Pandemic, Coronavirus, Self-Reliance and Sustainability
We know the potential problem that we now face, so as a people how do we rise up to the challenge before us and survive this.
Surely Jamaica’s medium to long term plans when dealing with a Global Pandemic cannot be dependent mainly on the foreign supply chain, when it is obvious that those overseas supply chains are under great stress and pressure due to overseas panic. Given the chance between selling Jamaica vital supplies or selling them to their own people many countries with also support their own countries first.
In large metropolitan cities I can understand the panic because they are 100% dependent on that external supply chain to survive with almost no alternate supply chain. People in those cities do not have food gardens, instead they go to Trader Joe's and act like Crazy people. In rural like Jamaica where almost, everyone has access to the natural world as most people have yard space, we have an options however those options under threat from our massive concrete development.
How long did Chikungunya last? How long did Dengue last? How long does a flu season last? How long do you expect this Global Pandemic to last and how do you intend to survive for the duration?
This is not like preparing for a hurricane which often last a day and then its on its way. Jamaicans must realise that Kellogg cornflakes might not continue to come and those nice little bottles of imported hand sanitizers, not to mention those sweet-smelling imported soap might not continue to come if the global situation worsens. The people in countries where most of these things are made and where we import raw materials from, cannot themselves get access to their little bottles of sanitizer, so how do we in Jamaica think we will get access to it.
In times like these it is only normal for people to turn their hands to local production and create a local supply chain. This is what countries like the UK did during the war by creating Victory Food Gardens and what we did during the 1970’s when the USA embargoed us. We turn our hands and make fashion, we become self-reliant, we grow our own food, we create food coops to make sure the local supply chain remains intact, we farm idle land bringing it into food production. We try become a more social society, we try to become our brother’s keeper, we try to achieve economic independence.
Long before the Coronavirus came to Jamaica, Jamaicans became infected with a different virus. That virus caused spreading of greed, selfishness, self-importance and a callous disregard for everything and everyone around us, it is what is driving our crime and murder rate.
If we are going to survive the Coronavirus as a nation and a people, then we had better find a cure for that other virus that we are infected with. Because this Global Pandemic will require all of us to work together as one people or else, we are beggared. How we face this challenge will tell the world who we are as a people. This is no time to panic... It is time to logical and think about every action for the greater good.
We are running around looking for fancy hand sanitizer but remember good old fashion Carbolic soap and Dettol still deh bout.
I am looking at this global Quarantine situation and it must be tough and frightening to live in a big urban city where your daily sustenance depends totally on very mechanized, labour intensive remote food distribution system. This system is perfect during normal times but is prone to break down during abnormal times. Any disruption in the supply chain and people can literally starve to death. For example, during pandemic, workers can get sick and the production system would come to a standstill.
Which brings me to Jamaica, there is no better feeling than to walk around your property and collect enough ingredients from your yard to provide yourself with a meal. It gets even better when your food garden is sustainable and you know you can continue to feed yourself almost indefinitely. Therefore, I encourage everyone with yard space to grow food and why I am against covering our natural space with concrete to create these ugly gated communities.
My sister has one of the most productive backyard and her backyard is a fraction of mine because she has more food grown per square feet. Packed in densely, my sister utilized both vertical and horizontal space with maximum efficiency. My sisters immediate back yard is not big but she also owns the strip of sloping land beyond her back fence and that is where she plants all her ground provisions like yams and potatoes etc. About 85% of all plants on my sister’s property are food producing plants. I would say about 70% of my yard is food producing plants with about 20% room for growth.
Now I have several family members who believe in having a food garden and some grow things that others do not. So between us we have a farmers market. I take stuff over that they do not have and need and I pick up stuff I need.
It just amazes me that we are so busy trying to be some first world concrete jungle that we have lost sight of what is important. An hour spent working on the food garden is the most beneficial and contented feeling for me, and reducing stress and anxiety, making self-isolation a joy.
Jamaica is blessed, it is perfectly situated. We have enough sunshine all year round, constant temperature, fertile soil and adequate water to grow food all year round.
In the movie "War of the World", it was not the guns, missiles or military might that brought down the aliens, it was a virus. In today’s world there are countries spending over $600 Billion on weaponry and military might BUT very little on healthcare and yet it is a virus that is bringing down the world’s economy and lowering the world’s population.
