Community Garden Leadership

Mission and vision statements are essential for community gardens. These statements provide a framework that guides the garden's development, ensuring that all activities align with its core purpose and long-term aspirations. They help in decision-making, resource allocation, and in communicating the garden's goals to the community, volunteers, and stakeholders. Now that you have identified your garden type, you are now able to enhance your garden's mission and vision to align with current garden activities.

A mission statement formally communicates an organization’s aims and values and answers the question “what do we do”. For many organizations, this statement serves as a north star and guides business decisions. For example, a community garden's mission statement might articulate a commitment to fostering social cohesion, promoting environmental sustainability, or improving access to fresh produce in underserved communities.

A vision statement communicates an organization's long-term, aspirational goals. The vision statement answers the question “what will we do over the course of our existence”. Oftentimes, a vision statement includes a goal that the organization may not be able to achieve alone or at its current scale. For many organizations, this statement informs strategic partnerships and provides direction. For example, a vision statement for a community garden might express the goal of transforming the neighborhood into a vibrant, inclusive hub where individuals of all backgrounds can connect, learn, and grow together in a concise and aspirational way.

Community gardens must have both mission and vision statements to maintain focus and prevent "mission creep," a phenomenon where an organization’s activities begin to stray from its original objectives. Mission creep can dilute resources, confuse stakeholders, and ultimately undermine the garden’s effectiveness. By contrast, mission alignment—ensuring that all activities and decisions are consistent with the stated mission and vision—helps community gardens remain purposeful and impactful.

Upload assignment: Write or refine your community garden’s mission and vision statement using your deep organizational knowledge and the provided community garden typology. Include a brief description of the services your garden provides to support the vision and mission statements. If you believe your current mission and vision is accurate, please explain more about your organization in the description.

Submit your statement here, then once you have completed Section 1.1 move onto the next Section 1.2: Discovering Organizational Purpose