Our mission is to improve access to fresh vegetables for newly arrived refugee families and their urban neighbors; feed the souls of displaced farmers through re-connection with the soil and food production; provide supplemental income for participating refugee farmers; and foster new, refugee-operated farms.
Global Gardens Chicago has had impressive growth over the few years, with significant achievements in both economic impact and community engagement. Our six market farmers, all of whom are refugees from Burma or Burundi, generated over $100,000 in revenue from less than half an acre of land in 2024. $25,717.42 of this revenue was donated to seven local food security organizations and our farmers were reimbursed for those donations through a grant. Aside from our six farmers who grow for sale, we also host 65 refugee families (with anywhere from 2-8 people per family) growing for home consumption.
We’ve recently seen significant growth in community engagement and public-facing activities. Our refugee farmer-led cooking series, which attracted 88 attendees throughout the 2024 season, and our summer concert series, with over 550 guests and $3,700 in donations, were key highlights. Between all our programs and all the mouths our vegetables feed, we estimate that we served 20,000 people in 2024.