Goals

Effective goals are•Purposeful & prioritized•Clear & measurable•Challenging but achievable

For starters, we must be clear about the “why” behind our goals: •Why do we want to achieve them? •What benefits can we expect when we succeed?

Why do you want to have a Community Garden?

HealthTo change community attitudes about eating fresh fruits & vegetables

SocialTo create community around gardening

EconomicProvide an ample harvest to donate or sell

Prioritizing Occasionally our goals may conflict. By setting priorities, we choose where to focus our energies. As we set goals, we should continually ask:

• Is this the right priority now? • What is the “opportunity cost” — the cost of the

time & energy that could be spent in other pursuits?

Priorities Example: “We want to sell vegetables (economic goal), but also change attitudes of children towards eating fresh vegetables (health goal).

• Do you have time to market a program where volunteers sell vegetables, as well as develop a program for engaging students in planting and eating activities, and to do both well?

• Is there another tactic (besides a community garden) that could be used to achieve that goal more effectively? (Think about your “why?”)

• What is the priority of the Community Garden this year?

Knowing your long term priorities and goals will help you determine what types of information you should

keep track of.

Helping you to set Clear & Measurable goals

Clear and Measurable• Without a clear target and deadline, goals have no “teeth”

• It’s one thing to set a goal of creating a program to teach kids about gardening, but until we add “by spring,” the adrenaline doesn´t kick in.

• How many kids? What indicators will you look at to show that the kids learned something? (Had a change in attitude; Had a new experience…)

Helpful Resource:

Collective Impact (Something to consider)

Challenging but AchievableGood goals lift our sights and summon our ambition. • We generally should set goals that we have a reasonable chance of

achieving, though it’s also helpful to set BHAGs — “big, hairy, audacious goals” — that really stretch us.

Remember: You are doing important work. Think big!

• Today 29% of Dubuque residents are obese• Today Dubuque County looses 33,000+ tons of topsoil to erosion

annually• Today Up to 44% of children in schools located in food desert

neighborhoods are overweight• Today 80% of people in Dubuque don’t eat adequate amounts of

fruits & vegetables• We need farmers! Today The average age of a farmer is 55.7+

Example: Feed Iowa First Based on Sonia Kendrick’s assessment that it would take 500 acres of vegetable farms to feed the 26,000 food insecure in Linn County, Iowa – FIF set the ambitious organizational goal of becoming a cooperative of 500 acres of vegetable farms.

• Today Feed Iowa First provides to a network of 22 urban farms seeds, plants, equipment, knowledge, handling, cleaning, and distribution of fresh produce grown on partners land for those in need

• In addition to tracking number of farms, and acres of land in production, they also track pounds of produce grown & donated, which they share on their website and in promotional materials.

(quick plug)

Goals: Common Stumbling Blocks

• Setting the wrong goals, adopting the goals we think we should have or goals others will admire.• Having too many goals. Having three to five well-constructed goals is much better than a litany of 20 goals that risks diluting our efforts.• Lowering the bar after hitting the first obstacle instead of redoubling our efforts. Ratcheting goals down should not be the knee-jerk response to roadblocks.• Not letting our goals see the light of day. Keeping goals to ourselves means we won’t get support from others - and they won’t hold us accountable.• Letting our goals master us. Sometimes all the time and energy we pour into accomplishing something devolves into an unhealthy fixation. We must maintain perspective and flexibility, celebrating progress along the way.

Helpful Frameworks to Consider

Goals Vs. Objectives

Objective Areas:Perhaps you have one big goal, but to achieve it – it will mean improving in several areas. Consider setting specific objectives in certain areas like:

•Ongoing Maintenance •Programs•Projects

Community Garden vs. Rental Garden

Goals for a Community Garden may differ from goals for a garden that is primarily rented out by other gardeners (who you may or may not have a relationship with)

It may, for example, not be possible for you to set objectives with regards to the ongoing maintenance or develop youth programs that takes place in a rental gardens, but you may still be able to track “crop counts” or put together a one-time project (like a work day or celebration) with rental gardens.

Goals TemplateFocus Areas 2016 Objectives & Tasks Needs

(Do any of these things need to happen tomorrow? What’s your timeline?)

What are the main elements of what you want to accomplish this year?

Consider goals relating to:

• Programs

• Projects

• Ongoing Maintenance

Objective: Make the goal listed to the left clear and measurable, with numbers.

Tasks: What do you need to do next? Do you need to clarify your goals more by discussing with partners? Do you need to develop a strategy or crop plan? Order supplies?

