Gardening & Food Sustainability Coordinator

INTERNAL/EXTERNAL

Job Title: Gardening & Food Sustainability Coordinator

Position Type: Full-Time, Permanent, Non-Bargaining Unit

Number of Positions: 1

Rate: $64,993.50 to $71,779.50

Vacation: 4 weeks to start

Benefits: Group benefits with Life Insurance, AD&D, Extended Health and Dental Care with premiums 100% paid by the employer, LTD with premiums 100% paid by employees; paid sick leave and float day

RRSP: RRSP with 6.5% employer contribution and 4% employee contribution after successful completion of probation

Hours: 37.5 hours per week, Monday to Friday

Supervisor: Associate Director – Food Access & Sustainability

Posting Date: September 9, 2025

Application Deadline: September 23, 2025

Location: 40 Oak Street, Toronto

Why Fred Victor?

For 130 years, Fred Victor has been a leader in helping people rebuild their lives in Toronto. Our mission is to improve the health, income and housing stability of people experiencing poverty and homelessness. We arecommitted to ending homelessness, one person at a time.

The Community Services (CS) department at Fred Victor is a multi-service, multi-site structure that encompasses the 40 Oak Community HUB and community programs, Consumption and Treatment Services, Employment and Training Services, Drop-Ins, Warming and Keep Cool Programs, and Food Services. Additionally, it operates a social purpose enterprise with catering services and spearheads a significant peer training initiative that prioritizes the involvement of individuals with lived experience.

The Gardening & Food Sustainability Coordinator will be responsible for oversight of Fred Victor’s Regent Park community gardens, increasing community access to allotments and providing agricultural education and training. The Coordinator will be responsible for operation and maintenance of all garden sites, as well as the Regent Park Bake Oven and Greenhouse. The Coordinator will develop and manage comprehensive booking and administration systems for usage of several outdoor food and agricultural spaces.

Through a variety of community events and activities, the Coordinator will increase access to sustainable growing and food service practices. The Coordinator will work closely with the Food Services team to develop strategies to utilize locally grown produce for community meal programs, while reducing food waste. The Coordinator will also support special food security initiatives and is responsible for the collection of stats and data for multiple projects. The Coordinator will support organizational food sustainability in collaboration with the Food Services department. This role works closely with volunteers and peers.

Does this sound like work you want to be a part of?

We offer a supportive and collaborative environment, an opportunity to join a diverse team of caring professionals and a chance to make a difference. With over 75 programs and 25 sites, there are lots of opportunities to grow your career with us. Many members of the management team started in relief and front-line roles.

What You Will Do:

• Coordinate peers, volunteers, program participants and community members to oversee maintenance of 40 Oak and Regent Park Community Gardens, including community members’ own garden plots and Fred Victor allotment gardens
• Liaise with City of Toronto for oversight of Fred Victor’s management agreements for Regent Park Bake Oven and Greenhouse
• Manage relationships related to outdoor food and gardening spaces with Toronto Community Housing and the City of Toronto
• Develop and oversee booking system for Regent Park Bake Oven, promoting community usage of the Bake Oven
• Manage permits and licences for a variety of community spaces and advise the community utilizing the Bake Oven on required permits for events
• Develop and operate administration and data systems for usage of Regent Park Bake Oven and community allotments
• Providing training and assessing readiness for community usage of Regent Park Bake Oven and community allotments
• Oversee skills building of a group of approximately 15 garden volunteers yearly
• Oversee collection of registration fees for garden allotments
• Collaborate with project partners including City of Toronto and other Regent Park programs
• Facilitate opportunities for urban agriculture education and networking, connecting to local and city-wide urban agriculture initiatives
• Work with Food Services teams in Moss Park and Regent Park to increase sustainable procurement and identify opportunities to reduce food wastage
• Assess environmental impact of existing food programs and opportunities for greater collaboration between gardening initiatives and food services
• Collaborate on special projects including Maple Leaf Food Insecurity Project, collection of stats and participation in regular meetings related to these projects
• Develop metrics to regularly review Regent Park and Moss Park community food access and community access to growing space
• Develop relationships with multiple Downtown East food and agricultural groups
• Facilitating opportunities for neighbourhood collaboration and knowledge exchange
• Coordinate Events planning for 40 Oak Community Events i.e. Harvest Festival, Seed Swap, Plant Exchange
• Reporting stats and data related to Garden Training Program and Garden Community programs to Fred Victor Fundraising team
• Build and maintain partnerships related to, and advocate for, increased employment opportunities for people with lived experience

What You Bring to the Team:

• Post-secondary degree in a related area (for e.g. social work, community work, horticulture) or equivalent experience.
• Minimum 3 years’ experience with program coordination and developing agricultural and sustainable food initiatives.
• Minimum 2 years’ experience providing mentorship for peers and volunteers.
• Resident of Regent Park is considered an asset.
• A knowledge of City of Toronto parks permits processes.
• Demonstrated experience with community engagement and events.
• Understanding of the discrimination and barriers facing people with lived experience of mental health, addictions homelessness and poverty. Knowledge of peer support and employment opportunities in the social service sector would be a definite asset.
• Extensive experience with organic food gardening/ farming
• Demonstrated skills in conflict resolution
• Proven MS Word and Office Administration skills.
• Excellent organizational and interpersonal skills
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Ability to speak a language relevant to the Regent Park neighbourhood is an asset (Bengali, Mandarin, Tamil, Vietnamese, Somali or other)
• Safe Food Handling Practices Certification is considered an asset.
• Demonstrated ability to work sensitively with people of diverse backgrounds who experience poverty/ discrimination
• When appropriate and needed, intervene and mediate in crisis and conflicts of volunteers and community members. Works cooperatively and professionally with all staff, volunteers, and student placements.

Work Environment:

• This position is required to work in the community including travel between various sites
• Ability to work outdoors in various weather conditions
• Ability stand for extended periods and perform physically demanding tasks such as lifting and carrying up to 50 lbs
• Some general office work required

Compensation and Benefits:

• For the Gardening & Food Sustainability Coordinator, Fred Victor offers a salary range of $64,993.50 to $71,779.50
• 4 weeks of vacation to start + 1 float day.
• Generous paid sick leave allowance.
• A comprehensive Dental, Extended Health and LTD group benefits package includes individual and family coverage, including prescriptions, hospital accommodation, hearing care, paramedical practitioners and a wide variety of dental care. Additional insurance includes vision care and travel for emergency medical services.
• 6.5 % of your gross salary will be contributed to a group RRSP on your behalf after successful completion of probation; you will contribute 4% of your gross salary to the same RRSP.
• Access to employee and family assistance plan.

How You Can Apply:

Send your resume and an email describing why you want to be part of the Fred Victor Team by September 23, 2025 to communityserviceshiring@fredvictor.org with ‘Gardening & Food Sustainability Coordinator’ in the subject line.

A Police Record Check is required by the final candidate prior to hiring.

Accessibility & Accommodation

Fred Victor is committed to fostering an inclusive and accessible environment where employees feel valued and respected, and where every employee has the opportunity to realize their potential. As such, we welcome and encourage applicants who identify as racialized persons, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, and persons across the spectrum of sexual orientation and gender identities and have lived-experience.

If you are a person with a disability and require accommodation and/or assistance during the application process, please contact us in advance. We strive to provide reasonable accommodations whenever requested. Information received relating to accommodation requests will be treated with confidentiality.