EFBL's West End Garden aims to create a sustainable garden that provides opportunities for Black Evanstonians through gardening and mentorship. We want to demystify the negative connotations around gardening for Black people, address health and food inequity in Evanston’s only food desert, and reintroduce gardening as a means of liberation.

This garden will serve as a brave space to heal and address the complicated and traumatic relationship between Black people and the environment. While there are many historical and theoretical approaches to unpacking how Black people have been harmed in outdoor spaces, we hope that the West End Garden can become a more tangible action to repair the lasting wounds caused by environmental racism. The garden will also work to combat the intentional elimination of green spaces in the 5th ward. We aim to address the impacts of the food desert in the 5th ward caused by redlining and the intentional and systemic divestment of Black communities in Evanston by providing fresh produce to the community. We hope to address our overarching mission of providing life-affirming institutions for Black Evanston residents through the West End Garden project. 

Please direct all questions and contacts to: [email protected]