Posts Tagged ‘community’
From Freeway to Food Forest
Posted in Models by Kate Archdeacon on February 16th, 2010
From “Building a Farm Where a Freeway Used to Be“, by Matthew Roth
A few weeks ago in San Francisco, a number of urban farmers opened a gate in a chain-link fence at Laguna Street, between Oak and Fell Streets, and entered an overgrown lot that has been unused for nearly two decades. The farmers brought with them steaming piles of mulch, which they cast over the edge of the ramps formerly used by cars to enter and exit the elevated Central Freeway spur above Octavia Street, arranging the soil in rows for planting vegetables and filler crops. Since the Loma Prieta earthquake made the Central Freeway unsafe for travel, leading to its eventual removal and the re-design of Octavia Boulevard, those ramps have been one of the more poignant reminders of a distant vision of San Francisco, with freeways crisscrossing the urban environment, whisking motorists above the unfortunate city dwellers below.
The new Hayes Valley Farm (HVF) inverts the paradigm and reclaims the space for city dwellers, if only temporarily. “We call it ‘freeway to food forest,’” explained Chris Burley, Project Director for HVF and former organizer of My Farm. Burley was joined by nearly fifty volunteers at a HVF work party Sunday. “We’re trying to create a successful, sustainable urban farm in the heart of San Francisco.”
Burley and several other organizers were approached by Mayor Gavin Newsom’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development (MOEWD) last year with the idea to transform the unused lot into a farm. The HVF received a $50,000 grant from MOEWD for the first year of the project, money that comes from the operation of parking facilities along Octavia Boulevard. Burley expected to work the farm for between two and five years, depending on when the economy turns around and the land is developed.
Tags: behaviour change, community, Food, urban agriculture
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Public, Private: Sustainable Precinct Development
Posted in Models by Kate Archdeacon on February 8th, 2010
Source: The Ecologist
From “Forget eco-towns – real green house-building is already happening“, by Eifion Rees, 12th January, 2010:
Cambridge University’s expansion plans could change the face of sustainable building in the UK. In 2012, construction begins on the greenest development of its size and scope in the UK.
As far as trailblazing green building initiatives go, the development known as North West Cambridge (its official name as well as location) looks rather uninspiring at the moment, merely fields bounded by busy roads on the outskirts of an East Anglian university town. There aren’t many clues to suggest that, when construction begins here in 2012, it will change the face of sustainable building in the UK.
But that is what is scheduled to happen here with the creation of what will effectively be a new city quarter. The land is owned by Cambridge University, and the scheme is intended to accommodate the academic institution’s expansion over the next 25 years, when numbers of students and staff are expected to increase by 8,000. As a result 3,000 new homes will be built on this patch of the greenbelt, together with new faculty and research buildings, and a significant number of community facilities. This week, emulating universities in the US, Cambridge issued bonds for the first time with the aim of raising £400 million towards the cost of the £1 billion project.
From the North West Cambridge website:
The masterplanning proposals for the University of Cambridge’s North West Cambridge site are moving forward. To continue the success of this collaborative process we would like to obtain your views on the emerging masterplan. To this end, we have recently held a Public Exhibition as well as Public Workshops. These exhibitions and workshop form the next stage in the process of preparing the masterplan for the site – and provided an opportunity for stakeholders to contribute and comment on the proposals. The information that was on display includes:
* Introduction to the North West Cambridge project: The University’s need and vision – an introduction to what the project will offer local residents, students, faculty, staff and local businesses. This includes 3,000 new homes, 100,000 m2 of academic and commercial research space, accommodation for 2,000 students and local facilities and green spaces.
* Site: Context The site’s location and landscape features, and various site-specific opportunities that the masterplan should respond to.
The latest versions of the masterplan are available for public download, and are separated into four layers: Indicative Urban Structure, Indicative Landscape & Open Space, Indicative Land Use, and Indicative Access & Movement.
