Limerick might be out of the hurling this year, but they recently made it onto the World Health Organisation (WHO) list of healthy cities, joining Waterford and Galway alongside long-standing success stories Cork, Derry and Belfast.
The impact has been so great in Cork that its Healthy Cities people produced a book – print copies were priced €20, but has now also been made available for free online.
Community gardens are just one aspect of being a ‘Healthy City’ and Cork city now has 25 such gardens dotted around Leeside.
In fact, community gardens are transforming the way Cork city people look at their city, their kitchens and what they eat. The gardens serve as social spaces, while communities across the city are now familiar with growing produce such as Passion Brune Winter Lettuce, Basil, Verdil Winter Spinach, Kale, Caffrey’s Oats, Canasta Butterhead Lettuce and much more.
To find out more about Cork Healthy Cities visit their excellent website: https://corkhealthycities.com
Of interest, local authorities across the State are now obliged to support community gardening. Worth keeping in mind the next time you see a derelict piece of land.
But where did it start?
The Healthy Cities concept was initiated in 1986 by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to improve and promote health through policy work, collaboration and community participation.
In Ireland, the cities of Belfast, Derry, Galway, Cork, Waterford, Galway and Limerick have WHO designation as Healthy Cities. Cork was one of the first when it joined in 2012. Its designation as a WHO Healthy City came from a partnership between the HSE’s Health Promotion Department, Cork City Council, the Northside Initiative for Community Health Education (NICHE) and UCC.
A key goal of the WHO Healthy Cities initiative world-wide has been the importance of local action in all aspects of developing health and wellbeing.
Community gardens are transforming the way Cork city people look at their city, their kitchens and what they eat. The gardens serve as social spaces, while communities across the city are now familiar with growing produce such as Passion Brune Winter Lettuce, Basil, Verdil Winter Spinach, Kale, Caffrey’s Oats, Canasta Butterhead Lettuce and much more.
To find out more: https://corkhealthycities.com
