Ron Finley & LA Green Grounds (guerrilla gardening)
Los Angeles, United States · Operator: Ron Finley Project / LA Green Grounds (volunteer collective)
Overview
In South Central Los Angeles, a 'food desert,' fashion designer Ron Finley began planting vegetables on curbside strips and vacant lots; it grew into a movement where residents build DIY edible gardens to provide fresh food and to teach nutrition and self-reliance.
Citizen participation
Neighborhood residents and volunteers gather on communal 'dig-in' workdays to dig up curbside parkways and vacant lots and build edible food forests with their own hands.
Operating model
Nonprofit, funded by donations, TED talks/speaking fees and workshops; materials are donated or reclaimed, and the group successfully challenged the city's permit rules to win the right to plant on parkways.
Impact
Became an iconic example that popularized guerrilla gardening worldwide and prompted the city to revise its regulations, improving residents' food access and community ties and inspiring citizen-gardening movements elsewhere.
Crops
- leafy greens
- tomatoes
- peppers
- herbs
- fruit trees
- squash
Scale
Curbside parkway strips, traffic medians and abandoned lots across South Central Los Angeles
Sources（2）
This entry is compiled from the public sources, official sites and research below.
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