Network of Community Urban Gardens of the Community of Madrid

In cities we can find many types of gardens depending on where they are and who grows them: home gardens, schools, private or municipal leisure gardens (such as La Huerta de Montecarmelo), educational gardens and community urban gardens, to which we will dedicate this new post.

What is a community garden?

Community urban gardens are free spaces with free access, where the people who cultivate them take advantage of all the advantages of coexistence, teamwork and self- management, bearing in mind the importance of agroecological techniques for obtaining food. Healthier.

In community gardens, the neighborhood communities are responsible for establishing and cultivating them. They are self-managed by this group of people who participate and are involved in regenerating disused urban spaces and turning them into green spaces that serve as a meeting place open to democratic participation and the socialization of people. In addition, at the same time, they promote techniques that respect the environment and health, such as those of Ecological Agriculture.

But…there are many things! How do they get all this? We have always heard that «union is strength» and that is one of the reasons why community gardens work and bring so many positive things to those who participate in them. In these gardens there are people of all ages, ideologies and cultures (since anyone who wants can become part of the «community of gardeners» of a community garden), so knowledge and experiences are shared that are useful, enriching, and even therapeutic. Not only that, but basic social values ​​and attitudes are also promoted, such as tolerance, solidarity or respect for the environment.

They are multipurpose spaces in which people can benefit from all this while practicing horticulture, a playful and relaxing activity that helps us disconnect from the stress of the cities (You can read more about this in the article on Benefits of Urban Gardens ) and gives us delicious freshly harvested vegetables and vegetables free of chemical products.

Something similar are the “Community Gardens” or Community Gardens, very common in cities in the United Kingdom or the United States.

The Network of Community Urban Gardens of Madrid

HOW DID THE NETWORK OF ORCHARDS OF THE COMMUNITY OF MADRID EMERGE?

In 2011, the Network of Community Urban Gardens of Madrid was created thanks to the participation of groups dedicated to agriculture in different areas of this city.

It emerged in order to achieve two main objectives:

• Provide mutual support of the different orchards thanks to the communication between them and the exchange of ideas, experiences and resources (seeds, seedlings, compost…)
• Facilitate dialogue with the administration for the regularization and improvement of community gardens in Madrid.

WHY A NETWORK OF NETWORKS?

The Network began with 5 community gardens and now, just three years later, there are more than 40 gardens of all kinds that are part of it: university, neighborhood, school, cultural gardens, health centers, parishes…

As we have seen before, a community garden is made up of a ‘network’ of gardeners who farm together. There are many advantages that this «together» implies, and that is why ReHd Mad! It also intends to be a network: a network of networks, which provides utilities and solutions to the problems that may arise in community gardens.

It is about creating a meeting and communication point for groups that are dedicated to urban agriculture and are ecological and community. In addition to facilitating communication between them and with the public administration, the Network of Orchards facilitates communication with society as a whole, making it easier to make themselves known, organize activities or disseminate Ecological, Urban Agriculture., natural food, and many other things that can help improve life in cities.

All this is not a utopia, but a reality that can be felt in each of the orchards and that has been recognized even by the United Nations when, at the end of 2012, the Network of Community Urban Orchards of Madrid received the recognition of Good Practices European 2012 in the category of Environmental Management, Architecture and Urban Design, Citizen Participation and Natural Wealth.

So that you can get to know this reality a little more closely, in the coming weeks we will visit some of the orchards that are part of the ReHd Mad! and we will tell you all the details!!

WHAT ARE THE NEW CHALLENGES?

As Pablo Llobera told us at the Conference on Green Cities in the World, there are several aspects to maintain, challenges of community gardens before their regularization by the Public Administration:

• • The challenge of staying together: that there be no splits or distancing between all the components of ReHd MAd!
  • The challenge of water: participate in the New Culture of Water and minimize the expenses derived from irrigation water, even trying to get the City Council to grant its use free of charge.

• The challenge of opening: to continue being open, inclusive and diverse spaces.
• The challenge of Ecological Agriculture and Food Sovereignty.
• The challenge of increasing the role of Urban and Peri-urban Agriculture in the city of Madrid.
• Others: aesthetics, self-employment…

You can find out how to participate in the Network or more interesting things on his blog: ReHdMad! or, if you live in Madrid, come to one of their monthly assemblies (open to anyone who wants to attend).

There are other networks of community gardens in other cities in Spain such as Barcelona, ​​Santiago or Valencia. I encourage you to meet them and try to create new networks in your cities!