To get back one's feet on the ground.

Submitted by admin on Sun, 2006-07-16 11:21.

In 1800, 85% of French population fed itself and fed the 15% left. Today, agriculture represents 3.6% of active population. In 20 years, it will represent 2%. This activity - totally subject to chemical industry's, food industry's and department stores' distribution's interests - poisons grounds and impoverishes biodiversity ; it hugely consumes greenhouse effect energy, uses up water reserves and endangers a great number of vegetal and animal species (including ours) in the third world or here. GMO and nanotechnologies (chiping animals is only the beginning) will increase the power of a small number of multinational companies on living.

Nearly everything in our environment, education, culture and consumption pushes us back from concrete and practical knowledge of these fundamental gestures that consist in feeding ourselves, dressing ourselves, loving ourselves, building our own homes, entertaining… Work has been divided, life atomized, artificialized and we have become an out-soiled population in a huge store where everything is under control, with some Disneyland sectors we still name earth.

In front of such a situation, we can hide our face, trust "Science", not look at yet irreparable damage on our planet, not tell ourselves that the announced end of petrol will lead to - in addition to an explosion of wars that have already begun in the Middle-East and elsewhere - disasters in series in an agriculture totally dependent on this energy and Market. We can also complain, as we often do, in front of mortifying and lightning progress in our daily life… we can not stop progress! Moreover it's so convenient …

We can also start reacting, trying to get our feet and hands back on this earth. Some young (or not) people are attending to settle on it to become farmers. Buyers' networks, direct exchanges are built. Collective vegetable gardens are starting to grow. City people are trying to take back -at least partially- this vital issue of food. The reason is that in front of speculation on the price of earth, the change of our farms in cottages for wealthy eastern European citizens, to react has become an emergency.

Collective answers to this crucial issue of access to earth are organizing (such as the GFA in Martres de Bel in Penne, in the Tarn County or this of La Ruche). Other initiatives are on, such as the buying back of earth in the Lot County. Some "tontines" (free interest loans from person to person) have been set. They match the attempts in cities for free access to housing to counteract speculation on buildings. The right to have a home versus private property, autonomy, respect and justice versus dependence, irresponsibility and submission are the values claimed in these movements.

To let people know about these adventures, a relay group has been built in Toulouse. It aims at sensibilizing people around by showing films, organizing lectures, meetings and debates and allowing interested people, groups or associations to get involved (actively we mean) in these projects.

It is certainly just the beginning...