Where is the “green” in the green shift?
Green Shift
Society must go through a green shift – to a green economy. Innovation Norway gets half a billion Norwegian kroner to the green shift. “ We experience great interest for Norwegian sustainable solutions in sectors like energy, aquaculture, processing technology and shipping ” .
1) Transport sector: electric and hybrid cars.
2) 2) technological development: CO2 capture technologies.
3) 3) Shipping: condemnation and renovation of vessels in the local shipping
industry.
3. Urban agriculture
ecology, health, business, and a sosial mission USA
New York rooftops
Why farm in the sky?
With ground space a premium in North America’s densest metropolis, New York has posi0oned itself as a ripe hotbed for roofop farms. Urban farms and gardens outnumber Starbucks three to one in New York.
Brooklyn Grange and financial viability Brooklyn Grange (worlds largest) was founded through a CSA, and specializes in selling to local businesses and spurring community economic growth.
Gotham Greens
Partnered with Whole Foods to create the na0on’s first industrial-‐scale greenhouse—
20,000 f2 on the roof of Whole Foods’
Gowanus, Brooklyn
Big Quiet medita0on event last summer at Brooklyn Grange
Their Brooklyn Navy Yard loca0on has begun offering increased public access, with school programs, sunrise yoga, and even weddings that they personally cater. They also operate the city’s largest apiary, with 30 beehives currently in opera0on.
Chicago parks
Lakefront and parks
There are 570 parks in the city of Chicago, and local farmers put up their stands in many of them on Saturdays.
Chicago leads 2016 America's Top 10 Urban Farms
Sustainable businesses are moving into Chicago. With 64 food truck vendors, 24 seasonal markets and one year round market, 62 urban farms and community gardens, 54 businesses and organiza0ons ac0vely promo0ng urban agriculture.
Chicago Botanic Garden
Chicago Botanic Garden’s urban agriculture educa0on and jobs-‐
training ini0a0ve helps build a local food system, healthier
communi0es, and a greener economy.
www.project120chicago.org/south-‐parks/from-‐above
Chicago neighborhoods
South side
Special aeen0on to u0lizing urban agriculture to revitalize neighborhoods on Chicago’s south side is paying dividends in everything from farmers markets to restaurant roofop gardens. And it’s not just the farms, it’s the new bike trails, bed & breakfasts, reuse stores and pop-‐up businesses.
Chicago Botanic Garden has built garden oases in some of the city’s most challenged neighborhoods.
Windy City Harvest Youth Farm educates and employs 80 to 90 teens from low-‐income communi0es.
Downtown Chicago, “the Plant” has a farm, urban canopy roofop farm, and indoor demonstra0on farms and
educa0onal facili0es.
Green Youth Farm
employs high school students on its organic farms and sells produce at several markets.Been recognized as a na0onal best prac0ces youth development program.
Madison
The best place to live in the USA
Livability.com has put Madison first on the list of best places to live in the US. Both a capitol city and a hip college town, Madison has affordable housing, great schools and excellent health care.
Farmers market on Capitol Square
Some say the soul of the local foods movement was born in Madison at Capitol square market. The farmers' market was founded in 1972 by Madison Mayor Bill Dyke, who sought to unite Dane County's urban and rural cultures.
The Largest Producer-‐Only Farmers Market in the USA. Every Saturday and Wednesday in Madison, 300 vendors come from all over Wisconsin:
vegetables, flowers, meats, cheeses, and specialty products. Crowds jostle to buy the food and ofen come from the whole state to enjoy the market.
Vegetable garden
Community GroundWorks has designed and installed a 400 square foot demonstra0on vegetable garden at the State Capitol in Madison for the last five seasons.
Community gardens are linking together city parks and neighborhoods
Green corridors can become a proxy of a beeer city within the city. Its ripple effect can demonstrate how public spaces may be put to beeer use and break nega0ve percep0ons about pedestrian streets, bike lanes and public transporta0on -‐ turning “inac0ve” places into opportuni0es.
Madison gardens
Garden network in Dane county
65 community gardens are connected in the city in a network of public bike trails and parkways.
Across at least 30 acres of garden plots, more than 2000 households come together to grow fresh vegetables. Madison has been the home of
community gardens since 1912, during the World Wars and through the Great Depression. Today there is 2-‐3 year wai0ng list for plots.
Atwood Community Garden
The Atwood Community Gardens are Madison's most visible community gardens. This beau0ful edible landscape stretches along a bike path to the capitol and university. There are 110 plots here.
Two-‐thirds of urban farmers have an ecological and social mission that goes beyond food produc0on and profit.
Madison
We associate Minnesota and Wisconsin with the influx of Scandinavians during the 19th century, but the upper Midwest is experiencing a demographic revolu0on. The region has twice the share of immigrants from Southeast Asia as the United States as a whole and five 0mes the share of immigrants from Africa as the na0on as a whole.
The Hmong popula0on in Wisconsin, California and Minnesota are urban farmers.
Afer immigra0ng to the United States afer the Vietnam War, studies of Hmong women showed that many of them s0ll prac0ced agriculture similar to that of when they were back in Southeast Asia. These “urban gardens” have become
reconstruc0ons of their former gardens – using agricultural techniques passed down to them by their parents and grandparents back in Laos.
Atwood community garden Photo Laurie Vestøl
Troy garden
Photo Laurie Vestøl
4. Urban agriculture in Telemark
Strategic plans, farm co-ops, backyard farms and startups
Strategic plans
The County Governer in Telemark (fylkesmannen i Telemark)
has wrieen the first strategic plan for urban agriculture in Norway.
