A look at Athabasca University’s campus gardens, community spaces, and the connections between placemaking, food security, and creative living labs.

This weekend, we’re taking a closer look at some of the amazing places and spaces at Athabasca University in Athabasca, Alberta. Just a short walk from the Academic and Research Centre, where this year’s Graduate Student Conference is taking place, you’ll find some beautiful garden and park spaces.

If you’ve been following our adventures, you’ll know that our living lab program gets pretty busy during the spring and summer months. A lot of our work centres on spatial justice, placemaking, food security, and community gardening. This year, we’ve spent quite a bit of time supporting our partners at Art Borups Corners in Northwestern Ontario, where an Ontario Trillium Foundation-funded community garden program has been bringing people together around food, growing, and community.

So, naturally, we’re always looking for gardens wherever we go. We love seeing how Athabasca University has incorporated garden planters throughout the campus. It’s a simple idea, but it adds so much to the spaces around the buildings. A little greenery, a place to pause, and a reminder that growing things can be part of everyday life, even on a university campus.

We always enjoy finding these little connections between our work and the places we visit. Whether it’s a community garden in Melgund Township or a planter tucked into a university campus, there’s something inspiring about seeing people make room for nature, creativity, and community.

A big thank you to Athabasca University, the Graduate Students’ Association, and the Faculty of Graduate Studies for hosting this year’s Graduate Student Conference last weekend. It’s a beautiful university to visit, and we’re looking forward to coming back.