What are the materials you need. What kinds of educational resources do you need? (and when?)

Consider what we might provide as a coalition – for example, a workshop on volunteer recruitment, or crop planning. (When?)

Also consider evaluation. Do you need any supplies to keep track of your garden impacts? (When do you need to have that ready?)

Goals Example: Dr. Viner Garden Focus Areas 2016 Objectives & Tasks Needs

(Important to address before 1/22 grant is due)

1 St. Marks/Audobon Program

Objective: Engage 50 students in growing their own produce and learning to prepare and store what they have grown

Tasks: Create a crop plan & activity plan for Spring, Summer and Fall programming for kids to engage in planting/maintenance activities, as well as sampling/food preparation activities and evaluation

Determine Trolley expenses for spring/summer travel from St. MarksSeeds & additional supplies? Supplies for sampling, cookingAdditional materials (cookbooks, curriculum…) *Materials for evaluation? ** Crop plan in workshop with DCGC?

2 Crescent Wellness Center Program

Objective: Engage Crescent Patients in ~1 day/week gardening activities

Tasks: Clarify goals relating to # of healthy meals made using garden-grown food, Create a program plan.

Seeds & garden supplies?Supplies for x number of meals/ cooking activities *Materials for evaluation?** Opportunity to develop crop plan in workshop with DCGC?

3 Improve Maintenance throughout the season

Objective: Ensure garden hours are kept on a regular basis

Task: Develop volunteer recruitment & management strategy. Change locks so participants can get in outside of volunteers-held hours

New lock for easier garden accessMaterials for volunteer recruitment (postcards?)Signage? *Materials for volunteer management/ evaluation?\** Volunteer strategy in workshop with DCGC?

4 Commemorate Crescent’s 10 year anniversary

Objective: Host Gardenpalooza 8/11/16 (How many people?)

Tasks: Event planning, promotion, execution

5 General Create garden layout plan to ensure space for all programs, and community member plots. Prep gardens for Spring programs.  Coordinate other projects (wheelchair-accessible bed, donations of surplus  produce...

Concrete SlabMaterials for Spring bed prep? Printing?

2016 Goal: Garner more participation in the garden

Goals Example: Four Mounds Community Garden Focus Areas 2016 Objectives & Tasks Needs

(Important to address before 1/22 grant is due)

1 Increase productivity of gardeners while

Objective: Provide shared equipment to ease the burden of getting water to gardens

2 heavy duty water hoses, 1 hose cart

2 Quantifying good use of the garden

Objective: Help polling gardeners and surveying garden to help quantify the goods that come from our efforts

Staff to survey, poll (maybe 2 times a year)

2016 Goal: Garner more participation in the garden

Goals Example: Four Mounds- Kitchen Garden Focus Areas 2016 Objectives & Tasks Needs

(Important to address before 1/22 grant is due)

Provide a structure of organization in the garden for planning (timing, plants, plotting), maintenance and positive involvement with Mound Bound program

Objective 1 Develop a garden plan to get garden started and plan projects for youth

Objective 2 Secure volunteer/staff to help us start garden

Objective 3 Develop monthly volunteer days

Staff to sow, plan, and plant garden (plants & seeds)Seeds and plantsVolunteer Days- ideally 1-2 a month

2016 Goal: Garner more participation in the garden

• To teach Crescent patients, students, neighborhood residents, and other low income people how to successfully raise their own produce to supplement their food budgets with healthy food choices through this free community resource (tracking through testimonials*)

• To change the attitudes of a cohort of children and adults about eating fresh vegetables and fruits (tracking changes in attitudes*)

• To teach anyone interested how to easily and inexpensively preserve the produce grown in the gardens through free classes at the Crescent Wellness Center (tracking number of classes, and number of participants in classes*)

• To provide healthy produce to low income people through healthy ingredients in congregate meals served at the downtown churches during the week, during programming with at St. Mark Community Center Summer program students, and Audubon Studentsl, and in nutritious meal preparation classes offered at the Crescent Community Health Center Wellness Center (tracking types and pounds off food donated, utilized in programs*)

• To build a second concrete platform so that a gardener using a wheelchair or leg braces is able to garden (successful completion of project = indicator of success)

Example #2: Dr. Viner Garden Objectives

Discuss goals with garden partners 10 minutes

Resources: • Goals Template & Example

• Data Collection Toolkit

Homework: Clarify goals & ideas to measure progress/impact for the next meeting

Note: the Coalition will discuss mission for the whole Coalition, and collective impact at a later date based on Individual Garden Goals