Looks like it’s going to be food and garden week here at doc it out. I just got back from watching The Garden by Scott Hamilton Kennedy and later this week, I’m going to watch Food, Inc. Both come on the heels of my picking up and subsequently putting down Michael Pollan’s book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma… One of the big pros of moving to Austin for me was/is the incredible movement toward healthy, local food. There are many farmer’s markets throughout the week, a food coop that encourages urban gardening, supermarkets that buy and label locally produced food and more vegetarian and organic restaurant options than I’ve seen in most other cities I’ve been to–Austin is a progressive food community, there is no doubt, and it’s important to me.

Over the years, I’ve seen a number of documentaries that, taken together, paint a grim picture of our nation’s food system and point directly to the negative health impacts to us and to our environment. To name just a few: King Corn by Aaron Woolf, Curt Ellis and Ian Cheney; The Future of Food by Deborah Koons Garcia; Food Fight by Chris Taylor; and The Real Dirt on Farmer John by Taggart Siegel. Besides the food we directly take in, you have the petroleum industry that fuels all of the processing and shipping to make and deliver something that will only harm you in the long run via heart disease, diabetes or obesity.

I can’t list all of the films that make a case for the idea that war is for oil and our over-use of it, but think of it–not just for our cars, but for our whole food system! The only way to have those debilitating systems fail and not be impacted in harmful ways is not only to develop alternative energy but to grow gardens. The way to supply ourselves with nourishing and yummy foods is for individuals and communities to grow it ourselves. What happens when we no longer need those incoming trucks of processed, packaged junk? Healthier bodies, and maybe event a healthier environment. Hello? Heard of global warming? What is the only thing that can really help us with that–plants! Grow lots of plants, reduce greenhouse gases. Dare we to imagine reversing the effects of global warming? If no one takes any action, then we are doomed by our own ignorance. Maybe another generation after us will figure out the answer.

(Do recall that I called this blog doc it out for a reason) The Garden is about the city of Los Angeles and a real estate developer who managed to bring down an entire community effort to support themselves via a piece of land in downtown LA. I won’t go into the details of the story as it is well-covered in the documentary. Kennedy’s camera remains with the farmers throughout the ordeal. And if you think it can’t happen in your town, you best pay attention. Communities have to take the first step, and second and third. At some point, local government will hopefully have to follow where the community leads.

I’ve been having my own experiences with local government over the past few weeks and I can’t say anything for sure, so I’m hoping to find out more about the intersection of community and politics. I’d really like to see how my own city government holds up to the tests of Los Angeles, whose mayor and councilpeople failed miserably to protect the community in favor of personal political power. The Garden is sobering lest you be too optimistic about how very difficult it is to effect change. There is no time for complacency or room to remain uninvolved. Politicians must be accountable for the quality of a community.

I know for my industry friends, this film has long since come and gone, but it is right now in a theatrical run, so time to revisit your posts about it and get the word out for people who haven’t seen it yet. It’s tough for docs to make change without many voices amplifying the message. We’ve made the case for the problems, and we need to make a case for solutions. Whatever you take away from this doc, I feel confident will be helpful to your community.

It’s late. More on Food, Inc. and The Omnivore’s Dilemma after Thursday.