Homeowners
Turn your space into a productive food system with backyard aquaponics and sustainable backyard food production. No pool required — a Garden Pool design can work with pools, ponds, tanks, greenhouses, indoor spaces, and more.
Sustainable food systems since 2009
Growing better ways to grow food.
Garden Pool develops practical, resilient food systems using aquaponics, hydroponics, water conservation, controlled-environment agriculture, appropriate technology, and innovative design.
We help homeowners, communities, universities, nonprofits, and organizations grow food more sustainably — through food-system design, agricultural education, research, technology transfer, and capacity development.
- Founded 2009
- Arizona
- Sustainable Food Systems
- Education & Research
- Global Capacity Development
How can we help?
Two ways to work with Garden Pool
Organizations & Communities
Sustainable food-system design, agricultural education and training, capacity development, climate-resilient agriculture, appropriate technology, community food systems, university collaboration, and research.
A common question
No pool? No problem.
The original Garden Pool began in an unused swimming pool in Mesa, Arizona, but the concept has evolved far beyond swimming-pool conversion. Garden Pool systems can be designed around existing pools, ponds, tanks, greenhouses, indoor growing spaces, and other environments based on the site, climate, resources, and goals.
A Garden Pool is a design philosophy and an integrated, aquaponic food-production system — not a requirement to own a swimming pool.
Our origin
From a backyard pool to a global mission
In 2009, Dennis McClung transformed an unused backyard swimming pool in Mesa, Arizona into a closed-loop food-production ecosystem.
The experiment attracted international attention and ultimately became something much larger: an organization dedicated to developing, testing, teaching, and sharing practical approaches to sustainable food production. Garden Pool incorporated as an Arizona nonprofit in 2012.
The organization's work expanded into community programs, agricultural education, research, international capacity development, university collaboration, technology transfer, climate resilience, and sustainable food-system consulting.
What we do
Four areas of work
Design, teach, transfer, and study — the same loop the original system was built on.
Design & Innovation
We design and test practical food-production systems that integrate aquaponics, hydroponics, vertical growing, water harvesting, controlled-environment agriculture, renewable energy, and appropriate technology.
Education & Training
We turn practical experience into knowledge people can use — through demonstrations, workshops, courses, videos, publications, training programs, and Garden Pool Academy.
Capacity Development
We help communities and institutions build the skills and systems needed to solve food-production challenges locally. Our philosophy is not simply to install technology — it is to transfer knowledge.
Research & Collaboration
Garden Pool has worked alongside universities, international agricultural organizations, government agencies, schools, researchers, nonprofits, farmers, and communities to develop and demonstrate sustainable approaches to food production.
Featured projects
Where the work has happened
Mesa, Arizona, USA · October 2009
The Original Garden Pool
An unused backyard swimming pool converted into a closed-loop food-production ecosystem — the experiment that started the organization.
Read the projectHaiti · Historical
Haiti Sustainable Agriculture & Community Work
Sustainable agriculture and community food-production work carried out with local partners.
Read the project
Trinidad & Tobago · Historical
Golden Grove
Sustainable food-production and training work in Trinidad & Tobago, where Garden Pool maintained an international sub-office.
Read the projectBarbuda · Post-hurricane era
Sir McChesney George Secondary School
School-based agricultural work contributing to rebuilding efforts in Barbuda's agriculture sector.
Read the projectNevis, St. Kitts & Nevis · Historical
Climate-Resilient Aquaponics Demonstration
A demonstration system showing how aquaponics can support farmers facing climate and disaster pressure.
Read the projectSuriname · Historical
Agricultural Disaster-Risk Management Capacity Development
Capacity development using digital modeling tools to improve agricultural disaster-risk management.
Read the projectInstitutional experience
Work alongside institutions
Garden Pool has worked and collaborated with universities, international agricultural organizations, government agencies, schools, and community organizations. Relationships are described precisely — not every organization listed was a formal contractual partner.
Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA)
Collaborated with; founder designated IICA Goodwill Ambassador in Sustainable Development
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Institutional relationship
Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI)
Worked alongside on Caribbean agricultural resilience projects
The University of the West Indies
Institutional collaboration
University of Arizona
Institutional relationship
Arizona State University
Institutional relationship
Schools, ministries of agriculture & extension services
Training and demonstration work
Community organizations & nonprofits
Programs, volunteers, and community food systems
Media & recognition
Independently reported
Third-party coverage and institutional recognition of Garden Pool's work.
- Featured Story
Microsoft
Global garden: How one man's vision to feed his family blossomed into an international effort
- Television & Video
ABC News
Arizona Family Grows Garden in Backyard Swimming Pool
- Institutional Recognition
United Nations Foundation
Garden Pool Climate Smart Farms featured among 10 local innovators championing global SDG solutions
- Institutional Recognition
IICA
Dennis McClung — Goodwill Ambassador in Sustainable Development
- News & Features
IICA
Suriname bets on digital modeling tools to improve capacities in agricultural disaster risk
- News & Features
CARDI
Relief efforts target farmers in St. Kitts and Nevis
Garden Pool Academy
Practical knowledge. Shared.
Garden Pool Academy is the renewed educational arm of Garden Pool — turning hands-on experience into courses, plans, and training people can actually use.
- Introduction to Sustainable Food Systems
- Aquaponics
- Hydroponics
- Building a Garden Pool
- Rainwater Harvesting
- Water Conservation
- Vertical Growing
- Food-System Design
Room is being kept for future certification programs, including a potential evolution of the Garden Pool Certified Designer program.
Educational reach
Garden Pool has shared aquaponics, hydroponics and sustainable food-system knowledge online since 2009.
3.9M+
YouTube views
277K+
Hours watched
20.6K
YouTube subscribers
~30K
Followers across platforms