New Video - YERTpod5: City Farm Charm in Rhode Island

August 15, 2007 by Mark.

Dear YERTians,

Sit back and relax for an easy few minutes of common farming sense, city style. We found ourselves charmed by the easygoing pace and not-too-subtle wisdom of the City Farm in Providence, Rhode Island. We hope you do, too…

Just click here or the picture below to watch “YERTpod5: City Farm Charm in Rhode Island”

Meet Rich Peterson, the City Farmer of Providence, and learn about how the Southside Community Land Trust created an oasis of beautiful nutrition in an inner-city neighborhood. The land on this little plot is filled with wisdom, but the gardeners have painted some timeless advice on signs throughout the garden so that the newcomvers can learn more quickly. We did our best to share it with you in the video!

We’re also learning all about the Farm Bill here at YERT, and if you don’t think that it affects you, think again. This bill has a profound effect on our nation’s food, health, energy, communities, and overall quality of life, and it is coming up for a vote very soon in the U.S. Senate. We’ll be studying up and sharing our thoughts with you as we learn. For a quick video introduction to the Farm Bill by Ken Cook, watch the videos here. For a great written introduction by Michael Pollan, click here. And if you’d rather just listen, KQED’s Forum has a great discussion here.

Reap it and Eat,

Mark, Julie, and Ben (Your YERT Team)

team@yert.com

P.S. More Breadcrumbs! If you want to learn more about the topics in this video, check out these three resources:

• Southside Community Land Trust - City Farm. From the web page: “Over the past 25 years, these degraded vacant lots have been transformed into what are now beautiful and thriving gardens used for food production. By restoring the health of the land through clearing debris and remediating the soil of its toxins, the community is restored as well.”
• Soil: The Secret Solution to Global Warming. http://www.quantumshift.tv/v/1181028043. From the web page: “As Congress debates the Farm Bill, QuantumShift highlights another reason for them to support organics. Research by the Rodale Institute reveals that sustainably-farmed soil holds up to 30% more carbon than conventional agriculture. Converting US farmland to organic on a wide scale would reduce CO2 emissions by as much as 10%. The extra carbon in the soil also increases food nutrients, which could greatly reduce health care costs. In this QuantumShift special report, farmer Percy Schmeiser urges the President and Congress to shift existing agricultural subsidies to support sustainable farming practices.”
• And a fun little bit by NBC News about some surprising folks who actually receive farm subsidies. Scottie Pippin? David Letterman?? Check this out… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPjv4Hrp1hY&NR=1

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