Why we work with councils
Grow It Local was first conceived in 2012 in collaboration with Waverley Council. Now, across the country Grow It Local acts as a year round program which supports council’s key objectives relating to:
- Waste education and organic waste diversion from landfill
- Positive sustainable living behaviours and food systems
- Community engagement and development
Our program enables local people to connect around the themes of growing, sharing and eating locally grown food; more specifically, the sharing of knowledge and skills, space, produce, seeds and seedlings, compost, food waste and more.
PROGRAM OBJECTIVES
Grow It Local is a grass roots, purpose driven mission to get more people growing, sharing and eating locally grown foods.
In doing so we aim to:
- Make growing more accessible
- Increase the production & consumption of locally grown foods
- Provide a connection to nature
- Inspire positive health & wellbeing
- Help build stronger and more resilient communities
- Increase composting and reduce organic waste to landfill
- Do something amazing!
The heart of the program is
- growitlocal.com – an online community that allows people to connect with each other both digitally and in the real world around shared our interests in growing, sharing and eating locally.
- Personalised council dashboards - providing our council members with localised data related to growing; registered growers, composting & worm farming, weekly food waste diversion, and square meters under cultivation.
- Council branded assets to help engage communities and bring the Grow It Local vision to life.
- A local community events program
- Personalised reporting to help councils evaluate the impact of our initiative in their area
- Local Growers Market - a marketplace website for Grow It Local members to share workshops & events, products, produce, space and more.
To learn more, contact our development manager Avi Melniker or view our council participation information pack here.