(image from Flickr http://flickr.com/photos/hippie/2451461151/)
If we are going down the route of exploring an integrated, uber-local, waste processing and management as indicated in Sarah's latest post, then it's worth looking into PERMACULTURE.
There is a good intro to permaculture on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permaculture.
There is also a 26 min video, the Quiet Revolution on http://www.21paradigm.com/permaculture.php
More Permaculture Links:
Permaculture Association (Britain) http://www.permaculture.org.uk/default.asp
Permaculture Institute http://www.permaculture.org/nm/index.php/site/classroom/. From this website, the link to the Polyface Farms http://www.polyfacefarms.com/ where various species of grazing animals, including pigs are used to maximise soil fertility.
Looking into Urban Farming might also provide useful references & examples http://www.cityfarmer.info/. Look at the England section http://www.cityfarmer.info/category/england/
In Sheffield, Heeley City Farm http://www.heeleyfarm.org.uk/ has been active for a number of years, doing a range of interesting projects. One of the things they run is 'apprentiship'/volunteering programs for local kids to work in the farm. If you have never been there it is really worth a visit to see how kids (largely teen agers) that would normally fall into the 'difficult' category, appear competent and empowered through working in the farm.
Perhaps it is worth exploring the possibility of linking any waste management/processing intervention proposed with training programmes.
It would be interesting talking to Heeley City Farm to find out more about those training programs as well as the management of animals on urban sites. Perhaps they would be interested in running/coordinating satellites mini farms base on various estates....
It is also worth noting that Sheffield is currrently try to become a Transition Town http://www.transitionsheffield.org.uk/.
"The Transition Towns movement aims to
find positive community-based responses to climate change and the end of cheap
oil".
Tonight (14th October) there is a screening in Burngreave of the film The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil.
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1 comment:
I keep chickens...they are a lot of hard work...not sure how a community as large as Lansdowne would handle keeping animals.
It is an interesting concept though...and what happened to our 'common land' anyway?
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