Have you ever heard of Pam Warhurst? She's an Englishwoman (I love English people! Hello Andrea!!) who started up an entire movement that is sweeping across the nation and the world that started at her kitchen table.
This amazing woman decided with her friends/family to make some gardens in her community that everyone could get on board with and help take care of (voluntarily) and eat from. They started off getting bits of land (one she refers to as "a [former] dog toilet") and doing some raised beds and planting fruits and veggies (she calls them "veg", I like that better). It has turned into a community movement where people are working with the schools, kids are getting on board, learning and truly "getting their hands dirty" in community work and in agriculture. They're learning how to be self-sufficient instead of trying to beat their old score on whatever the new video game thing is (FarmVille? Ha ha ha!). This stuff turned over into the business sector - they're getting their fruits and veg (Isn't it nicer that way? Say it in your best English accent! She is from northern England, so if you're used to perfecting your accent by listening to a lovely Londoner, you might have to rework it if you'd like to copy her, although she does say "car park", which brings me good memories.) and bringing them into their cafes and little shops and guess what? Business is skyrocketing! People want to eat locally. They put up chalkboards and showed what they were offering from Incredible Edible and in came the money. They've made a whole community project that is replicable, doable and helps your community build real community (!), fosters the local economy, educates the people, and in their case, they've even made a tourist attraction out of their city!
Wouldn't it be cool to have that going on in your community? Wouldn't you love to be self-sustaining, educated, self-reliant, working with neighbors for a common cause? This whole thing started at her kitchen table. Imagine what you could do! Bring your ideas out! You never know where it might take you!
If you want to hear this funny lady (and practice your northern English accent), she has a lecture that is 13 minutes long over on TED. I don't usually post videos because I know people will be like, eh, no, don't have 13 minutes, never mind... But if you do perchance have 13 minutes, it is worth your time. Even if you don't have a passion for food, bringing people together, or educating your community, you can be inspired by her ground-up approach and imagine for yourself what you might like to get going in your own neck of our little blue-green planet. JUST DO IT.
http://www.ted.com/talks/pam_warhurst_how_we_can_eat_our_landscapes.html
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