ABOUT JARDIN PORTLAND
Mission
Jardin Portland Foundation is an educational and experiential resource dedicated to promote understanding of the Portland region's culture, livability and environmental best practices.
Vision
As a unique international organization, Jardin Portland Foundation brings together the people of Portland, Oregon, with international partners to create gathering spaces that provide global models for environmental sustainability, design, and cultural, educational, and economic exchange.
Values
Cultural and International Exchange — While respecting local culture, Jardin Portland will encourage the development of goodwill, partnership and trade between Portland, Oregon, the United States and our international partners.
Green Building — "A better future, a better now" — Jardin Portland will demonstrate sustainable "green" living and building with exhibits and experiences designed to share new methodologies and philosophies that promote environmental, social and economic health and harmony.
Livability — Jardin Portland will share the efforts conducted in the Portland Metropolitan towards livability, equity, nature preservation, art and culture.
Education — In partnership with local learning centers, Jardin Portland will provide an educational resource related to Oregon culture, industry and environmental best practices, and shall serve to strengthen the bond between our two educational communities.
THE GIFT OF A GARDEN
The History
In late 2006, the government of Portland's Sister City Guadalajara, Mexico, awarded the people of Portland (via the PGSCA) with one acre of park land in Bosque Colomos, Guadalajara’s largest central-city park to create a “Garden Portland” or “Jardin Portland.” Greater Guadalajara’s prime walking, hiking, jogging and horseback-riding ground, Bosque Colomos is a treasured natural preserve inside a largely developed urban, metropolitan city, similar to our own Forest Park.
After being gifted the land, the PGSCA sought to identify its best use, and the means of turning this vision of cultural exchange into reality.In February of 2007, a PGSCA delegation participated in a ceremony to formally accept the land and kick-off the Jardin Portland project. The group included Ron White of Probity Builders, who recognized this unique opportunity for lasting impact on both cities and offered to provide program and project management services to get the project off the ground.
After the February visit, Ron recruited landscape architect Glendon Smith of Mainline Design, and facilitated numerous brainstorm sessions to craft a concept plan for the garden’s layout.In September of 2007, the plan was presented to stakeholders in Guadalajara to gain collaborative input, and in December of 2007 the PGSCA board approved the concept plan based on those changes.
In February of 2008, the first period of Jardin construction was completed with the planting of the Phase One Rose Garden. During this Portland delegation visit to Guadalajara – which included Mayor Tom Potter and more than 50 other representatives from Portland's public and private sector - the group also gained approval of the Jardin's overall master plan.
The "Living Phase" of the Jardin, began construction in 2009, will include an amphitheater to accommodate concerts and events and a beautiful water feature, both modeled after some of the Portland region's most cherished outdoor spaces. The final "Learning Phase" will boast the Verde (Green) Learning Center. One of the world's most unique, hands-on environmental and sustainability learning facilities, the Center will be open to all of the Bosque's one million annual visitors.
The Jardin is slated for completion in 2011, concurrent with the Pan American Games. The project is made possible through the support of both cities' governments, the Universidad Aut–noma de Guadalajara, Portland State University, Portland and Guadalajara-based designers, architects and engineers, and a large group of caring business sponsors and individual supporters.
Turning Dreams into Reality
The project was made possible through the support of both cities’ governments, the Universidad Autónoma de Guadalajara, efforts of the PGSCA Board of Directors and volunteers and the generous donation of time and materials from dozens of Portland and Guadalajara-area businesses, organizations and individual supporters.
As the project gained life and momentum, project supporters identified the need to create a lasting organization to oversee it's completion and further it's values. In January of 2010, the Jardin Portland Foundation was formally created with a governing board and staff. Continued support is crucial to the completion of the $1.5 million pilot project in Guadalajara, which will bring worldwide visibility for project partners. Jardin Portland will be a source of pride, fellowship and learning that crosses borders, unites cultures and shares the world's most advanced approaches toward the preservation of our natural environment.
The Jardin Portland Foundation extends it warmest thanks to the PGSCA for their beginning, to the City of Guadalajara for its generous donation of the land for Jardin Portland, and to all of its current and future project partners. Jardin Portland demonstrates the outstanding dedication of both Guadalajara and Portland to fostering sister city relationships, and will provide an excellent blueprint for similar projects that have the potential of bringing cities and nations together to share in cultural, educational and economic exchange.
About the Portland Guadalajara Sister City Association
The Portland Guadalajara Sister City Association (PGSCA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to creating and strengthening partnerships and fostering goodwill between the City of Portland and the City of Guadalajara. PGSCA achieves this endeavor through on-going cultural, educational, and economic development initiatives. More information is available online at www.pgsca.com.