websites

I like to think that because I took online media classes in college that I have a pretty good eye for judging the format and accessibility of institutional websites. There is, believe it or not, criteria for that sort of thing. I know that internet access doesn't fall into judgeable criteria for my dissertation (which as of right now is set in the 1970s), but I still think its relative to the larger scope. So here are a few botanic garden websites prime for judgement.

Chicago Botanic Garden

New York Botanical Garden

Houston Arboretum and Nature Center

Missouri Botanical Garden

Santa Fe Botanical Garden

Brooklyn Botanic Garden

Garden memories

Thinking about Botanic Gardens has made me nostalgic for the Chicago Botanic Garden in the fall. When I was little, my parents would take me and my sister to their Halloween celebration and volunteers wrapped up like mummies would pop out of the lagoons and chase us to scare the pants off of us. Haha, I don't know whether or not those are happy memories.. More recently, on trips home for my birthday or Thanksgiving I would go for walks or a run on the path that circles the garden with my dad (and on one occasion with my mom, too). I am grateful to the Garden for giving my family the space to be together. What is it about natural spaces that are perfect for bringing people together? What's the draw?

Closer to Christmas maybe I'll dig out the Christmas pictures that were taken at the Garden that never made it to reprint. Yikes. Erica and I with braces... the only time John was ever a fussy baby...

Theme song

This week I've been thinking about what idea I should keep at the center of the early stages of research that will determine the directions I will take and questions I will ask/attempt to answer. I've decided to go with "concepts of urban natural space and access to them." This is vague on purpose so that my work can ask more questions. For example, what enables or prohibits access? Socio-economic factors? Transportation? Cultural beliefs? Also, who creates natural space? Why? How does this change people's access?

This idea of access is a big deal. What does it mean that some urban dwellers will never get to go to an Arboretum, or that some children will never roll down a giant hill that overlooks an English garden? I certainly never gave a thought to how (or if) inner-city school kids got to the Chicago Botanic Garden because I was privileged enough to have it practically in my back yard. But why does it matter? Historians reveal those answers when they put a community's access to nature in the larger context of how that community treats the environment and whether or not they have a say in how the environment is used. A person's relationship with the environment is shaped by their access to natural environments.

What is often hidden from sight are the motives behind the economic and political forces that create the natural spaces (which shape our relationship to the environment) in urban areas. How and why a city government (or a private organization) chooses a specific site for a community garden can influence their community's relationship to the environment depending on who has access to that site. These forces thereby have power over how a community thinks about and uses the environment. Crazy, yes, but not conspiracy theory crazy. These forces don't shape our environments in dark board rooms with men in suits laughing maniacally like Mr. Burns. However, they are done with a social, political or economic agenda, which may benefit or harm a community in multiple and complex ways that aren't revealed until after the fact. Access to natural space matters because it has the potential to give people power over their environment.

Other questions I'm thinking about:

There are sociological and historical studies on how ecological education fosters an appreciation and connection to nature. How much more difficult is it to get this type of education and appreciation from city parks or walking paths or forest preserves? Do we get just what we put in? If so, does the value a community gets from an ecological institutions like a Botanic Garden or Nature Center go as far as the people it reaches?

Gardens

Garden Inspiration #1: The Weatherby rain boot from J.Crew.

I like my topic because I like gardening culture. I don't call myself a gardener, because I'm sure my family would have something to say about that, but do come from stock that can grow amazing tomatoes from seedlings and turn a backyard into a tropical plant sanctuary. As a garden groupie, I naturally gravitate toward garden attire. Rain boots actually double really well as gardening boots. They also contribute really well to my vision of a metaphorical garden groupie--who goes to a botanic garden? Why do they go? Do you have to know anything about nature to appreciate it? How do different types of people appreciate and interact with nature? Do botanic gardens or arboretums do enough to address all of those different types of garden groupies?

Introduction

A formal research proposal is in the works. Here is what I know:

• I am interested in the history of urban areas in the 20th century after WWII, how transportation growth and change during this time changed access to social and cultural resources for people living in these urban areas, especially their access to natural spaces and the environment.
• I grew up a five minute bike ride from the Chicago Botanic Garden, but it was in Northbrook, a suburb at least 30 minutes from the Chicago city limits. I have a special place in my heart for the CBG's English garden and their free access to walkers and bikers year-round, but know this type of easy access is not typical for all Chicago residents.
• I want to know how transportation and socio-economic status facilitates or restricts people's access to public and private natural spaces. I am focusing on botanic gardens and arboretums in urban areas because of their specific mission to reach and educate the public about environmental issues like conservation and sustainability. I want to know how these cultural institutions have transformed or overcome geographic and socio-economic hurdles to reach their intended audience. I also want to know their intended audiences, because they may be different!
• Finally, I need to narrow down the cities where I will locate my study. Right now the list is pretty long and includes New York, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Denver, St. Louis and Memphis. Each city differs either by tradition of environmental institutions, size, level of public transportation/major modes of transportation, and how they were affected by urban growth and decline in the post-war period.

I'm super excited about working on answering these questions and conducting research, but it's daunting sometimes, especially because my project needs to be narrowed down. One step at a time!