When Gastronomy and Food are at the Service of Education for a Sustainable Future: The School Garden Model in Denmark

In a context of a nationwide diffusion of a “school garden model”, this chapter aims to address two main issues. First, school gardens are described as a creative and successful strategy for teaching the next generation about food and promoting UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), by connecting with the environment, and providing food knowledge about organically grown vegetables, as well as understanding and respecting nature. Consequently, health, well-being, and social interactions are fostered through a new and creative pedagogical approach that is well documented and appreciated by children and parents in Denmark. Second, following this somewhat unexpected success, the chapter depicts how a non-profit organisation, through temporal agency, addresses several identity challenges. The study highlights how identity uncertainty and confusion motivate the organisation to reorganise and reengage with its non-profit past and recraft its identity narratives around a broader sense of purpose, encompassing its role in the wider school garden movement and in relation to SDGs and in particular SDG 12 “Ensuring Sustainable Consumption and Production”.