Sustainability History Project

[This post was written by Christopher Milton, Sara Davenport, Kimberly Sherwood, and Jan Steinbock.]

Our Growing Communities group is researching sustainability as it relates to local food systems, food bank gardens, permaculture and light pollution.

The idea of local food systems is a sustainability issue that is being addressed in society today, through such things as farmers markets, community gardens, and local fruit and vegetable delivery programs. However, the potential for sustainability from utilizing local food systems could be addressed much more extensively. Local food systems can provide fresh, healthy food options that make societies that utilize them more sustainable and more self-sufficient. Local food systems can also benefit communities by allowing them to see where their food is coming from and how important it is to take care of the earth that produces the food.

One component of a healthy food system are food bank gardens. There is little research available on food bank gardens, but community gardens are very similar Most peer-reviewed studies and news articles focus on the economic and social benefits of community gardens. Yet, as Brundtland stated, “The environment does not exist as a sphere separate from human actions, ambitions, and needed . . .” (Kates, 2005).

By gardening locally these groups are doing good things for the environment. Local gardens reduce the amount of processing and transportation needed to get food into the hands of consumers. Recipients gain fresher, naturally ripened and possibly more nutritious vegetables than they can provision elsewhere. Gardening sequesters carbon in the soil and reduces erosion (Okvat, 2011). If the garden is managed organically the soil is improved and the biodiversity within the soil is enhanced. This in turn supports the entire local food web. All of these benefits make food bank gardens environmentally sustainable.
Permaculture is an excellent way to bring the three pillars of sustainability together. Social equity is enhanced through its fundamental principle of supporting everyone equally and it encourages neighbors to help each other and build community. Economics is considered but it demands that we take responsibility for consumerism. Permaculture asks that people fund the local economy and businesses that are essential and are respectful of the three pillars of sustainability. The environment is protected through this practice by mimicking the patterns that are already found in nature. Permaculture is a practical solution for an ever changing climate and the decline of finite resources.

In contrast, the topics of light pollution and the affects of artificial light on human culture and physiology need to be studied in much greater depth. While there is ample amount of research into the affects of light pollution on other species, the human species, for the most part, has failed to receive an equal amount of study. Light pollution is no longer just a problem for astronomers, it is an issue that each individual within society should recognize. Light pollution is a multifaceted sustainability problem because of its detrimental effect on the structure of society, economic equality and the environment that we inhabit.

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Kates, Robert W., Thomas M. Parris, and Anthony A. Leiserowitz. “What is Sustainable Development?” Environment 47:3 (Apr. 2005), 8-21.

Okvat, Heather A. and Alex J. Zautura “Community Gardening: A Parsimonious Path to Individual, Community, and Environmental Resilience.” American Journal of Community Psychology 47 (Jan. 2011), 374-387.

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