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Woman Gardening Outdoors
​“Obviously, learning in the classroom setting is important, but there is something very special about giving our students the opportunity to have hands-on experiences on the rooftop,”

Jack Maruna, alumnus of The Department of Agriculture Economics & Rural Sociology

Culinary Arts

A rooftop garden becomes an on-site “living pantry” where students can: 

  • Harvest fresh ingredients for farm-to-table cooking

  • Explore seasonality and how ingredient freshness affects flavor and nutritional value

  • Practice menu planning based on available produce

  • Learn about sustainable sourcing

  • Experiment with preservation techniques (ex: drying herbs, pickling, fermenting garden produce)

Agriculture

Gain real-life hands-on agricultural experience maintaining the rooftop garden, including:

  • Crop selection and rotation suited for rooftop and urban farming

  • Soil and substrate management, including hydroponic or container based-systems

  • Techniques in urban agriculture, from vertical growing to high-yield small-space management

  • Pest and disease management

  • Data collection on yield, growth rates, or soil conditions for applied research

Environmental Science

The garden acts as a real-world ecological lab where students can study: 

  • Urban ecology and biodiversity (pollinators, soil organisms, plant-insect interactions)

  • Micro-climates and how green spaces affect urban heat islands

  • Water cycles including  rainwater capture, irrigation efficiency, and runoff reduction 

  • Waste reduction through composting and nutrient cycling

  • Sustainability systems including renewable resources and green roofing technologies

  • partner with agricultural students in maintaining the roof 

Image by ThisisEngineering

Architecture

The garden becomes a living case study for: 

  • Green roof design and its structural requirements (load-bearing, waterproofing, drainage layers)

  • Sustainable building practices and energy efficient design 

  • Understanding how rooftop vegetation affects thermal performance and insulation 

  • Concepts of Biophilic design, enhancing human well-being through nature integration

  • Urban planning topics such as green infrastructure, storm water management, and city resilience  

Green Buildings
Healthy Breakfast Spread

Nutrition

Students gain direct access to real foods to study:

  • Nutrient density and how growing conditions affect nutrient value

  • Healthy food systems and the importance of fresh produce

  • Comparisons between store-bought and garden-grown produce regarding quality and taste 

  • Food security issues and the role of urban agriculture

  • opportunities for community based nutrition education using the garden harvest 

Science Courses

A rooftop garden becomes a flexible outdoor classroom for:

  • Botany and plant biology concepts, including photosynthesis, transpiration, and plant anatomy

  • Scientific observation and experimentation, with controlled variables like sunlight, soil type, or watering frequency 

  • Meteorology using the garden to observe local weather effects and climate patterns

  • Opportunities for data collection, graphing, and conducting real experiments

Overall Cross-Program Benefits

  • Encourages collaboration between departments (architects designing beds; science students testing soil; culinary students using the harvest).

  • Builds sustainability awareness across the entire school or institution.

  • Enhances student engagement, mental health, and creativity through interactions with nature.

  • Creates opportunities for community outreach, workshops, and student-led projects.

  • The rooftop garden would create a place for:

  • Community Building 

  • Specialized Classes

  • A Sense of Belonging

  • A Place to Relax

  • Outdoor Education and can be utilized as a nontraditional classroom

  • Promotes environmental responsibility, stewardship, and commitment to sustainability 

Health & Wellness Benefits

Access to green space and contact with nature offer significant benefits for both physical and mental health. The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences reports that air pollution contributes to more than 6.5 million deaths each year, a number that continues to rise. Plants play a crucial role in removing pollutants from the air, helping to reduce risks such as diminished lung function, higher rates of asthma, and even heart-related conditions.

In addition to improving air quality and overall physical health, exposure to nature has been shown to support mental well-being. As noted by Kate Douglas, time spent in natural environments can improve sleep, lower stress levels, and enhance cognitive functions such as attention, memory, and creativity. Creating spaces where students can regularly engage with nature may also encourage positive environmental behaviors, including reduced littering and increased recycling. At UMass Lowell, plans are already underway to expand the rooftop garden’s role so that psychology students can study the effects of nature on mental health, according to Jack Maruna.

Students on Campus
Image by Jez Timms

The Beehive Element

A rooftop garden can be home to the universities own urban beehive, providing local pollinators with a safe place to thrive.

Image by Bianca Ackermann
“... we found that in the cities, bees are surviving better than they are in the country. A bit counterintuitive, right? We think, oh, bees, countryside, agriculture, but that's not what the bees are showing. The bees like it in the city. Furthermore, they also produce more honey. The urban honey is delicious. ”

Noah Wilson-Rich, Honey Bee Immunologist & CEO of The Best Bees Company

Pollinator Preservation

Inviting pollinators to make our campus their safe haven is not only beneficial to the environment, but can also be used as a valuable learning experience. Students across multiple departments will get the opportunity to engage with a real, functioning ecosystem rather than only studying it from a textbook. The hive would become a shared resource for research, design, and other educational projects. It's reach could include:

  • Culinary students using the honey to practice honey-based recipes (ex: pastries & marinades)

  • Environmental Science students can monitor the bees behavior, pollination rates, and environmental stressors (pesticides, climate, urban heat islands).

  • Photography and Media students could document the hive for the school paper or scientific illustration.

  • Architecture students can explore green roof design, micro habitat creation, and urban biodiversity planning.

  • And many more opportunities!

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