The Street Where I Live

Cultivate Your Garden

Modern city life may cause us to feel detached from our local environment and neighbors, but arguably, all of us want healthier surroundings and a stronger community. What if there were a way to slowly but surely accomplish both?

Where I Live (WIL) is a straightforward solution. Simply put, the primary purpose of WIL is to improve the local natural environment through neighborhood direct action. There are myriad improvements to our families’ and neighbors’ health that can be made by concentrating on our homes and local surroundings. Lawns, street trees, unused patches of land, even a windowsill—all can be used in simple ways to everyone’s benefit. Not by force or mandate, but by individual action and neighborly power of example, one small step at a time. We humans are social and copy each other’s behaviors. Let’s use that quality to strengthen our natural environment, improve mental and physical health, provide wildlife habitat, and mitigate the effects of climate change. 

I’ve been interested in urban ecology for years. As I learned more, opportunities for small actions in my community became clear, and those actions are the kernel for this idea. For instance, my neighborhood in the Bronx has a lot of trees. The city has a program to plant and take care of them, but this program is under funded and can’t possibly keep up with the demand of caring for these (much less all) of the City’s trees. Neither can residents, unless we tackle this locally, block by block. 

Two years ago, a few street trees were planted just up the block from me. After some quick online research I found there are simple things I can do to help street trees survive and flourish. Last summer was especially dry so I would water them a few days a week with a gallon container. A neighborhood friend has a street tree in front of her house that wasn’t thriving. The soil around the tree was hard and impacted, so I used a gardening fork to loosen the soil, allowing water to get to the roots. It was also an opportunity to share what I’ve learned with her, so she could not only take care of the tree herself, but understand why it’s important to do so. For instance, I didn’t know that trees clean and cool the air (among other benefits) until I learned about it. 

This is WIL at its core. A neighbor takes a simple action to improve the local environment, and when the opportunity arises, shares why this action was taken with another. That person then has the knowledge and the impetus to continue efforts and communications.

These actions caused me to wonder how enlisting neighbors could grow to solve other local environmental challenges. In theory, the answer is simple: local actions within a loose but focused group of like-minded neighbors.

The key to WIL is the non-hierarchical structure combined with a focused purpose. Here is the unique mission and suggested organizational structure that anyone can use as a blueprint if they choose to impact the local environment. I’ve also included some of the benefits that stem from these actions. In following installments of this article, I’ll discuss examples of the specific actions that can be taken and resources to learn more.

WIL Mission 

The primary purpose of WIL is to improve the local natural environment through neighborhood direct action. Any other efforts such as “beautifying” the neighborhood with murals, improving the downtown business district, endorsing a Green candidate, etc., may be beneficial, but these are not focused on the primary purpose or this mission. WIL, itself, ought not endorse, finance or lend the WIL name to any other enterprise. Ideology, politics and money will only divert from the mission. 

The primary purpose of WIL is to improve the local natural environment through neighborhood direct action. WIL ought not endorse, finance or lend its name to any other enterprise.

Organization

• The organization model is decentralized; each group is autonomous and run hyper-locally. There are no mandates from a central authority; if a group prefers individual action, they may do so.
• Local groups learn from a “playbook,” adjusted to local needs and restrictions, as needed. For example, an urban neighborhood has different concerns than a suburban one. The playbook is a brief document stating WIL’s mission with suggested educational resources and simple actions anyone can try.
• If someone wants to start a WIL group, an individual gets the word out locally, for example, via fliers and/or neighborhood social media. Simple communication could be: “Would you like to improve our neighborhood’s environment? Meeting next Tuesday at [community center, home, park, etc.].” Even a handful of people is a start; the point is to acquaint attendees to the personal benefits that arise from small changes to the local environment. 
• Once a group is formed, it is highly beneficial to hold regularly scheduled meetings. Weekly, monthly, etc., is up to the group to decide. Meetings are primarily used to share experience, to learn and to propose actions.
• Initially, meetings are led by the group’s founder until another person is elected by majority vote. Each affiliate’s leadership consists simply of a Chair or Chairperson and, if needed, a Treasurer. The Chair rolls over every six months via local members’ majority vote. 
• Interaction between groups is encouraged primarily to learn and share experiences. For instance, if one group has been concentrating on painting rooftops white, they can share about the benefits, local incentives, paint suppliers, etc. The other group can share about their work on a pocket forest. In this way, each group can benefit from the other’s real world experience, which may then lead to similar action in another area.
• Local government is engaged only to benefit specific objectives, grant applications, permits, education space, etc., with no strings attached. WIL has no party affiliation and does not endorse or oppose any candidate. 
• In most cases, city and state government red tape can be avoided. Begin with bureaucracy-free, low-hanging fruit, such as education on recycling, indigenous lawn planting, etc. 
• No one gets paid and every group is fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions. If needed, funds can be generated by group participants via member donations and fundraisers. Any fundraising ought to be approved by the group before proceeding. Funds can be used for the primary mission (plantings, garden tools, etc.) or minor group expenses (refreshments, fliers, etc.).

This is not a typical environmental organization or NGO; it’s a grassroots movement, where neighbors, standing on line at the supermarket, or at a meeting in a living room, discuss improvements that can be made locally. All are welcome, so long as they are neighborhood residents and avoid politics, religion, endorsements and ideologies. This is simply about the primary purpose, to improve the local natural environment through local, direct action.

Benefits & Incentives

There are plenty of direct benefits and knock-on effects to implementing this green neighborhood model, including: 

• A green neighborhood and home is healthier for mind and body. Notably, studies have shown significant decreases in crime along with increased mental and physical health in neighborhoods that did something as simple as plant additional trees. 
• Increased property values. 
• Cost savings. Trees, solar energy, and reduction in maintenance, lower energy bills for homes, businesses and schools. When a community joins together to bulk buy, this also reduces costs.
• Pride of place. The more pride people have in their neighborhood, the more they are willing to improve it.
• A new or renewed sense of community. 
• Efficiencies on future efforts. Any neighborhood that takes action now will be ahead in the inevitable greening of our country. Local children will be exposed to actions and information which will prove essential to them as they navigate the burgeoning renewable economy. 
• Reducing the effects of climate change.
• Protecting and fostering local wildlife.

Sign up for our free newsletter, find us on instagram and linkedin, and tell us what you think.

stephen lipman steve lipman