What fundamental problem are you addressing?
The current agricultural and food system is not sustainable and contributes to various crises worldwide and also in Switzerland (loss of biodiversity and soil, climate change, scarcity and malnutrition, etc.). A fundamental problem is the alienation of many people from nature; in cities in particular, many residents have largely lost their direct connection to nature and knowledge of the relationships that are essential to ensuring our food supply. Due to the constant, wide availability of food in supermarkets, which must meet numerous requirements (simple, cost-saving logistics, processing or consumption, flawless appearance, transportability, shelf life, etc.), many people no longer know how and how varied carrots and other vegetables grow, how much effort is required until they are available in the shop, when they are in season, and which vegetables can grow in their own region. This loss of knowledge and supply is accompanied by a lack of appreciation for the production of our food, food waste and other problems.
Which habits would you like to change or mainstream through which approach?
We want to change the way we handle food on a daily basis — towards greater awareness, seasonality, regionality and social interaction. Our approach is self-harvest gardens.
Harvesting yourself creates a whole new relationship with food. Anyone who comes to the field week after week sees how fennel, for example, grows out of small seedlings; anyone who harvests it themselves and later has it on their plate develops a deep understanding of the value of food. You start to appreciate origin, season and the effort behind growing it — food is no longer taken for granted.
This experience permanently changes eating habits. After two years of consistent self-harvesting, people no longer eat tomatoes and cucumbers carelessly in winter — because they feel what seasonality means.
Our goal is to integrate this conscious experience of nutrition into everyday life — as natural as brushing teeth. Self-harvesting should not be an additional offer, but a part of everyday life: For example, by picking dinner after work — a brief moment that brings grounding, relaxation and strengthens the connection with nature.
In addition, the gardens create a social space. Everyone in the garden is the same — whether manager or hairdresser, whether young or old, whether politically left or right. You share vegetables and consideration: The large kohlrabis go to large families, the smaller ones to older people, who enjoy more manageable portions. This exchange promotes solidarity and understanding between generations and realities of life.
Self-harvested gardens not only bring fresh, regional vegetables right to your front door (often just a few hundred meters away) — they make nutrition a personal, collaborative and mindful experience again. This is how a new everyday culture can be created: healthier, more inclusive, more sustainable — and a natural part of our lives.
What would you like to work on during the booster?
- Develop a mainstreaming model for self-harvest gardens in cities scientifically and transdisciplinarily. The following scientific questions can be answered:
- What information do potential new partners/garden operators need? What can such partners be (communities, companies, churches, cooperatives...)? How can they be contacted? Who could be responsible for a self-harvest garden project in a cooperative, company premises, etc.? Gather and process basic information (possibly With website, flyers, brochures) so that these self-harvest gardens can be promoted.
- Establish contacts with potential partners who are willing to implement a self-harvest garden; lectures and project presentation to municipal stakeholders to publicize the concept
- Development of a self-sustainable business model for the implementation of the mainstreaming concept.