Labor, Work, and Action in Polish Community Gardens: Interlaced or Disconnected?

This article examines the dynamics of labor, work, and action in Polish urban community gardens through the lens of Hannah Arendt's framework, highlighting their complex role in socio-ecological innovation. It finds that these three types of human activity are often disconnected in Polish community gardens, limiting their potential as sites of urban sustainability. Instead, these gardens primarily function as new public spaces symbolizing Poland's break from its communist past and processes of Europeanization, serving sociocultural and political purposes more than ecological or food-production goals. The study also identifies challenges rooted in Poland's historical and political context, such as informal privatization of communal spaces and top-down municipal management, which affect gardeners' engagement and the valuation of different types of work. Ultimately, Polish community gardens may contribute to public debates on sustainability by fostering alternative understandings of work and community in urban environments.