West Valley Gardens opened its doors to the community only about a year ago. Since then, it has been an oasis of resources for students.
Lindsey Stevens, co-founder and communications director of the gardens and a graduate student studying social justice and human rights, said one of their goals is to tackle the lack of access to food for students.
ASU has a high rate of food insecurity, but the University does little to resolve the issue, Stevens said.
Taking inspiration from The Garden Commons on the Polytechnic campus as well as Pitchfork Pantry, West Valley Gardens raises food for students to take anytime they need.
“It’s walk up, grab as much as you like, or as much as is available, and then you take and it’s as easy as that,” Stevens said.
Another perk of the West Valley Gardens is the addition of a green space on campus, which does not naturally occur in urban areas like ASU’s campuses.
READ MORE: Where the grass is greener: The challenge of sustaining green spaces at ASU
Christopher Higgins, a professor at the School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences and one of the faculty members for the garden, said the space also acts as a resource for students to work on their mental health and find peace in the fast-paced rhythm of university life.
“(Students) can come out here, sit in a shade tree, be in nature, listen to the birds, see some flowers,” Higgins said. “Escape the stress of being a student.”
While addressing food insecurity is an important goal for the garden, this project started with the force of the community and has kept that as a priority throughout all its actions.
Bryan Bergford, a fourth-year student studying social work and the garden’s co-founder and planting manager, said students might not be highly knowledgeable about how food gets on their tables, which is important to prevent many health issues caused by improper growing or food preparation.
“What the students really need is some way to get fresh, clean food,” Bergford said. “Instead of having a Walmart on campus (where) they can go buy their food, I think it would be really beneficial to know where that food comes from (and) how do you grow that food?”
Ken Sweat, a professor in the School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences and a faculty member for the garden, said he was never a gardener himself. But what attracts him to the West Valley Gardens is seeing students engaged in hands-on, experiential learning.
Another faculty member for the organization and professor in the School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, Susannah Sandrin, shares this sentiment.
“My favorite part is the community that (the garden) brings together, and the camaraderie of the people making it happen,” Sandrin said.
Yet, the creation of that community was a hard-won effort and did not come without a fight. The idea to bring a garden to the West Valley campus originated in the early 2000s, but took around two decades to be established.
In its early stages, Sandrin was asked to serve on a committee in the hopes of helping create the garden, but through several iterations, the momentum often stalled. There were several logistical challenges about land, funding and the difficulty of sustaining long-term student involvement.
Among the people who made the garden possible are Stevens, Bergford and Rae Stusen. This group gave the organization the necessary student involvement that allowed the garden to come to life, Higgins said.
“As much as students may think faculty have power at this University, the students actually have a lot more power than they realize,” Sweat said.
The West Valley Gardens reflects a University that actually cares about its students, Sweat said. It stands as a testament to what can happen when timing, collaboration and determination come together.
“If I believed in astrology, I would say the stars were aligned,” Sweat said.
A little over a year after its official opening, West Valley Gardens continues to grow — both literally and figuratively.
On Oct. 25, West Valley Gardens organized a Planting for Pollinators Monarch Conservation Volunteer Day, where anyone could participate in preserving endangered monarch butterflies by planting milkweed and wildflowers — a vital part of their lifespan, Bergford said.
For Jaezem Morgan, a senior studying forensic science, the Planting for Pollinators event was the first time he interacted with the West Valley Gardens.
As a member of the Indigenous community, he wanted to attend the previous event, a Gourd and Winter Squash Planting Demonstration, which focused on the multiple ways Indigenous peoples used gourds for ceremonial practices.
“I’m glad to see ASU West Valley Gardens be in tune with its Indigenous body, always welcoming and accepting of its practices, or possibilities (and) combinations,” Morgan said.
The West Valley Gardens has been a work in progress for years, and while it has only been active for a short timeframe, its achievements mark a new era of growth for ASU.
The garden team sticks by the motto, “they thought they had buried us, but they forgot we were seeds and we grew,” which captures their persistence and success.
Edited by Natalia Rodriguez, Henry Smardo and Pippa Fung.
Reach the reporter at dkovalen@asu.edu.
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Diana NychyporukCommunity and Culture Reporter
Diana is in her first semester with The State Press and second semester at the Cronkite School, pursuing a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication with a minor in political science.
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