Shaulene Wright built her career by combining two passions: gardening and mindfulness. Born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1989, she grew up in a family that valued both creativity and nature. Her father worked for the NYC Parks Department and often brought home plants. Her mother taught art in public schools. Weekends at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden helped shape her interest in plants and city green spaces.
Wright studied liberal arts at Kingsborough Community College, finishing with a focus on environmental studies. She then completed a certificate in urban horticulture at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, learning about soil health, composting, and container gardening. Later, she trained at the New York Insight Meditation Center, earning certification as a mindfulness meditation teacher.
Her early jobs included working at a plant nursery and later managing the plant and wellness department at a natural foods store. These roles gave her direct experience in customer service, plant care, and community outreach.
In 2014, Wright launched her freelance career as an urban gardening consultant. She specializes in rooftop and balcony gardens, with a focus on small, edible spaces that are easy to maintain. Alongside consulting, she runs composting workshops and community garden projects. In 2018, she added a second role as a meditation facilitator at Lotus Wellness Studio, where she leads small group sessions.
Shaulene Wright has been recognized for her work with a Community Greening Award from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and by her local community board for composting initiatives. She continues to balance entrepreneurship with community service.
Interview with Shaulene Wright on the Meaning of Success
How do you personally define success?
For me, success is about alignment. It’s when the work I do, the values I hold, and the way I live all point in the same direction. I’ve never thought of success only in terms of money or titles. It’s more like a garden. If the soil is healthy and the plants are tended, growth happens naturally. For me, that means living in a way that supports both my community and my own sense of peace.
Was there a moment when you first felt successful?
I think back to 2018, when I received the Community Greening Award from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. It wasn’t a huge ceremony, but it mattered to me because that’s where I learned so much. To be recognized by the same place where I studied composting and soil care felt full circle. It was proof that even a rooftop garden in Bed-Stuy could have a real impact.
What role has education played in your success?
Education has been a steady foundation. At Kingsborough Community College, I studied liberal arts with a focus on environmental studies. That gave me a broad base. The Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s horticulture certificate was more practical—I learned how to actually keep plants alive in tough conditions. Later, training at the New York Insight Meditation Center gave me skills to facilitate groups. Each step taught me something specific that I now use daily. Success for me has been layering education with practice.
What challenges have shaped your idea of success?
Space has always been the challenge. Growing up in Crown Heights, we lived in a two-bedroom apartment. There wasn’t a backyard. When I started out, it felt impossible to do real gardening in the city. But limits forced creativity. I learned how to grow food in containers and how to turn rooftops into soil beds. Those lessons taught me that success is not about unlimited resources. It’s about adapting.
Can you share a time when your work had an unexpected impact?
Yes, a neighbor once told me he thought composting was just “hippie stuff.” He came to one of my drop-off events mostly out of curiosity. Months later, he returned with his own scraps and told me he’d convinced his landlord to set up a compost bin for their building. That felt like success, because it wasn’t about me. It was about someone else taking ownership and spreading the idea further.
How do you balance business goals with personal values?
It’s a constant practice. I work as a freelance consultant, so it would be easy to only chase projects that pay well. But I choose clients who want to learn, not just outsource. That sometimes means slower growth, but it keeps me aligned. The same applies to meditation. I don’t run huge classes; I keep them small so people actually connect. Success is not about scaling as fast as possible. It’s about staying consistent with what matters.
What daily habits help you sustain success?
Two things: composting and journaling. Composting may sound like a chore, but it reminds me that even waste has value if cared for properly. Journaling helps me track small wins. I don’t just write about problems. I write down when a plant thrived, when someone shared a good insight in meditation, or when a neighbor smiled after taking home seeds. These little notes help me see progress over time.
What advice would you give others about building their own version of success?
Pay attention to what feels natural and sustainable. Success doesn’t come from forcing yourself into someone else’s path. It comes from noticing what you already do well and building on that. For me, it was turning leftover plants into a rooftop garden and then turning that into a career. Success often grows out of something small you cared about before anyone else noticed.