Young Alum Featured Speaker on 2024 URI Master Gardener Symposium

Cassidy Need ’20 is thrilled to be a panel speaker at the 2024 URI Master Gardener Symposium presenting alongside URI professors and local green thumb greatness in the community. As the owner, creator, and designer of Native Edible Designs—a local RI business offering a holistic approach to gardening and landscaping—Need has always embraced connection with the natural world through teaching and education.

Some of her fondest outdoor memories have taken place alongside her grandmother, pulling weeds and picking dahlias. She’s hopeful that others can come together in the great outdoors and take the time to be connected to one another through nature.

“I have seen and experienced the visible change in myself and others when we come together, put our hands in the soil, and grow something beautiful,” said Need. “Something magical happens when people come together in the garden, we remember who we truly are and just how interconnected we are with all of life.”

Learn more about this year’s URI Master Gardner Symposium.