Local – The Green Tau

Counting on … day 177

24th September 2024

Community gardens can not only boost biodiversity but also the supply of locally grown food.

“Pam Warhurst … the founder of Incredible Edible, a food-focused guerrilla gardening movement, wants the state to get out of people’s way. “The biggest obstacle is the inability of people in elected positions to cede power to the grassroots,” she says… Her big idea is guerrilla gardening – with a twist. Where guerrilla gardeners subvert urban spaces by reintroducing nature, Incredible Edible’s growers go one step further: planting food on public land and then inviting all-comers to take it and eat. “I used food because it seemed to me that we needed to act fast,” Warhurst says. “We needed to get experience as soon as we could, and probably food was the thing that we could demonstrate an alternative way of living around, in a really simple way.”” (1)

Here in London the Edible Bus Stop in Lambeth grows a range of flowering plants, herbs, vegetables and fruit trees. https://theediblebusstop.com/the-kerb-garden/

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/sep/13/radical-food-group-incredible-edible-guerrilla-gardening?

Counting on … day 96

30th April 2024

Even within the option a vegan diet, it is possible to look for the more sustainable options. The bulk of our protein comes from beans and pulses. By buying these from Hodmedod we can opt for beans and pulses – as well as pasta, chia seeds, quinoa and other staples – that are grown in the UK. This supports the UK’s farming industry and especially in these cases, smaller farms and businesses including many innovating with new varieties. It also reduces food miles – the distances over which food is transported from field to plate.

As well as buying dried beans, we buy bean flours from Hodmedod which adds to the richness of the dishes we eat. We also buy Brazil nuts from them which are wild-harvested nuts that come directly from the Kayapó people of Brazil. This is solidarity trading which ensures the protection of the local forest and an income for the indigenous people.

Counting on …. Day 119

11th March 2022

The crisis in Ukraine has highlighted our dependency on oil and gas, whilst at the same time the IPCC is again highlighting the urgent need to rapidly reduce our carbon emissions. This is the time to cut back on our use of fuel for heating homes and water, and for driving cars. We can also contribute by cutting back on flights and imported goods, rather aiming to shop locally.