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In our excitement to spread the green word, it's easy to forget that many Americans don't have the opportunity to engage. "Forget organic and locally grown food?in America's poorest urban neighborhoods, it's hard to find any affordable fruits and vegetables at all," writes Tracie McMillan in Mother Jones Magazine. "Six grocery stores serve South Los Angeles' population of 688,000. West Oakland has no supermarkets, but close to 60 liquor stores."
That's where Wil Allen and the urban farm concept enter the picture. "Sixteen years ago," McMilliam explains, "Allen gave up a lucrative job working for Procter & Gamble's corporate marketing department to found Growing Power, a tiny working farm in the heart of Milwaukee." Allen explains: "Right down the street was the largest housing project. The major grocery store had pulled out?so I said, 'This should be a great place to sell produce.'" Growing Power now sits on three city acres.
For those unable to follow specifically in Allen's footsteps, there's always community supported agriculture and let's not forget the real big city balcony: the fire escape.
