The project promoter was Egnahemsfabriken Tjörn, a platform and meeting place for social construction run by civil society on the island of Tjörn in Sweden since 2017. The goal of the organisation is to create more routes to homeownership for more people and to provide a cross-border meeting place around construction and design.

The green space at Egnahemsfabriken had fallen into obscurity as no one had the time to plan and structure its development. However, the space presented an opportunity to be developed into a garden and outdoor environment that could be enjoyed as a meeting space that could bring people together. The organisation aimed to work with volunteers to design and develop the garden. Through additional activities, such as lectures and workshops, a wider range of people could be attracted to come to Egnahemsfabriken and get informed about sustainable living.

The objective of the project was to make Egnahemsfabriken a more pleasant and beautiful meeting place and to highlight the importance of garden cultivation as a suitable transition towards leading a more sustainable lifestyle.

The project aimed at being able to welcome visitors to the location of the organisation, especially during the summer months. The new garden and cultivated green space were designed to attract a different target group than those who usually visit Egnahemsfabriken.

The project activities were implemented with the help of volunteers and included all aspects of developing a neglected green space into a garden. Project implementation started with the planning and drawing of the garden to create a structure for how it should be developed. During this stage, it was important to communicate with people who spend a lot of time on-site to capture as many perspectives as possible.

The main work involved the detailed planning of flower beds, buying plant material and gardening tools, sowing seeds and raising seedlings. This was complemented by more construction work, which included the making of compost and growing boxes, a water tower, signage and a workbench. Existing material was upgraded, such as pallet collars being repainted and shelves being built in a storage area.

For the new garden to flourish, maintenance work needed to be organised such as trimming, grass cutting, gravel laying, painting, window washing, etc. The organisation of running working days (open working afternoons) for volunteers was thereby an important task.

A further activity involved the planning and organisation of awareness-raising events, such as workshops and lectures, to promote the project, learn about sustainable living and disseminate communication materials.

After the first phase, additional work involved planting a new large flower bed with trees and perennials in several parts of the garden and redesigning part of the new space to adapt it better to the needs of the garden users.

An ongoing task was to spend time integrating the garden with the workplace in general and to conduct conversations about how the garden could be further developed to fulfil its full potential in future.