In Africa, Slow Food International is in the final push to create 100 gardens in 100 days in countries across the continent.
Terre Madre is a network of Slow Food International bringing together a global network of food communities, farmers, cooks, universities, and academics all over the world. According to the Terra Madre Foundation, the organization “ldquo;brings together those players in the food chain who support sustainable agriculture, fishing, and breeding with the goal of preserving taste and biodiversity.” In 2010, Terre Madre set out to accomplish a new mission called A Thousand Gardens, with the goal of cultivating 1,000 gardens in over 25 countries across Africa. Thus far, the efforts of 50 coordinators alongside 30,000 African men, women and children have resulted in the creation of 887 gardens in schoolyards, in villages, and on the outskirts of cities.
In September, Slow Food announced a new project called 100 Days for 100 Gardens, a branch of A Thousand Gardens, hoping to speed up the project’s pace and make 100 new food gardens in Africa by the end of the year. These food gardens are important to the communities in which they will be built for many reasons. Food gardens fight against malnutrition and for biodiversity, sustainability, environmental protection, and food sovereignty. They give the people the opportunity to decide what they will grow and eat. They unite the community, bringing together multiple generations. They encourage the sharing and transmission of local knowledge and skills. If the goal of 100 food gardens in 100 days is met, the lives of 3,000 people will be forever changed by the end of the year.
100 Days for 100 Gardens is a shared project, meaning it can only grow with the support of crowdfunding. The project, which will end on December 29th, has less than ten days until completion and, thus far, has raised over US$67,000 (just shy of €49,000), 54 percent of its US$124,000 (€90,000) goal.
