Green Options » prison

Scientist Grows Fish in Hell’s Kitchen, Vegetables in Prison

Tina Casey — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 17:04:48 +0000

For a glimpse into the future of urban farming, take a look inside a Hell’s Kitchen high school campus, a former public school in the Bronx, or even a nearby prison on Rikers Island. Either way, you’ll see the hand of Cornell University horticulture specialist Philson Warner at work. Warner has spent the past 20 years experimenting with hydroponic and aquaculture systems to develop more efficient methods for raising fish and vegetables in an urban environment, and sharing his knowledge with young people.

Growing Fish in the Bronx

Warner’s laboratory is based in the former Public School 39 on Longwood Avenue in the Bronx. In an article by writer Timothy Greenleaf, Warner explains how his system combines hydroponics with aquaculture. The fish droppings fertilize the plants, which in turn purify the water for return to the fish tanks. Aside from yielding up to twenty vegetable crops per year and hundreds of pounds of fish, the lab functions as a teaching center for visiting schoolchildren.

Fish in Hell’s Kitchen

This past summer, Warner introduced his hydroponic/aquaculture system into a high school campus in the heart of the Hell’s Kitchen district of Manhattan. Spread over two floors, it is an ambitious undertaking that will eventually include a retail store and greenhouse.

Growing Vegetables in Prison

Life being what it is, Warner’s work is not accessible to high school students behind bars just a short distance away, at the Rikers Island prison complex. So, Warner has brought his lab to the prison, at the urging of social worker Christine Schmidt. Starting two years ago with just three classes, the program has grown to include eight labs dispersed among the complex’s two high schools, with 15 teachers trained to use them.

Warner’s program at Rikers Island is part of a rapidly growing wave of green rehab projects and work programs for America’s enormous incarcerated population, including reclaiming waste for use in organic compost, and building solar modules. If we can credit the Department of Defense with inventing the internet, perhaps it’s not too far-fetched to look behind our prison walls for sustainability solutions.

Image: suneko at flickr.

Worcester County Jail Planning Wind Turbine Installation

Ariel Schwartz — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 01:40:05 +0000

Worcester County Jail is jumping on the renewable energy bandwagon and installing a wind turbine test tower for a 12 month trial. The 160 foot tall meteorological tower will gauge wind speed, direction, and turbulence at the prison site. Noise levels, environmental area, and air space will also be evaluated.

A Quiet Mind, A Balanced Life: The Widening Influence of Yoga & Meditation

Courtney Maum — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 09:36:07 +0000

Slow Down Already! Quieting Our Minds, Beating Bad Habits

We live in a time of uncontested availability. Through our cell phones, laptops, and social media networks, we volunteer ourselves to friends, foes and colleagues regardless of time change or desire. It has become increasingly difficult to shut out the world and concentrate in a culture where speed and productivity are valued over mindfulness. More and more children are being diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder each year and SAT scores are at the lowest level in the last decade. Children and adults are having a hard time staying focused, alert and entertained, and the need for meditation has never been this palpable.

Yin Yoga: When the Tortoise Wins the Race

The resurgence of Yin Yoga exemplifies the desire for a meditative practice in our daily lives. Based on a series of passive floor-poses, Yin Yoga allows the practitioner to access connective tissue to stimulate moisture, new growth and energy through the meridians embedded in the fascia. The poses, held up to ten minutes or more, can feel uncomfortable- even painful- at first.

Company Hires Prison Inmates to Build Solar Modules

Ariel Schwartz — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 23:02:18 +0000

Great news! If you’re sent to the Federal Correctional Institution in Otisville, NY, you may have the opportunity to work in a solar module factory. Spire Corp. announced yesterday that it is putting $55 million towards the construction of a solar module factory at the Otisville prison.

Greening the Golden Years Podcast: An Interview With Veteran Protest Leader Betty Krawczyk

Max Lindberg — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 13:05:19 +0000

Back on August 2, 2007, I did a podcast featuring three women — two Chileans and a Canadian — who had run afoul of the law in their respective countries. The Canadian is Betty Krawczyk, and I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing her by phone from her prison cell.

She’s intelligent, charming, and an outspoken proponent for environmental and civil rights issues. Our interview touches on Betty’s evaluation of the Canadian court system, her first eyewitness account of discrimination and cruelty, and the events that led to leaving her native Louisiana with a husband and six children to settle in Canada.

Links:

Betty’s Early Edition

Books of Betty K.