Lessons from The African American Garden

During 2022–2024, the New York Botanical Garden was home to the African American Garden, a three-year initiative curated by culinary historian and award-winning author Dr. Jessica B. Harris to highlight the agricultural and horticultural contributions of the African diaspora in the Americas through the lens of plants. Including over 100 different plant species, the Garden explored the ways in which botanical knowledge was created, shared, and protected by African communities in the diaspora, and celebrated its transformative power throughout history. In conversation with food activist and social entrepreneur Henry Obispo, Dr. Jessica B. Harris will talk about the power of plants as signifiers of memory and belonging and the process of translating her long-life scholarly research into a living garden.