Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Is there urban ag in Bangalore?

One of my biggest passions is agriculture.  Recently I have been most interested in urban agriculture after I spent last summer working on farms in Cleveland with a cool program called Green Corps.  I even hope to write my Junior and Senior Independent Study projects at Wooster on urban agriculture.  That's why of course I am putting my feelers out for urban ag in Bangalore while I am here.

I found a really cool looking urban agriculture site in a semi-urban area outside of Bangalore.  I have contacted the organizers and hope to arrange a visit with them.  The farms are located in Magadi and are run in part by the Resource Centres on Urban Agriculture and Food Security.  A project description can be found here

A view of Magadi.  


Land use in Magadi (you might want to click on the image to view it in a larger form).  About half of the land is used to grow food.  What if Wooster or Portland could be like this?

So far it has been hard to see what type of farming or gardening is going on in the city itself.  Bangalore is growing so quickly that most of the space is used.  Some vacant lots, however, present potential locations for growing in the urban setting.  Still, the number of vacant lots here cannot even come close to what I've seen in Detroit or Cleveland.

If I am able to arrange a visit to Magadi or meet with the organizers I will be sure to post an update.


2 comments:

  1. I hope the meeting with the organizers works out!! It sounds like you're really taking steps to make some awesome connections and changes in this community; keep on doing amazing things!

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  2. Every time I see photos of urban ag sites, especially in developing countries, I am always struck by how much they look like an oasis of green in the middle of dense urban settlements. Looks beautiful, I can't wait to see an update.

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