World Ark Magazine - March/April 2008 - (Page 3) Q&A JA N UA RY /F E B RUARY Raising livestock and crops, once a common practice within city limits, has been largely relegated to rural areas over the past century. Do you think agriculture belongs in the modern American city? Your article about urban farming in other parts of the world made me think that it would not happen easily in American cities because the cultural impetus is not great enough. Yet, small scale urban garden programs are on the upswing. Urban garden programs include neighborhood community gardening, farmers markets, hydroponics and simple container gardening. Both urban and suburban environments will benefit from the development of sustainable agriculture. Sharon M. Gross Collegeville, Penn. After the end of the Vietnam War in 1975 there was a deluge of over 50,000 Hmong refugees settling in Fresno, Merced and Modesto, Calif. The one transferable skill they had was growing vegetables. They knew nothing of modern large scale farming and had no experience with farm machinery, but they could make the tiniest piece of land blossom with a cornucopia of vegetables. The yards of the houses they rented were soon filled with cassava, lemon grass and other veggies. Thirty years later their small plots are still thriving. PRESIDENT AND CEO Jo Luck 1 World Avenue Little Rock, AR/USA 72202 E-mail: worldark@list.heifer.org To change or remove an address, please e-mail donoraction@list.heifer.org or call customer service at (800) 422-0474. PUBLISHER Tom Peterson EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Sherri Nelson sherri.nelson@heifer.org ASSOCIATE EDITOR Austin Gelder austin.gelder@heifer.org In my opinion, agriculture most definitely belongs in the modern American city. It is already there, in many cities, and thriving. As a teacher of urban agriculture, my classes are brimming with urban folks who want to learn; people who feel a calling or an urge to be more connected to their food source and to be more self-sufficient. Fortunately, city officials are listening and regulations are changing across America. Agriculture in the modern American city is an idea whose time is here. Kelly Simmons Director, Boulder Sustainability Education Center Boulder, Colo. Absolutely yes! Without agriculture, humans lose a sense of connectedness to their world and their habitats. As a veterinarian and 4-H leader who is an avid community educator on sustainable agriculture (we own our own organic sustainable farm on five acres), there are too many people out there who have no idea where their food comes from. Our nation will crumble when we can’t feed ourselves without the aid of processing plants, manufacturing and shipping, or trucking routes. We will all one day regret a lack of agriculture in or near our homes. Jennifer Paige Pongratz, DVM Pembroke, Mass. Robert C. Hargreaves Bakersfield, Calif. Agriculture belongs not only in urban areas but should become (and hopefully will) an integral part of nutrition and enjoyment of our daily lives. Unfortunately, as most American towns and cities have ordinances against livestock within the city limits, most of us are legally limited to gardening. However, we do what we can. A group of us created the Old Town Cape Scholarship Garden in the midst of our historic downtown area. We took a 30’ X 30’ section of a parking lot and built a raised-bed vegetable garden. In eight years, we have raised over $10,000 and endowed one scholarship for our local university. In addition, we’ve found the garden to be a “destination” for locals and tourists, as well as being beautiful and helpful to the environment. Bill Dunn Cape Girardeau, Mo. ART DIRECTOR Tish McClure WRITER Jaman Matthews INTERN Jonelle Doughty World Ark is the magazine of Heifer International, a global nonprofit working with communities to end hunger and poverty and care for the Earth. Heifer International is qualified as a charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions to Heifer International are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. Since 1944, Heifer has helped 9.2 million families in more than 125 countries move toward greater selfreliance through the gift of livestock and training in environmentally sound agriculture. The impact of each initial gift is multiplied as recipients agree to “pass on the gift” by giving one or more of their animal’s offspring, or the equivalent, to another in need. Heifer International is a member of InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international development and humanitarian non-governmental organizations, and of Global Impact. Federal and state employees may designate gifts to Heifer through payroll deduction by entering CFC #12079. © 2008, Heifer International Opinions expressed in World Ark are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of either the magazine or Heifer International. Q&A MA RCH/A P RIL* Organizations like KickStart and IDE (see the story on page 8) are changing the everyday lives of the world’s poor with ingenious inventions. Will new technologies be the key to ending hunger and poverty? *E-mail your response to worldark@list.heifer.org. World Ark is printed on 30% post-consumer recycled stock, saving 6,264 trees per year and keeping 348,000 pounds of postconsumer waste out of landfills. www.heifer.org March/April 2008 | WORLD ARK 3 http://www.heifer.org
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