Soil for
Life, started in 2003 by Pat Featherstone, works with communities
in the Western Cape, mainly in the Cape Flats. This is a
challenging environment with very poor soil [often no more than
sea sand], wind, and generally unsettled weather conditions.
All of the communities in which the organisation
works are
characterised
by high levels of unemployment and poverty and have little or no
formal infrastructure including basic services such as sanitation
and electricity.
Housing on the Cape Flats
Soil for Life assists
these communities to overcome poverty, hunger and unemployment through
environmentally sound agricultural development. Their mission is to
‘educate and train people in organic food gardening using water-wise,
low-cost, environmentally-friendly technologies in order to grow a lot
of food in small spaces’.
They operate from huts
on ground lent to them by a school in Cape Town. There they have
created a wonderful garden in which they experiment with ways of
growing organically, and also run training courses, and sell produce
to raise funds.