A food desert is described as a place that is barren of fruits, vegetables, and other nutritious whole foods. They are so prevalent here in the United States that maps are depicting where these food deserts are located. The biggest issue is that in place of grocery stores, farmers markets, and health food providers are convenience stores. Convenience stores don’t typically have the healthiest food, which in turn, contributes to rising obesity rates in America. Areas of Los Angeles are prone to being food deserts and being poverty stricken, so one man is out to change that.
Ron Finley aka the Real OG (Organic Gardener) is trying to solve the issues he sees in his neighborhood. He lives in South Central Los Angeles where he grew up. When he was young, gang life was becoming very popular, and his community was rocked with violence. Finley avoided going down that path with tailoring. After school, he attended a tailoring school, and he eventually went on to design his own clothing brand that was sold in high-end stores.
He still lives in South Central L.A. and is fighting a new battle. He wants to bring fresh produce to his neighborhood and keep kids off the street by giving them something to work on. He has grown a huge organic garden in an empty pool in his backyard. His original reasoning for this was because he was driving 45 minutes round trip for organic food, now he wants to use it as an outreach project for the kids in his neighborhood. He is trying to give them a positive way to use their hands and show them that there is life outside of South Central L.A.
He calls himself the Organic Gangster because he wants to turn the word “gangster” into a positive thing. He started to install gardens all over the city in old parkways and empty lots and encourages kids to help him out. He tells them that being self-sustaining, giving back, and taking care of yourself is gangster. Trying to emphasize how much better a positive forward moving life is versus a life of crime.
Finley initially planted a flower garden in front of his home to make it more aesthetically pleasing to look at. This idea stemmed from his frustration that even though there were thousands to millions of people in his city, they had to leave the neighborhood to get anything other than “cigarettes and alcohol.” This eventually turned into an entirely sustainable garden.
Finley has some ups and downs in his journey, especially around the time of the recession but eventually, he was able to achieve his dream of bringing gardens to his neighborhood and has even been invited to do several TED talks about the importance of bringing fresh food to food deserts. Southern Los Angeles County has the highest obesity rate in all of L.A. Finley wants to be able to change that, and he is well on his way. By working with the youth in the community, he is hoping the change will grow with them, and South-Central L.A. will look much different someday.
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Source: Daily Mail
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