Links
- The American Community Garden Association is not currently rated at Charity Navigator
- The American Community Garden Association at Candid
- The American Community Garden Association at Propublica’s Non-Profit Explorer
Visit communitygarden.org
The American Community Gardening Association represents and supports one of the most organic, participatory, and hopeful movements in contemporary North America:
- The movement of neighbors coming together to transform empty lots into productive gardens
- To grow food where food was scarce
- To build relationships where isolation prevailed
- To take ownership of their communities’ health and beauty
For over four decades, ACGA has championed this grassroots movement, providing resources, connections, advocacy, and visibility that strengthen community gardens and expand their reach.
Visit communitygarden.org to access resources, connect with the community gardening network, learn about the annual conference, explore membership benefits, find community gardens near you, or discover how to start a garden in your own neighborhood.
