NATUREWISE

            written by Maxine Burrage                

The first project that Naturewise tackled was at Crouch Hill. The creation of the Forest Garden made use of a piece of land that was formed out of rubble and waste when houses on the site were demolished after the war. The area where the community Forest Garden was planted, which is under the management of the London Borough of Islington, is a steep bank surrounded on three sides by blocks of flats.

In 1995, Naturewise started work on a second Forest Garden in the grounds of the Margaret McMillan Nursery School on Hornsey Rise. With the co-operation of head teacher Mary Hart, the Forest Garden was realised in 1996 and has created both a diverse environment and a valuable educational resource for the 200 pupils.

"Naturewise is composed of people concerned about what's happening to the earth. Coming together enables us to makes things possible. With Forest Gardens its also about reviving a sense of community," said Alpai Torgut.

"It's about people taking personal responsibility for what is going on globally - you're either part of the solution or you're part of the problem. How do we get to grips with to the degradation of the earth? The earth that is systematically degraded, destroyed, all the time, every second . What can we do? Is there anything that can be done? Is it too late?"

"Think globally, act locally. It all starts in your own backyard. The purpose of planting the Forest Gardens was to do something about the state of the environment, to create a living example of what could be done. You start where you are. One can begin by looking at the bit of earth where one is and basically do something, no matter how small. You've just got to start somewhere."