Surely Jamaica’s medium to long term plans when dealing with a Global Pandemic cannot be dependent mainly on the foreign supply chain, when it is obvious that those overseas supply chains are under great stress and pressure due to overseas panic. Given the chance between selling Jamaica vital supplies or selling them to their own people many countries with also support their own countries first.
In large metropolitan cities I can understand the panic because they are 100% dependent on that external supply chain to survive with almost no alternate supply chain. People in those cities do not have food gardens, instead they go to Trader Joe's and act like Crazy people. In rural like Jamaica where almost, everyone has access to the natural world as most people have yard space, we have an options however those options under threat from our massive concrete development.
How long did Chikungunya last? How long did Dengue last? How long does a flu season last? How long do you expect this Global Pandemic to last and how do you intend to survive for the duration?
This is not like preparing for a hurricane which often last a day and then its on its way. Jamaicans must realise that Kellogg cornflakes might not continue to come and those nice little bottles of imported hand sanitizers, not to mention those sweet-smelling imported soap might not continue to come if the global situation worsens. The people in countries where most of these things are made and where we import raw materials from, cannot themselves get access to their little bottles of sanitizer, so how do we in Jamaica think we will get access to it.
In times like these it is only normal for people to turn their hands to local production and create a local supply chain. This is what countries like the UK did during the war by creating Victory Food Gardens and what we did during the 1970’s when the USA embargoed us. We turn our hands and make fashion, we become self-reliant, we grow our own food, we create food coops to make sure the local supply chain remains intact, we farm idle land bringing it into food production. We try become a more social society, we try to become our brother’s keeper, we try to achieve economic independence.
Long before the Coronavirus came to Jamaica, Jamaicans became infected with a different virus. That virus caused spreading of greed, selfishness, self-importance and a callous disregard for everything and everyone around us, it is what is driving our crime and murder rate.
If we are going to survive the Coronavirus as a nation and a people, then we had better find a cure for that other virus that we are infected with. Because this Global Pandemic will require all of us to work together as one people or else, we are beggared. How we face this challenge will tell the world who we are as a people. This is no time to panic... It is time to logical and think about every action for the greater good.
We are running around looking for fancy hand sanitizer but remember good old fashion Carbolic soap and Dettol still deh bout.
I am looking at this global Quarantine situation and it must be tough and frightening to live in a big urban city where your daily sustenance depends totally on very mechanized, labour intensive remote food distribution system. This system is perfect during normal times but is prone to break down during abnormal times. Any disruption in the supply chain and people can literally starve to death. For example, during pandemic, workers can get sick and the production system would come to a standstill.
Fighting over toilet paper!
Which brings me to Jamaica, there is no better feeling than to walk around your property and collect enough ingredients from your yard to provide yourself with a meal. It gets even better when your food garden is sustainable and you know you can continue to feed yourself almost indefinitely. Therefore, I encourage everyone with yard space to grow food and why I am against covering our natural space with concrete to create these ugly gated communities.
My sister has one of the most productive backyard and her backyard is a fraction of mine because she has more food grown per square feet. Packed in densely, my sister utilized both vertical and horizontal space with maximum efficiency. My sisters immediate back yard is not big but she also owns the strip of sloping land beyond her back fence and that is where she plants all her ground provisions like yams and potatoes etc. About 85% of all plants on my sister’s property are food producing plants. I would say about 70% of my yard is food producing plants with about 20% room for growth.
Now I have several family members who believe in having a food garden and some grow things that others do not. So between us we have a farmers market. I take stuff over that they do not have and need and I pick up stuff I need.
It just amazes me that we are so busy trying to be some first world concrete jungle that we have lost sight of what is important. An hour spent working on the food garden is the most beneficial and contented feeling for me, and reducing stress and anxiety, making self-isolation a joy.
Jamaica is blessed, it is perfectly situated. We have enough sunshine all year round, constant temperature, fertile soil and adequate water to grow food all year round.
In the movie "War of the World", it was not the guns, missiles or military might that brought down the aliens, it was a virus. In today’s world there are countries spending over $600 Billion on weaponry and military might BUT very little on healthcare and yet it is a virus that is bringing down the world’s economy and lowering the world’s population.
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