Why Community Gardens Matter

"Mike Sullivan, who directs the neighbourhood's "EcoDesign Corps," engaging youth in hands-on community based projects, has no illusions about the benefits of this and other ecologically friendly spaces he is responsible for, which include gardens, green roofs and rain barrels...People here sometimes talk about "the plan," which according to a recent article in the Washington Post, is a theory, fed by the increasing gentrification of traditionally black neighbourhoods, that elites want to turn the city back into a majority white place...Whatever theory of social impoverishment you espouse, there is no question that housing is becoming unaffordable for many poorer families in Washington. This somehow makes the garden seem even more inspiring, and for all its small scale and humble facade, relevant..."