Tags: community, design, Urban Design and Built Form
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Local Food Systems: Not Only Farmers
Posted in Opinion by Kate Archdeacon on January 13th, 2010
Source: Grist
Image: metro centric via flickr CC
From “It takes a community to sustain a small farm” by Steph Larsen
These days it seems the most popular person to be in the food system is the “local farmer.” Farmers markets are popping up everywhere, and their size and popularity grow all the time. Local food is trendy—even the First Family is in on it. But as anyone who has ever raised grain or livestock can tell you, the farmer is not the only person in the chain of players from her farm to your fork. In addition to producers, your food chain includes processors, distributors or transporters, and retailers. In other words, to have a truly local food system, we also need local butchers, bakers and millers, local truck drivers, local grocers, and a community that supports them in all their efforts.
In the world of farm and food policy, we’ve paid a lot of attention to production end of the food system… …But most products aren’t made to eat directly out of the field. Even salad greens or apples, things we typically eat raw and straight from the field, must be washed and sorted before your local farmer will sell them.
As Tom Philpott pointed out in early November, the infrastructure for small-scale processing is woefully inadequate, having suffered decades of atrophy and consolidation—to the point where an otherwise profitable farmer can be driven out of business because she has no where to take her pigs for slaughter, her grain to be milled, or her tomatoes to be “sauced.”
Tags: behaviour change, community, networks, urban agriculture
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Climate change Guide: how to win hearts and minds
Posted in Research by Kate Archdeacon on December 8th, 2009
Source: Environmental Research Web
From “Climate change: how to win hearts and minds“, by Liz Kalaugher
Despite the fact that in 2007 the scientists compiling the IPCC report were 90% certain that human activities are causing climate change, climate scepticism amongst the public is on the rise. In the US there has been a sharp decline over the last year in the percentage of the population who say there is solid evidence that global temperatures are rising, while in the UK the number of people believing that claims about the effects of climate change have been exaggerated rose from 15% to 29% between 2003 and 2008.
So how can a climate scientist best communicate their work to a sceptical audience?
With that in mind, the Center for Research on Environmental Decisions (CRED) at Columbia University has issued a guide on the psychology of climate change communication that brings together the latest social science research in the field. Although it’s a serious topic, the guide is easy to read and contains many a cartoon and case study to illustrate its points. “Gaining public support for climate change policies and encouraging environmentally responsible behaviour depends on a clear understanding of how people process information and make decisions,” says the report. “Social science research provides an essential part of this puzzle but there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to the challenges of communicating about climate change. Rather, each of the many barriers presents a new opportunity to improve the way we present information.”
Tags: climate change, communication, community
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Walk Against Warming
Posted in Events by Kate Archdeacon on November 30th, 2009
Source: Zero Carbon Moreland
Come along to the Walk Against Warming and help form a massive human sign, a sign so big that the message will reach Copenhagen! In Melbourne, the walk will start by the State Library, on the corner of Swanston Street and La Trobe Street at noon on December 12 and end at Princess Bridge. On the bridge, 20,000 people will make a human sign saying: SAFE CLIMATE – DO IT. Zero Carbon Moreland friends and supporters are invited to meet and walk together. To find actions in other cities, visit the website.
Tags: climate change, community, local action
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350 October 24th: International Day of Climate Action
Posted in Events by Kate Archdeacon on October 23rd, 2009
Source: Climate Action Calendar
Image: 350 org via flickr CC
On October 24, join people all over the world to take a stand for a safe climate future.
This will be the most widespread day of climate action ever, with 158 countries participating and 3000+ actions planned to help ‘uncook the planet’ by setting a safer target of 350 parts per million CO2 in our atmosphere.
Visit www.350.org/map to find and RSVP for an action near you.
This movement has room for everyone
Tags: 350.org, climate change, community, local action
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Quite Contrary After School Farm
Posted in Models by Kate Archdeacon on September 25th, 2009
Source: Treehugger
Kids in Carrboro, North Carolina USA, can now take advantage of Quite Contrary Urban After School Farm – an after-school program that not only teaches them about food and farming, but it aims to leave the car behind too. This is much more than a petting zoo.
