Gather New Haven

Our Community

From programs designed specifically for children and youth to adult leadership education, our educational programs are as expansive as the rest of our work. Community Health Ambassadors participate in leadership training and further nutrition and wellness education. Through a series of workshops, they learn about communication styles, behavior change methodologies, socio-economic barriers to health, food safety, and more. Graduates of the FBWP are invited to c participate in a community garden, where they have space to grow their own food in community gardens using the skill they learned during the FBWP. 

Brief History

Gather New Haven was established following the merger of New Haven Farms and New Haven Land Trust in 2020. Schooner, Inc., a New Haven environmental education organization with a long history, had previously merged into the New Haven Land Trust. Together, we gathered our resources and commitments to integrate our programs, staff, and systems to move forward as a unified organization.

Neighbors and Nature Thriving Together / Vecinos y Naturaleza Prosperando Juntos

Our tagline conveys our commitment to connecting people to each other as well as to our shared natural resources, and the importance of doing so to grow a vibrant community.

Gather New Haven promotes health, equity, and justice for people and the environment by cultivating connections with each other and our local lands and waters, and by inspiring us to care for ourselves, our community, and the natural world.

Our mission reflects the shared histories and commitments of our predecessor organizations while challenging us to grow deeper in our collective engagement with our community.

Gather New Haven’s predecessor organizations worked closely over a number of years with inherently connected missions and a common commitment to the New Haven community and environment. Over time, the partnership expanded as we shared farm and garden sites, collaborated on programming, and supported one another’s programs. Our organizations ultimately came to realize we could accomplish far more together than independently. Gather New Haven was thus born as New Haven Land Trust and New Haven farms officially became a merged entity. New Haven Land Trust, Connecticut’s first urban land trust, was founded in 1982 to preserve open land in New Haven and give city residents opportunities to access and learn about the environment.

Schooner, Inc. was also founded in the early 1980’s. New Haven Farms was founded in 2012, growing out of the Fair Haven Community Health Center Diabetes Prevention Program. Prior to the merger we convened three community forums to discuss our merger. Those conversations highlighted the value people place on the strong community connections they have created in our gardens, preserves, and through our various programs. Graduates of our Farm-Based Wellness Program as well as our community gardeners are passionate about creating community spaces, growing food, and promoting community health. Our nature preserves attract families, neighbors and bird watchers engaged in protecting and enjoying the natural environment. Our new name, tagline, and mission reflects how important it is for people to connect with each other as they connect with the natural landscape.

We are reaching out to our constituents and gathering our various resources to respond to emerging needs in our communities. We have offered our cooler space for food storage and partnered with other organizations to expand food production. We are also looking beyond current crises to a future in which Gather New Haven plays a critical role in cultivating opportunities, places, experiences, and events that bring people together in common purpose to build a strong, resilient, equitable, and healthy New Haven.

We invite our many supporters and funders to join us in the next stage of our work as we mobilize people and resources to become a more healthy and vibrant community where neighbors and nature thrive together.