A green thumb was not always a skill set prison inmates could expect to gain during their time spent in correctional facilities. But many prisons from coast to coast have started to use gardens to help rehabilitate inmates and teach them basic landscaping skills that can later be used to get a job after they have served their time.
All 18 state prisons in the state of Connecticut have garden programs for their inmates, last year producing over 35,000 pounds of produce to reinvest in the prison system, saving taxpayers’ money. But more importantly the therapeutic fruits of these gardeners’ labors have helped many find calm in what can be a very hostile environment.
“We believe that everybody has a heart and everybody has a chance for transformation,” said Beth Waitkus, the director of the Insight Garden Program that started 10 years ago at San Quentin prison. “What happens with gardening is … they reconnect to themselves. They reconnect to their feelings. They reconnect to each other as a community, a small community in the prison, and they really reconnect to nature. And, I think that offers a huge opportunity for transformation when we reconnect to ourselves and to the natural world.”
We believe that prison gardens provide inmates with a great opportunity to reconnect with nature, which in turn can reduce violence, improve mental health and reduce recidivism rates. The Garden of Reflection at the Maryland Correctional Institution enables inmates to make amends for their crimes and prepare to reenter society.
Beth’s work was featured recently on ABC World News Report. You can watch the video with interviews with inmates working with Insight Garden Program below and read more here.