Quite Contrary Urban Farm is offering much more than the usual “here are some cute goats” type of farm experience. Local school kids will be picked up by a “walking bus” and they can then participate in a wide range of activities – from recycling hunts to farm design to selling the produce from the farm at the farmers market. Etiquette lessons are also included (a welcome addition for the rest of the community!), and kids that are dropped off and picked up car-free even get a discount.
Read the full article by Sami Groves.
Tags: behaviour change, children, community, education
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Re-Imagining Urban Spaces: PARK(ing) Day 2009
Posted in Movements by Kate Archdeacon on September 23rd, 2009
Source: Inhabitat
Image: rebar
On September 18, in cities around the world, artists, activists and citizens temporarily transformed metered parking spaces into public parks and other social spaces, as part of an annual event called PARK(ing) Day.
Originally invented in 2005 by Rebar, a San Francisco art and design studio, PARK(ing) Day challenges people to rethink the way streets are used and reinforces the need for broad-based changes to urban infrastructure.
“In urban centers around the world, inexpensive curbside parking results in increased traffic, wasted fuel and more pollution,” says Rebar’s Matthew Passmore. “The strategies that generated these conditions are not sustainable, nor do they promote a healthy, vibrant urban human habitat.
PARK(ing) Day is about re-imagining the possibilities of the metropolitan landscape.”
Tags: behaviour change, community, green cities, local action, Urban Design and Built Form
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dePave
Posted in Movements by Kate Archdeacon on September 16th, 2009
Source: Doors of Perception
Depave has been created to inspire and promote the removal of unnecessary concrete and asphalt from urban areas. Depave is a project of City Repair, a nonprofit organization based in Portland, Oregon, USA.
Vision
Livable cities where people and wildlife coexist and thrive amidst clean air, clean water, and an abundance of plants, trees, and vegetation.
Rationale
The problem is concrete. Paved surfaces contribute to stormwater pollution, whereby rainwater carries toxic urban pollutants to local streams and rivers, greatly degrading water quality and riparian habitats. Pavement also disconnects us from our natural world.
The solution is clear. The removal of impervious pavements will reduce stormwater pollution and increase the amount of land available for habitat restoration, urban farming, trees, native vegetation, and beauty, thus providing us with greater connections to the natural world.
Impervious surfaces such as concrete and asphalt can be useful for providing access for pedestrians, bicyclists, wheelchair users, and cars. However, the paving over of millions of acres of land and vegetation have contributed to numerous economic and environmental problems. In many cities, over half of the urban land is paved for roadways and parking lots. While we may need sidewalks and roadways, we can minimize the pavement we use for driveways and parking areas, and thereby restore the natural environment. Ideally, we shouldn’t be paving over habitat and farmland to accommodate auto-centric development, but through depaving, we can reverse the damage!
Visit the website.
Download the (US) How To Depave Pamphlet.
Tags: behaviour change, community, local action, urban agriculture
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No Garden? No problem. New Urban Farming Models
Posted in Movements by Kate Archdeacon on September 7th, 2009
Article by David Tracey, The Tyee News, B.C.
The first odd thing about Cam Macdonald’s Mt. Pleasant lawn is that it isn’t a lawn. It’s a farm. Standing out amid the typical suburban sea of grass patches are his potatoes, carrots, beets, peas, shallots, squash, parsnips and more — enough to have given food to 70 people by the beginning of July.
The second odd thing is that it isn’t even Cam’s yard. It belongs to Heidi Gigler and Jug Sidhu, a non-gardening couple who heard about Cam’s soul search for right livelihood last year and agreed to let him pursue it by turning their turf into food. Does this small but significant act of land karma represent the beginning of a profound challenge to our very notions of private property and home ownership? Or is it just a simple way for a few more people to eat a little more food from where they live — a driving force behind the soaring popularity of urban agriculture? In any case, it’s working. Cam is on his way to what could become a career, and the couple are thrilled with the look and taste of their front yard. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: community, new systems/services, sharing, urban agriculture
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