Spring Break
Course connects gardening, Athens social issues
CRISSINDA PONDER For The Red & Black
Issue date: 4/28/09 Section: Variety
Sophomore Kylie Pace wants people to know they have a choice of where their food comes from.
That's just one of many important lessons she said she's learned as part of the geography department's Athens Urban Food Collective (AUFC), a service learning course that teaches students about urban agriculture, local food and hunger issues and how to maximize available resources.
"I think that we are connecting gardening to other social issues going on in Athens," said Pace, of Knoxville, Tenn.
Where: Geography-geology building room 200D
Price: Free
Rebecca Agnew, a junior from Toccoa who is enrolled in the course, said the purpose of the AUFC is to serve as a resource for people who want to start their own gardens.
Tonight, the organization will sponsor a tour of the roof garden that sits atop the geography-geology department's building.
The roof, which was modified in 1959, was created to foster plant growth.
Two years ago, the members of AUFC created six vegetable gardens on the roof, the products of which they donate to the Athens branch of Food Not Bombs, an organization that collects, cooks and redistributes food.
The group also will screen the film "The Gleaners and I," a French documentary directed by Agnes Varda.
The movie explores how the Western world deals with waste by following a number of gleaners, people who collect leftover crops and items from farmland as well as from urban environments.
"The film plays off the theme 'one man's trash is another man's treasure,'" said Max Buckner, a senior from Dunwoody who is an active AUFC class member.
He said Wednesday's event is an opportunity for attendees to learn more about the AUFC and food activism in the Athens community.
AUFC students also stress the consequences of transporting agriculture over long distances.
"It is important to be aware that the food you eat contributes to global warming because of the transportation involved," Agnew said.
"The agriculture industry is one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases. We should think about why we ship food from thousands of miles away when it can be grown in our backyards," Buckner said.
Overall the group wishes to convey Wednesday that anyone can grow food in areas that would not typically be considered agriculturally productive.
"We should consider how we use and waste space," Pace said. "You don't need a lot of stuff to grow your own food."
That's just one of many important lessons she said she's learned as part of the geography department's Athens Urban Food Collective (AUFC), a service learning course that teaches students about urban agriculture, local food and hunger issues and how to maximize available resources.
"I think that we are connecting gardening to other social issues going on in Athens," said Pace, of Knoxville, Tenn.
ROOF GARDEN OPEN HOUSE AND MOVIE SHOWING
When: 7 p.m. WednesdayWhere: Geography-geology building room 200D
Price: Free
Rebecca Agnew, a junior from Toccoa who is enrolled in the course, said the purpose of the AUFC is to serve as a resource for people who want to start their own gardens.
Tonight, the organization will sponsor a tour of the roof garden that sits atop the geography-geology department's building.
The roof, which was modified in 1959, was created to foster plant growth.
Two years ago, the members of AUFC created six vegetable gardens on the roof, the products of which they donate to the Athens branch of Food Not Bombs, an organization that collects, cooks and redistributes food.
The group also will screen the film "The Gleaners and I," a French documentary directed by Agnes Varda.
The movie explores how the Western world deals with waste by following a number of gleaners, people who collect leftover crops and items from farmland as well as from urban environments.
"The film plays off the theme 'one man's trash is another man's treasure,'" said Max Buckner, a senior from Dunwoody who is an active AUFC class member.
He said Wednesday's event is an opportunity for attendees to learn more about the AUFC and food activism in the Athens community.
AUFC students also stress the consequences of transporting agriculture over long distances.
"It is important to be aware that the food you eat contributes to global warming because of the transportation involved," Agnew said.
"The agriculture industry is one of the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases. We should think about why we ship food from thousands of miles away when it can be grown in our backyards," Buckner said.
Overall the group wishes to convey Wednesday that anyone can grow food in areas that would not typically be considered agriculturally productive.
"We should consider how we use and waste space," Pace said. "You don't need a lot of stuff to grow your own food."
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