Presenter(s): Stephanie Zuba-Bates, OTD, MS, OTR/L; Kaitlyn Sebastian, MOTS; Amanda Merin, MOTS; Crawley Shanel, MOTS; Mariah Sheperd-Hubbard, MOTS

Contributing Author(s): Krystina Melton, MOT; Jimmy Mendelsohn, MOT; Emily Quirarte-Landa, MOT; Darius Smith, MOTS; Justine Tenebro, MOT

Content Areas: Mental Health; Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion

Target Audience: Student, Entry-level, Intermediate-level, Advanced-level

Course Description: This session will explore the occupation of gardening and how it connects people with their history, culture and spirituality. It will include thematic analysis from a qualitative research study on the lived experiences of gardeners living on the Southside of Chicago. It aims to help occupational therapy practitioners better understand the occupation of gardening and how it can be used to increase participation in meaningful occupation to address spirituality in practice.