Los Angeles is the land of smog, sprawl and cosmetic surgery, not known for its ecological or social consciousness. But many people, organizations and ideas are quietly fomenting revolution here. This Earth week, I'll share what these Worldchangers told me about the secretly green side of LA.
Anna Root is a whole foods advocate. She loves to share her knowledge about nutrition, old-fashioned food preparation and preservation, healthy diets for kids, and the politics of eating. She's a founder of the NELA Food Coop.
What local Worldchanging organization, project or idea should be better known?
Since An Inconvenient Truth came out, a lot of people have become super-conscious about how much they drive. But people fail to see that what they eat can have a greater impact on petroleum. I'd like to see that change. Agriculture alone uses 17% of the nation's fuel supply; that doesn't even take into account packaging, refrigeration or distribution. When you add all that, plus petroleum-based artificial colors, flavors and preservatives, it becomes clear that what you eat is has at least as much impact as what you drive, possibly more. Since living in Los Angeles pretty much requires a lot of driving, it becomes more important for us to find other ways of cutting fuel consumption. And what better way than backyard chickens?
Also, more locals should know about Tim Dundon as an alternative to expensive, sludge-laden composts sold in Home Depot and the like.
What one Worldchanging practice do you most wish to see flourish in Los Angeles?
One practice I would like to see flourish is affordable, reliable public transportation. Not only does it save gas, it brings people together. In my opinion, areas such as New York and the SF Bay area where people ride mass transit have a greater sense of community.
Another thing we need is people eating a lot more fresh food. We all know about the rise in childhood diabetes, obesity and ADD, and it seems clear to me that petroleum-based additives, along with corn syrup and MSG, are doing a number on the population, especially poorer people with less access to fresh foods. Sometimes you see people taking the situation into their own hands, like the farmers in Central Los Angeles, but there is so much ignorance about food that the majority of people don't seem to understand why fresh, whole food is important.
How many times have you walked through a ranch market and seen small, chubby kids with black teeth sucking on a lollipop or drinking a soda? How many times have you gone to the park during an after-school program, or gone to the zoo during a field trip, and seen kids given chips and soda for a snack? I feel like the NELA co-op and resources like it are on the ground floor of helping families embrace wholesome food.
One practice that already flourishes is that of leaving things you don't want on the curb for others to glean. Yee-hoo! (Freecycle)
If you were queen of Los Angeles for a day, what would you do?
I would start a campaign to get people in Los Angeles excited about being bilingual. I would get a team together to find ways to make it easy and attractive for people to learn both English and Spanish so that people could talk to each other more and really communicate. For instance, I would begin a campaign of changing, humorous billboards that would teach basic vocabulary.
Describe the LA you'd like to see in 2027
I'd like to be able to go to any venue and know that there would be wholesome food available there. And get there on inexpensive, efficient public transportation. In 2027, all advertising would be banned from bus windows so the passengers could see where they were going! There would also be affordable alternatives to Whole Foods Market so working-class people could eat nutritiously -- and they would all want to. And everyone would speak English AND Spanish -- at least!
[Chickens by Kiara Kim; cupcakes by Buddy Stone]
