HOW COMMUNITY GARDENING IS RESCUING LOCAL ENVIRONMENTS

The increase of pollution in large cities has seen a commensurate increase of civillians working to protect their environment. Notably, since the 1970s, there has been a surge in the number of “radical gardeners,” or civillians who garden simultaneously as a form of political protest, a way to improve air quality, and a method of supporting ecosystems.

During her years living in Brooklyn, field interviewer and researcher Hattie Carthan noticed the decline of greenery in her neighborhood and the negative e ects the loss was having on the environment and infrastructure of the area, including increased temperature and air pollution. She decided to do something about it: She formed the T & T Vernon Avenue Block Association in 1964, holding block parties to raise money to plant and take care of trees in her neighborhood. Eventually, she started gaining more support and was able to found the Neighborhood Tree Corps, which allowed youth in the area to help create over 100 more block associations and plant thousands of trees across Brooklyn. Today, the Hattie Carthan Community Garden Farm aims to preserve her legacy of using gardening as a tool to improve livelihoods in one’s community.

In the 1970s, recent Columbia graduate Liz Christy founded the Green Guerrillas, a group of radical gardeners in New York City. They started by throwing “seed-green aids,” or balls of dirt, clay, and seeds, into vacant and abandoned lots that the city would not use. A year later, the lots were filled with flowers and greenery. The Guerrillas rallied the community at Bowery and Houston Streets to turn an abandoned lot into a community garden. Christy convinced the city to sell her the lot for just one dollar, and the area soon became the Bowery Houston Farm and Garden. This was the first community garden the Green Guerrillas helped found, but over the years, hundreds of abandoned lots were converted into community gardens and farms, many of which are still functioning today.

These community gardens have transcended New York: They now exist all over the country. For those who want to get involved in these programs, look no further than the HandsOn Bay Area “Magic!” program in Palo Alto. Gardening has proven to be a vital tool in improving the ecosystems and enviornment in each community.

—Written by Aarushi Kumar, a STEM Editor.