Mitchells Plain is fairly new and was established coercively by apartheid’s grand planners. In such circumstances people tend not to regard themselves as custodians of the local environments in which they live. The ecological implications are obvious. Economically, such areas are characterised by high leakages as consumption and production occur elsewhere in urban centres.

Rocklands Urban Abundance Centre serves the needs of the immediate Rocklands Community and has the potential to inspire the whole of Cape Town and beyond. The centre is being implemented with integrated components of demonstration and practical education for sustainable living, training and community enterprise.

Located on the grounds of Rocklands Primary School in Mitchell’s Plain, this educational perma-culture garden oasis responds to the complex socioeconomic challenges - jobs, food security, education, green issues - facing this peripheral community. Run by SEED, a small public benefits organisation, and staffed by seven full-time employees, the centre is a practical demonstration of post-carbon living, earth sensitive building and renewable energy and resilient and replicable urban agriculture models.

It has grown into a springboard and laboratory for various community activities. The centre, which houses a genetic base of productive plants, supports home food gardens in the area through subsidised seedling and manure sales. It also offers ongoing training and support in cultivation and perma-culture. Through tree planting days this initiative also aims to inculcate pride in this desolate neighbourhood.

Through ground level change this centre is truly unlocking the abundance of living locked up in this community full of potential.

For more information please visit seed.org.za