It is dedicated to archiving the history of community gardens, squatting, and grassroots environmental activism of the Lower East Side neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City.

By preserving the neighborhood's history, the museum aims to educate communities and individuals to keep this form of sustainable, community-based activism alive.

[1]: 247–264 During the 1970s recession, New York City cut back social services in many neighborhoods, which particularly affected the Lower East Side.

[4] Permanent exhibitions explore various themes aspects of the neighborhood's radical history, including sustainability, activist spaces, and the Occupy Wall Street movement.

The educational walking tours lead participants through neighborhood squats and community gardens, describing complex histories and struggles with developers and police over the control of urban space in the East Village.