activism
Jun 6, 2009
Julie
4 Comments

Kev’s Patch

Yesterday I read at Gavin’s blog about a push to get PM Kevin Rudd to start an organic vegie patch at The Lodge. I reckon this is a great idea! I’ve just sent Rudd an email to show my support for the plan.

Gavin heard about the history of the idea from Darren at green-change.com. The first person to suggest it was Peter Cundall, the expert gardener from Gardening Australia. He came up with the idea before it was even suggested for the Obama’s in the USA, but got no response from the PM. Now Darren wants to start a campaign to get it happening, and I think we should all have a go at making it happen.

If you’re interested, check out Darren’s Kev’s Patch page for more info, and write a letter or email to Rudd today.

Here’s what I wrote – feel free to copy it or change it to suit yourself, and send it to the PM at his contact page:

I’ve been reading about how Peter Cundall suggested that PM Rudd put a vegie patch in at The Lodge, and I’d like to say that I think it’s a fantastic idea that I would love to see happen.

There’s more to preventing climate change than just plonking an ETS on top of business-as-usual methods. We’ve got to change the way we think of our everday lives, and our Prime Minister should lead by example.

An organic vegie patch is great for the environment – it allows you to grow crops suited to the local weather, prevents excess CO2 emissions caused by over-use of fertiliser and pesticides, and the pollution caused by trucking fruit and veg all over Australia. It would also help reduce waste, because kitchen scraps could be turned into compost and reused instead of going to landfill to create methane, another powerful greenhouse gas. The garden could include native vegies and fruits like warrigal greens and finger limes.

Imagine how special it would be to serve visiting dignitaries homegrown foods they can’t get anywhere else in the world! Imagine what a great example you could set for school kids and householders doing it tough, by showing a frugal yet fun way to save money, get some exercise and help the environment all at once.

I hope that you will consider this idea seriously. Australians are in need of some inspiring leadership, and our Prime Minister can provide it through more than just legislation.

4 Comments

  • Gavin June 7, 2009 at 7:23 pm

    Well done Julie. I love the letter, straight from the heart.

    Gav

  • Wendy June 8, 2009 at 7:58 am

    That’s great. I’m not sure how responsive the PM’s office will be. I wrote them an email about gay marriage just after they got into power and still haven’t heard even an acknowledgement. But the more letters politicians get about the one topic, the more they’ll realise it’s important, so it’s always worthwhile telling them what’s important to you personally.

    They’d be silly not to put the garden in – such an easy, simple and cheap way to show real committment.

  • Julie June 8, 2009 at 9:18 am

    Yeah, I’ve got a form email saying that they received my message. But as you say, I think the trick is to get so many people asking that they have to reply.

  • Darren (Green Change) June 9, 2009 at 6:52 am

    Great letter, Julie! I’ve heard back from over a dozen people in the past week or so that have sent in letters to the PM. Surely someone there must be wondering what it’s all about? Hopefully they’ll at least formulate a form-letter reply and send it out soon.