Open letter from Warsaw: We do not agree with the destruction of the ROD gardens!

Our friends from ROD garden in Warsaw needs support! Here you can read their open letter. Only contact them via mail, if you want to support their struggle.

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Warsaw, August 10th 2016

ROD is the name of a community garden project located in Warsaw city, Poland. It is cared for by a collective linked to the European network Reclaim the Fields. RTF opposes itself to land-grabbing in Europe and to the global food market. On the area of abandoned allotment gardens, the collective garden allows for the production of high-quality food, independent energy sources and technologies alternative to those having a destructive impact on our environment. ROD is a horizontaly-organized open space in which knowledge and skills are transferred freely and in an accessible way.

The gardens at ROD are now under threat of destruction by the construction company Dom Development. Dom Development has announced that within 10 days a large part of the area, including all buildings and a wind turbine will be completely demolished. The wind turbine provides clean energy to the project and was built by an international group of artists. The wind turbine has been the subject of workshops on renewable energy at ROD.

Demolition of the tower and turbine has been ordered by PINB (Construction Supervision Authority). However Dom Development has decided itself to cut all trees, destroy all buildings and level the gardens in order to make the area unuseable.

In Warsaw there is a lack of places which distribute information on the global food market and its impact. The existence of groups such as ROD, which promote the idea of food and energy sovereignty as well as local self-government, is very valuable. The ROD collective works hard to freely share their knowledge on a variety of subjects (eg. construction of wind turbines, the production of non-GM seeds, gardening, using recycled materials).

Urbanisation and building development (such as in Warsaws Mokotow district where ROD collective works) may present themselves as progressive; providing living space for the city’s growing population. However office and business spaces take priority over homes and the city expands into the last areas of healthy land.

Urbanisation is not progress!

We do not agree with the mindless destruction of these gardens!

We appeal to leave the ROD area intact!

www.reclaimthefieldspl.noblogs.org

FB: reclaim the fields polska

Email: radicalallotmentgardens(at)riseup.net

+48 535678796