Community Gardens Alleviate Hunger

Gardening Improves Quality of Life, Supplies Food, Helps Environment

© Sandra Williams

Red Hot, kymmie_xox,sxc.hu

There are many benefits of community gardening such as supplying nutritious food, encouraging community involvement, sharing skills and improving the environment.

Community Gardening helps alleviate poverty by providing nutritious organic food to people of all income levels. It also offers an opportunity to obtain useful knowledge and skills that people can then teach others in the community.

Other Benefits of Community Gardening:

For information on how to start a community garden, see American Community Gardening Association's website. “The Association recognizes that community gardening improves the quality of life for people by providing a catalyst for neighborhood and community development, stimulating social interaction, encouraging self-reliance, beautifying neighborhoods, producing nutritious food, reducing family food budgets, conserving resources and creating opportunities for recreation, exercise, therapy and education.”

Reference: (American Community Gardening Association, 2004)


The copyright of the article Community Gardens Alleviate Hunger in Poverty is owned by Sandra Williams. Permission to republish Community Gardens Alleviate Hunger must be granted by the author in writing.



Comments
Apr 16, 2007 12:35 PM
Jennifer W. Miner :
I love it when I'm in an urban area, and suddenly see a community garden. When I lived in NYC, it was especially gratifying to see some green in the midst of all that grey. Great article. :)
Apr 17, 2007 11:39 AM
Sandra Williams :
Thanks Jennifer. A garden does tend to cheer a neighborhood up. The funny thing about it too is it tends to spread. Almost everyone ended up with a garden last year along our street. The ones who didn't stood out like a sore thumb. I recently read something about how police find drug dealers. They look for unkept lawns as a possible sign of foul play! I guess they inadvertently make themselves known by not blending in.
Apr 30, 2007 2:30 AM
Karen Lotter :
In Durban, local government has big project going to fund community gardens - both market gardens and home gardens. I did a story on a group of old women - all over sixty who dug up their whole churchyard and planted veggies - now they're supplementing their pensions and giving fresh veggies to the people who come to the AIDS clinic. At first the young people laughed at them, now the kids at the school next door have started a garden to raise funds for soccer kit.
Apr 30, 2007 5:53 AM
Sandra Williams :
That sounds like a good story Karen. It's also a great example of how small things like community gardening can help contribute to others.

I bet it was a great way for some of the more isolated ladies to get out and socialize as well.
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