For the last year I have been growing and
foraging 100% of my food.
No grocery stores, no restaurants,
not even a drink at a bar.
Nature has been my garden, my pantry, and my pharmacy.
I'm here in Orlando, Florida
and this abundant garden that I am standing in, right now,
this was just a lawn, like that, when I started.
I don't own any land, so to grow my
food I met people in my neighborhood and
I turned their front yards into gardens
and shared the bounty of food with them.
And while I was here, I built a 100 square
foot tiny house, along with my friends,
to serve as my simple homestead and my base.
In my gardens I grew over 100 different foods.
Dozens of different greens, packed with nutrients.
Sweet potatoes, yam and yucca for my caloric needs.
Delicious fruits like papayas and bananas.
Pumpkins, carrots, beans and beets.
So many vegetables!
And herbs and peppers to flavor all of meals.
And I also raised bees so that I could
have my own candy shop right in my yard.
In addition to the huge bounty from my garden,
I foraged over 200 different species from nature.
I harvested my salt from the ocean simply by
collecting it and boiling it down.
I got my caffeine from the native yaupon holly tree.
Not only was I my own grocery store,
I was also my own pharmacist.
I grew fresh turmeric and ginger right in my gardens.
I harvested wild elderberries to make
elderberry syrup to prevent cold and flu.
I harvested reishi mushrooms and different medicinal teas.
And also grew moringa, also known as the vitamin tree.
I cooked up dozens of different healthy meals,
fermented veggies to make sauerkraut,
and made delicious beverages like honey wine and ginger beer.
I whipped up delicious desserts and ate
the healthiest of my entire life.
And I even grew my own toilet paper.
(music)
This project wasn't just about growing and
foraging all of my own food, though.
It was about empowering others to grow their own food,
to take back power from Big Ag,
and ultimately, to take back their health
and grow their communities.
So, during this time I started a few
community initiatives.
We built 15 gardens for the people,
planted over 200 community fruit trees,
and sent out over 5,000 free seed packs
to help others grow their own organic, healthy food.
And I taught dozens of free gardening
classes, in my gardens, to the people in my community.
I've been exploring food for close to a decade
and I believe that our globalized,
industrialized food system is broken.
This was my quest to see if I could step
away from Big Ag and grow and forage every
single bite of my food.
I'll be honest, though, I do have an agenda.
I want you to question your food.
Where did it come from?
How was it grown? How did it get to you?
And what was the impact that it had on the
earth, other species, and the humans that grow that food?
And if you don't like the answers that you find,
I want to empower you to change them.
The good news, though, is that you don't
have to grow and forage all of your food.
The solutions are there in your community.
You can grow a little bit of your own food.
Maybe an herb garden on your window sill.
Or some pots of tomatoes and basil on your balcony.
Or a raised bed in your front yard.
And if you don't have any space at all,
you can join a community garden.
You can source your food locally and
purchase from local farmers and gardeners.
The farmer's market is a great place to start.
You can buy whole foods and cook more
rather than packaged processed foods that
leave trash behind.
And you can work with your community to
make healthy foods for people in need.
Grow a garden or your elderly neighbor.
Or start start a grassroots organization
to harvest the fruit trees in your
community to distribute it to others.
And this doesn't need to be a lonely journey.
For most of us, food is at the center of
our lives and we can do this together in our communities.
My year is over, but my journey of food has just begun.
A book is in the works and 100% of my
proceeds will be donated to organizations
working on the food solutions.
And I'll be here, online, sharing
inspiration and education on how you can
get involved in gaining food freedom.
(music)
My mouth is cold now (mumble)
...my own (laughing) medicine and vitamins to...
(struggling to get words out and laughs)
alright, make note of that (laughs)
Subtitles by the Amara.org community