Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Case study: food justice - from Motown to Growtown
Urban agriculture is a key element in reimagining the post-industrial city. As global
and urban populations grow, as food security, food safety and food miles become
increasingly important, and as poor nutrition, ill health and obesity expand, the
cultivation of food in cities is seen by many as a brilliant way forward. It is ecologically
and socially sound, economically productive, spiritually uplifting and aesthetically
pleasing. Not only can community gardens improve real-estate values but, if supported
intelligently by national and city governments, they can change the nature of the
urban itself. Havana in Cuba produces a considerable amount of agricultural produce
per annum and has created a mode of urban sustainability and a sense of self-reliance
that had previously not existed (Altieri
et al
., 1999). In Asia, Singapore's urban
farmers tend 17,300 acres of land supplying 80 per cent of the city poultry and
25 per cent of its vegetables. Urban farms and community gardens are springing
up everywhere. In Kansas City, over 300 acres of land are now dedicated to urban
farming, but it is to Detroit that a great deal of attention has been directed in
recent years.
It is well known that since the 1950s Detroit's population has halved to today's
somewhat under one million people. The car industry that once gave its name to
the city and to the popular music style, Motown, has all but disappeared. Crime,
drug abuse, poverty and education unattainment is endemic. Detroit also has a history
of poor ethnic relations and fractious labour relations. Empty city lots, derelict
buildings and trees growing on the roofs of factories have spawned numerous
documentaries, books, newspaper reports and a subgenre of urban photography
known as 'ruin porn'. The city's tax base has dwindled and in July 2013 the Council
filed for bankruptcy - the largest municipality to do so in US history. However,
Detroit's urban farmers and community gardeners have perhaps unwittingly captured
the popular imagination in other ways with concepts such as 'food deserts' and 'food
justice' penetrating the public policy discourse on social equity, health and urban
development.
Urban Roots
, the 2012 documentary produced by Leila Conners,
Mark MacInnis and Matthew Schmid, eschews the perverse attractions of ruin porn
to show how Detroit's plight is motivating increasing numbers of people to grow
and share their often organically grown fresh fruit and vegetables. Derelict lots are
being turned over to horticulture, polluted land is slowly decontaminated and small
communities are slowly regaining a sense of pride and purpose. As a number of
people remarked in the film, there is a real sense of satisfaction and achievement in
being responsible for creating a garden and growing one's own food. The product
of one's labour is not appropriated by 'the company', as would have been the case
on the production line, but clearly and distinctly remains that of the individual or
community to eat, to give away or to sell.
Working the land involves learning new skills and undertaking physical exercise.
It may also involve reassessing and rearticulating one's cultural identity. Some young
African Americans expressed reluctance to get involved because they saw working
the land as being associated with slavery, but urban farming also means improving
diets and enjoying the open air, too. There is also a social equity dimension, as for
many residents Detroit is a food desert - that is, access to fresh fruit and vegetables
can be very limited both financially and geographically. Some 30 per cent of the
city's predominantly African American population live below the poverty line and
