Portland, Or - A Model of Sustainable Living

We spent several days in Portland. I am amazed each time i visit there at how much progress they are making towards sustainable urban living. We visited Zenger Urban Agricultural Park which is a farm purchased by the city to protect a wetland behind an industrial development. They turned the rest of the farm over to a non- profit organization to be an education center for urban farming. A farmer grows vegetables and chickens on 3 of the acres that are sold at a CSA.
They have a community garden that is used by immigrant families to grow their own food. They have a solar power system and collect 6000 gallons of rainwater for use during the dry summer season.
There are lots and lots of restaurants that serve local organic food and they promote it heavily. We had breakfast at a restaurant/yoga studio that served their food on real plates and used cloth napkins. Imagine that!
We went to a farmers market that was started 15 years ago. It is held in the parking lot of an awesome food coop called the Peoples Market. We were able to buy salmon, fresh mushrooms and lots of vegetables for our dinner all in one place.
We visited The Rebuilding Center which is a Non-profit that recycles building materials. It was started in a down and out neighborhood a few years ago to provide jobs for local residents. Now it is thriving and so the the surrounding neighborhood. Businesses have moved in, houses have been restored and new construction is under way.
There are rain gardens all around the city that capture rain water and allow it to soak into the ground replenishing the groundwater instead of allowing polluted water to wash into the rivers.
We need to look to Portland as a shining example of what Atlanta can become through our collective efforts.

The Funny Farm

This is the first installment from our new adventure in suburban sustainable living here at the Funny Farm. Robin and I have had a dream since we first got married 34 years ago to have a place where we can practice organic farming, living gently on the planet and teaching others to do the same. About 2 months ago we got a call from our friend girl Charlie who has been keeping her eye out for some land for us. She said her Angels told her to turn left instead of right ( her usual route). She saw a for sale sign had just been put up on the property behind her own. She called us, we came out the next day to look at the property and we new it was the place where we would spend the rest of our days realizing our dream. It has space to grow food and flowers, a large pond for aquaculture, a nice barn for animals, some woods, a full basement where we can grow mushrooms... a perfect set up for a diversified enterprise only 20 minutes from our business and community garden in downtown Atlanta.
We've been here a month now and we couldn't be happier. We've been busy clearing brush, tilling some space for flowers and veggies, making compost and developing a plan to make a living here.
I'll be using this space to chronicle our our efforts to create a model that will demonstrate that it is possible to live gently and sustainably whereever you are be it in the city, in the 'burbs or in the country. It is a matter of desire and commitment. Stay tuned and we'll share our efforts with you.