Cultivating Community

When you think of community, a shopping centre doesn’t particularly strike your mind. However, at Burwood Brickworks, cultivating community is the very essence of our day-to-day. We are the place you go to for shopping, grabbing a bite, or catching a movie. We are also the place you go to if you enjoy cultivating a community garden, one of the city’s finest urban farms that not only lives and breathes sustainability, but also joins people at its core.

About Cultivating Community

The urban landscape that Burwood Brickworks sits on houses a little oasis in the form of Cultivating Community, a not-for-profit social enterprise that cultivates connection, opportunity and empowers communities.

And how do we achieve that? Through several gardening and cooking programs that bring together individuals, foster deep connections while also building independence. We do this to ensure greater economic, social and nutritional equality for CALD, migrant and disabled communities across Melbourne.

Partnership with Burwood Brickworks

Cultivating Community’s partnership with Burwood Brickworks is a symphony of like-minded organisations that prioritise connection, inclusivity, culture, and, of course, cultivating communities. What came together in 2022 has evolved into the well-loved Burwood Brickworks rooftop farm, with a dedicated team of expert urban farmers and community members who brought the garden to life.

Burwood Brickworks’ expansive rooftop is home to a thriving urban farm that is cultivated and cared for by members of the Melbourne community. Whether it’s a rooftop garden, a communal green space, an edible landscape or a therapeutic garden – we bring the experience, creativity and heart to deliver spaces that thrive.

Hear Me, See Me Program

Inclusivity takes centre stage at Cultivating Community with our ‘Hear Me See Me’ Earn and Learn program, which empowers the deaf and hard-of-hearing people to gain meaningful, long-term employment.

The proud, hardworking graduates of this program help uplift others from CALD backgrounds, and have now grown to support people in the aged care sector.

Yes, you read right! Our latest, Hear Me, See Me, Employ Me: Aged Care program is another endeavour at cultivating community by helping elderly people enter the employment pathway through cooking skills and attending to the Burwood Brickworks rooftop farm, through the Let’s Grow Something Incredible Together program.

Beyond the Rooftop — Greener Projects Across Melbourne

Beyond the Burwood Brickworks rooftop garden, Cultivating Community is working on a wide range of green projects dotted across Melbourne. We provide services to build community gardens and maintain them, working in tandem with developers, local councils, businesses and community groups to design and maintain beautiful, functional and inclusive green spaces, even in the most complex and challenging environments.

Our green warriors across Melbourne safeguard community gardens with over 150 years of combined horticulture expertise, tailored services for each garden, custom maintenance plans for each stage and season, along with sustainable practices incorporated at every stage.

Food, Culture & Connection at Correa Kitchen

Cooking is not just a way to sustain your body. Rather, it is a journey, an experience, a way to build community and create memories. And we are doing just that at Correa Kitchen. Located in Prahran, Correa Kitchen is an educational culinary hub that focuses on three goals:

• Cooking for employment
• Cooking for independence
• Cooking for connection

Our food literacy programs bring together a melting pot of people from different backgrounds and cultures, celebrating inclusivity and cultural diversity through shared recipes and stories.

Growing a Sustainable Future Together

Be it the Burwood Brickworks rooftop garden or Cultivating Community’s outreach programs to bring together people of underrepresented backgrounds, we are committed to growing a sustainable future together, powered by the goodwill, dedication and love of our volunteers, fellows, participants, and more! Whether you’re a property developer, council, organisation or community leader - if you’re looking to create spaces that foster wellbeing, inclusion and sustainability, we’d love to work with you. Get in touch or request our services brochure at: info@cultivatingcommunity.org.au. To know more about Burwood Brickworks, visit the following link.