The New Green Economy

BP is still scrambling to bring some sense of order and control to what by now is unquestionably the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history.  The public’s overwhelming sense of anger, frustration, and resentment towards the company responsible is only natural and arguably well-deserved.  The federal government is increasing pressure on the oil giant to redouble its efforts and ensure there will be immediate progress in the seemingly impossible clean-up effort.

55 days later we know who’s to blame, we know who’s to foot the bill—but certainly that’s not enough—writing this off as BP’s problem doesn’t provide us with peace of mind.  We feel somewhere inside of us that we all played a part in this tragedy.  Whether we realize it or not, our lifestyles are intrinsically connected to the economic ventures of companies like BP; our consumer habits are what keep companies like BP drilling for more.

So then we must then ask ourselves: what can we do as individuals to ensure that a catastrophe like that Deepwater Horizon is never allowed to happen again?  How do we convert our anger, frustration, resentment, and common sense into positive action?  The answer is waiting for you in your own backyard.  Try planting a garden. It’s not what many might expect, but entertain the thought for just a moment.

An article written by Peter Goodchild’s in the Post Carbon’s Institute’s Energy Bulletin, entitled “Agriculture in a post-oil economy,” identifies the industrialized world’s heavy reliance on oil in order to meet its agricultural needs.  Goodchild references a probable scenario in the not-too-distant future in a post-oil economy where the first and foremost problem is not one of energy or transportation, but a lack of food.  Why is this so?

Industrial agriculture is presently the largest consumer of petroleum-based fuels in the United States. Oil and natural gas play a crucial role in the success of modern day large-scale farming procedures, ranging from the fuel that powers farming equipment, to the chemical fertilizers that ensure massive amounts of abundant harvests, to the asphalt on the roads that allows for produce to be shipped over long distances.

So planting a garden and raising your own produce really can make a difference, but protesting our over-reliance on oil by growing locally can only work if entire communities take this giant step forward together.  Local communities must support each other in this endeavor, and over time will see the fruits of their labor as local jobs become more abundant, community nutrition and overall well-being improve, and the community as a whole becomes more close-knit.

Randy Jewart of Austin Green Art is working to make locally-grown produce a shared reality in the city of Austin, Texas.  Jewart points out that planting your own garden is not just about saving yourself money or becoming self-reliant in terms of produce production.  He notes that keeping up a quarter-acre garden is a major responsibility that requires more time, energy, and financial commitment than most people realize.

Jewart confesses though that such devotion is well worth it—ultimately it leads us down the path to a healthier way of life.  “…[O]ur local food system is what shows up on a plate that someone puts right in front of us,” he says.  “Eating out, eating prepared foods, and shopping for things that we just shove in our face, means that our connection to the growth of produce, harvesting it, distributing it, shopping for it and then preparing it by hand is not something that we're conscious of or connected to in any kind of robust way.”

Jewart also notes that as you become more involved in maintaining your own garden, you eventually come to appreciate what he calls the “garden-to-table-to-garden cycle.”

“Gardening is fun, certainly, but as you expand your garden (and daydream of what it would take to grow ALL your veggies) you physically, conceptually and emotionally connect to what it might take to grow your own food,” says Jewart.

“So, once you feel that, you may begin to ask yourself (and have a tiny inkling) of what it would take in terms of land, effort and money for the 1.5 million people in our region to eat locally.  If every single one of those million folks had a garden, we'd still be a long way from eating locally, but those people would have enough of a real connection to what local food is about (the benefits and the challenges!) to have the public discussion, to make the commitment of dollars and time, to start on a path toward a real local food system.”

It is precisely becoming aware of what we are eating and where it comes from that can allow us to make conscious, effective decisions in how to modify our lifestyles.  It is this awareness that allows each of us to begin to break our ties with oil-based agricultural techniques and ultimately an oil-driven economy.

Jewart’s Austin-based company, Resolution Gardens, has planted nearly 100 garden constructions since its inception in March 2009.  (Click here to see some of his work.) He says he's confident he’s leading the pack with the most gardens in the city, but not nearly enough to create a self-reliant produce production system to feed the some 1.5 million local inhabitants.

Join in now and make difference—plant a garden or begin setting one up for next year. Let your friends, family, neighbors, and the government know that you’re ready to end your dependency on oil-based agriculture and economy.  Let’s all do our part to ensure that future generations never have to live through another tragedy like that of the BP oil spill.