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COSTING THE EARTH
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Costing the Earth tells stories which touch all our lives, looking at man's effect on the environment and at how the environment reacts. It questions accepted truths, challenges the people in charge and reports on progress towards improving the world we live in.
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| Making the city green- the Guerrilla Gardeners |
Guerrilla Gardeners
Every town has it, from the grimmest housing estate to the bustling heart of the city- wasteland. Unwanted, over-run by weeds and abandoned fridges; ghastly eyesores that act as magnets to junkies and incontinent dogs.
One man can't take it any more. He's been pushed too far. He's the hard rain that's going to wash the scum from the streets. He's Richard Reynolds, the Guerrilla Gardener.
In 'Costing the Earth' Tom Heap goes undercover with the Guerrilla Gardeners, the team dedicated to making Britain's cities bloom- whatever it takes.
New research from the Netherlands shows how well-tended green space can improve health and longevity and even cut crime but most cities are over-run with neglected green and brown patches. The Guerrilla Gardeners believe that we should stop moaning to the council and take these 'confused spaces' in-hand ourselves, converting them from eyesores to mini gardens that lift the spirits and freshen the city air.
It's a view shared by the people of Balsall Heath. This inner suburb of Birmingham was once a by-word for prostitution and drug-dealing. The attendant crime made for a grim neighbourhood abandoned by anyone who could afford to move out.
In the 1990s the remaining residents decided to re-take their neighbourhood. Patrols were launched to seize the area's parks from the drug dealers and return them to family use. Litter-strewn roundabouts and verges were replaced by carpets of flowers. Residents were encouraged to plant up their front gardens and invest in hanging baskets.
No one clams that the 66% reduction in crime is purely down to the green revolution but there's no doubt that residents are once again proud of their neighbourhood, happy to take a midnight stroll through parks that were once out-of-bounds in the daylight. The transformation has been recognised with a raft of Britain in Bloom nominations. This year they're determined to win the national award.
Sweden may come very close to abandoning fossil fuels by 2020 but are there any lessons for Britain? They have hydro-electric power, plenty of forests to burn and a population with a well-developed eco-conscience. Britain's route to an oil-free economy would have to be very different but we can certainly learn from the positive attitude the Swedes bring to an unavoidable debate.
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RELATED LINKS
Guerilla Gardeners
Balsall Health Forum
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