The "Zeleni Polis" project connects Voltaire's metaphor "we must cultivate our garden" with the principles of common-pool resource management, creating spaces where young people from rural, cross-border areas of Slovenia and Croatia develop democratic competencies through the practical experience of gardening. The project directly addresses their feeling of exclusion from decision-making processes and the lack of opportunities for concrete action. The project has three main objectives: To activate 20 young people to become agents of democratic change by establishing and autonomously managing two community gardens. To empower them as educators and multipliers who will transfer their acquired knowledge and skills to 80 of their peers through eight thematic workshops. To foster a European dimension and cross-border cooperation through two international festivals and a final conference, which will serve as platforms for networking, exchange, and presenting results to the wider community.