Jamie Oliver’s Passion, Our Gratitude

I was looking at an old journal from January 2010 this morning and found that I had written “Growing Spaces has a new face! As we begin the new decade in times of uncertainty and challenge, Growing Spaces is restructuring to provide more education about the life-style our Growing Domes® support and our intent to help us all ‘choose life’ both locally and globally.” Our efforts in our blog, newsletter, classes, videos, new website, and our various offerings to speak have been to that end….for over a year now.

In 2009 we had the honor of being included in Episode 6 of Jamie Oliver’s American Road Trip to the Navajo Nation, where we donated a Growing Dome greenhouse to the tribe in an effort to help them reclaim their native wisdom about plants and to become more sustainable. Part of that story is here, and part of it is the wonder of having our staff volunteer to provide that donated dome by working (free of charge) to produce it over a weekend. Udgar and I were on vacation in New Zealand!

Since then, I have marveled at the grace and power of this young man’s influence on the vision we also hold for recovering sanity in terms of nutrition. I was blessed with a mother who knew even in the 60’s that nutrition could be better medicine than the ones doctors prescribe. She was appalled that medical training didn’t include this.

Jamie Oliver has shown a driving commitment to educate the public about the dangers of sugar, and processed food and in just a short time, through his constant demonstrations as a cook, as well as his outrageous humor and wit. After showing our American roots of cuisine in the American Road Trip, in 2009 he showed Heads of State the value of using fresh local food to the G20 while they met in England for only $10 a plate! He secured fresh lunches for kids in the UK at $1.29 a plate. Then moving on to expose obesity in America as a theme, he educated the unhealthiest Town in America on his first TV series called Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution. Even my grand daughters in Australia are fans of this show! While traveling last winter in New Zealand, I saw it being watched daily by international travelers.

Most important to me was his presentation to the TED conference, because in a few short minutes he drove the message home:

“The power of food has a primal place in our homes that binds us to the best bits of life! The adults of the last four generations have blessed our children with the destiny of a shorter life-span than their own parents. Your child will live a life 10 years shorter than you because of the landscape of food that we’ve built around them. Two thirds of this room is overweight or obese in America. Diet-related disease is the biggest killer right NOW, here TODAY. This is a global problem. We need a revolution!”

“I’m a father and I love this country (the USA.) I believe if America addresses this problem, other people will follow. It’s incredibly important. Now is the time, ripe for a tipping point.”

“My wish is for you to help a strong sustainable movement to educate every child about food….inspire families to cook again, and empower people everywhere to fight obesity.”

You can view Jamie’s entire TED conference presentation below:

One great ally with our company and one of our most treasured relationships is with Allan Werthan, the director of Global Children’s Gardens.

We are so grateful to have his story about working with Jamie Oliver, to build his Growing Dome, and bridge with the Navajo Nation. His spirit and support is such a gift to us!

Watch our video here: Great American Road Trip Clip with Jamie Oliver and Growing Spaces Greenhouses