Farming festivals
Animals in urban seZngs
Telemark celebrates farm animals and husbandry: horses, cows, sheep, pigs, chickens and bees. Vest Telemark Birøktarlag includes Bø, Seljord, Kviteseid, Tokke, Vinje og Fyresdal. And the animals are coming back into the city…..
Dyrskue i Seljord
Dyrskue messa for agricultural prac0ces will celebrate 150 years in 2016. The Telemark cow has been an important focus since 1856.
Farm collectives in Telemark
Organic or biodynamic farming methods In the USA there are 12 000 farm collec0ves (CSA). Community-‐supported agriculture.
CSAs generally focus on the produc0on of high quality foods for a local community, ofen using organic or biodynamic farming methods, and a shared risk membership–marke0ng structure.
In Norway there are 47 – and in Telemark 4 There is a growing interest in Norway, and a huge poten0al for locally grown food.
Skien, Porsgrunn, Bamble og Bø
Åbø Gård near Bø sentrum produces grains and egg, and has gone over to ecological prac0ces.
Bamle Farm in Langesund started january 2016.
Århus farm
collective in Skien
Skien is Telemarks largest farming community.
Århus CSA started up in 211 and has over 200 shareholders, with 50 on the wai0ng list. The farm produces over 30 different types of tomatoes and has a beau0ful herb garden. 4 da are planted with ecological berry bushes.
The main aerac0on is a wide range of vegetables including many exo0c varie0es. Hens are fun for families, and visits from many schools and daycares.
A barn func0ons as conference room and mee0ng place for the Slow Food and other food
organisa0ons. Århus CSA is a node in Skien for organic farming and teaching ecology to the community.
Green stunts
Århus also shows how urban agriculture can develop new green space in the city. They built a temporary orchard for Mersmak food fes0val in 2015. The work force at Århus can build green elements for the city.
Osebakken CSA in Porsgrunn
Osebakken Farm CSA started up in 2013 and has over 150 shareholders. It has become an important place for community-‐building or educa0onal events.
This year the farmyard will be expanded with a greenhouse, an outdoor kitchen, sea0ng and henhouse. Also toolshed, tractor space and bike parking.
Organic shops
Rent mel i posen, Porsgrunn Organic bakery using only the best
ingredients like organic whole grains and seeds, fresh local herbs, and unbleached and unbromated flours from the local Holli mill. Bueer from Røros. They make over 10 different types of dough every day along with holding courses and mobile stands for events in Telemark.
Keims gård
Keims Salong at the old farmhouse in the middle of Porsgrunn city is a mee0ng spot for exchanges ideas and thoughts. The farmhouse has become a charming oasis near Storgata – with Feste landscape AS, bakery, and cultural businesses.
Porsgrunn
Grenland metropolis
A new metropolis in Telemark is being strategically planned along the waterways of Grenland. This would connect the ci0es of Skien, Porsgrunn, Brevik, Stathelle and Langesund with bike trails and new
housing – and hopefully a tram some day.
The metropolis would stretch from the archipelago and seacoast to Telemarks canal in Skien.
Porsgrunn city
Skien and Porsgrunn are twin ci0es, only 10 km apart along the river. Together, the popula0on is ca 100 000. One of the main industrial hubs in Norway, Porsgrunn is characterized by factories.
Porsgrunn is famous for its porcelain.
Porsgrunn is also known for its art and culture and shopping.
Meierigården
In the middle of downtown Porsgrunn along the main drag is an old milk factory now used as a cultural community center.
1500 people visit the house every week.
Meierigården community center
with 1500 visitors every week
Espaliertre, druer, humle
Meierigården cultural community center
Transforming a backyard parking lot into an «urban jungle» in the middle of Downtown Porsgrunn. 1500 visitors every week will experience different ac0vi0es. Four small gardens are planned for urban farming:
The forest, the orchard, the herb garden and the plot gardens.
The courtyard will be finished in june 2016.
Rintala & Eggertsson architects
Urban Space Lab – garden design
Meierigården – urban jungle under construction now
The courtyard is about 500m2 large. 160m2 of this will now be fruit trees, berry bushes, and a ver0cal garden on the south facing brick wall. A «green group» has now made hammocks from old fire hoses for hanging up in between the forest trees. This will be a place for the rock club to play music and hang out. And a fire pit for evening storytelling.
The orchard will have tables for the elderly to play chess, while the herb & vegetables in plots will supply the house kitchens in season. There will be areas for different groups to keep ac0ve – the painters, singers, book clubs and youth groups have lots of ideas for events in the courtyard.
5. Urban space lab
Urban farming in Porsgrunn, Brevik og Sandøya
What a lovely space for a farmers market…….hmmmm
I live on Sandøya, 7 minutes by ferry from Brevik and 20 minutes from Porsgrunn.
Sandøya is part of the archipelago in the future Grenland metropolis. The 350 residents have started a project
“Island hopping with your bike” this year and would like to contribute to ecological tourism.
Green school on Sandøya
Sandøya has a Montessori daycare, school and high school with about 80 students that come from the mainland daily. Montessoriforeningen has hired Urban Space Lab as the project leader for developing the school and has also then hired Gaia architects to design it.
If the project group succeeds, this will be the first Montessori school in Norway (and Europe) to build a new school according to the Montessori pedagogy. It is designed as a a farm school teaching marine ecology and green studies.
We have already received funding for a fruit orchard that will be planted in may.
