The Habitat Garden 

Lutruwita  📍

In 2024, a flourishing garden was created on an unused and unloved piece of lawn at the front of New Horizons preschool. The garden was carefully tended to by the children and grew into a place rich in plant and animal life – which included edible natives, a bug hotel, feed for birds and art installations. As part of the ecological literacies project, the team at New Horizons Preschool decided to utilize this flourishing co-created Habitat Garden. However, at the beginning of 2026 (during the summer break), the previous owners abruptly razed the garden without consultation or warning, leaving a lifeless patch of dirt. At the beginning of the preschool year the children returned to this site of ecological devastation; the eco-literacies project radically shifted. In processing the loss of their beloved garden, the children and educators were forced to move beyond standard pedagogical reflections and confront deeper, uncomfortable truths about power, land control, and environmental ethics.