Sunday, June 5, 2011

It isnt always as it seems

The solution is not always obvious. In Lavender Hill hill where we are aiming to take cuttings from gifts given by the generous public so we can create something quite beautifull in Lavender Hill we now face a serious threat. There are some elements who clearly dont care for what we are doing as they have stolen, crapped, broken what we have been doing. I suppose if we succeed what will they do and where will these elements go. What place do they have in a beautifull crime free area where there are no drugs and violence? So we are faced with a problem. what do we do? We could bolt from the hills and place the nursery and the farm in another community, but this is too obvious and this community has been abandoned many times over. We could put up barbed wire and have giard dogs but this wont really solve a problem and will probably lead to more violence. Why are thyese elements doing this? Who are they selling the plants to? What would Ghandi do? i always ask this question when i dont know what to do? I think we need to try a few other less obvious things. I want to make it public that anyone in Lavender Hill is free to come and put their name down for a free plant or 2 for their homes. I will pay them for the flowers when we start producing our products. I want to tell the bad element they can also have free plants but they have to stop damaging and breaking them. Why woud i take this approach. Well if everyone has there name on a plant and they are damaged then they lose something now and income into the future. Also i dont need land to plant out because they will be looking after their urban product for me and we can support that process. I will however have a\n alternative nursery in a safe area as my plan B and i have a plan C with farmners who have already gifted me lavender. Lets see what happens. This is a massive opportunity to change things in this community and this is the exact time to do it. I call it the crossroads and if we mess up there wont be a second chance

2 comments:

  1. Its always easier to destroy than to build. I think if you can raise the awareness of the community it will help. Let them become your eyes, ears and guardians. Regular articles in a few publications (Community Newspapers) that are distributed in the area should help the whole community become more informed and hopefully more involved. Tell them what you are trying to achieve with the project. I think if the community as a whole takes ownership of the project as a whole and if they know the potential benefits, it will be easier to work there. Generally the people in an area know who the usual "culprits" are.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Charles,

    I have contacted Marcelle and given her the contact details for the Community Newspapers in the area. I agree with my brother (Kurt - yes, we're actually related), that we need to get the community more actively involved in the project, for them to take ownership and pride in it. Being part of the marketing company chosen to aid this project, Neon Grey Creative Marketing, we will try our efforts to get a sponsored banner in the area, announcing the arrival of the project and maybe even posters at the local library to aid in the morale. A local feature in the newspapers, informing the public on the progress of the project should help too. Feel free to contact me, should you wish to discuss, or I could liaise with Marcelle directly. Clint

    ReplyDelete