Week 3: Insider/Outsider?

On Sunday, April 24^th I stopped by the Randolph Street Community Gardens. A handful of people were there, quietly working on their plots. I stopped by the shed to see what Mother Dawn had left on her list of work to be done, smiled and waved at a few of the gardeners who greeted me kindly and carried on working. I spent a while collecting garbage and bringing tools and unneeded fence posts back to the shed, and while I was working I started thinking about the insider-outsider paradigm that is often associated with the study of power dynamic.

I was here as an outsider, observing and participating in an activity that (to whatever extent) has become a part of these people’s day-to-day lives. In a way, I was like the foreigners (or extranjeros) in Lumbisi, who can rent but not own dwellings in Lumbisí. But is the insider/outsider paradigm really a productive way to look at power dynamics?

My answer would have to be that I don’t know… I came to the community gardens with a prerogative- I was hoping to study the gardeners and their interactions. Maybe it was this (and not my outsider status) that isolated me from the main activity at the gardens that day, because the people working in the gardens sure didn’t seem to mind treating me as pleasantly as I’d imagine they treat each other.

The biggest thing I took away from my time spent at the Randolph Street Community Gardens was this: the study of power dynamic must reach deeper than the issue of insider/outsider dynamics. There will always be an in-group and an out-group, but to conduct truly meaningful research, we must go deeper. The divide between foreigners and registered families in Lumbisi seems to be one of the clearest distinguishing features of the population, however we cannot let this be the only dynamic we look at if we hope to conduct truly meaningful research. 

2nd Week of Randolph Community Garden!

Another great day of sunshine for the Fat Turtles’ trip to the Randolph community garden. On this trip, our fat turtle friend, Max, came along to understand what the garden was all about. It was interesting to see how the garden has progressed since our last visit. Many of the preliminary tasks on the “to do” list such as spreading mulch, moving the bench, and removing leaves were completed, and tasks like pulling weeds and preparing the growing plants were next on the list. This was really showing us how the garden is moving along nicely and staying on track even though the weather has not been very permitting. As it was Max's first visit, he was surprised to see that the shed was unlocked and wondered how all of the tools and supplies does not get stolen. Since our group is studying the culture and dynamics of power, I was able to explain to him the importance of trust and cooperation to the community's culture and how

Max exploring future vines.

Mother Dawn has the power, if she needs to, to lock the shed and only allow people to come on her terms. So far the community has listened to her requests and they are able to come together for their common interest and goal of gardening and growing their own plants. The power dynamic in the garden seems equal to those under Mother Dawn, but I think it will be interesting to see how things progress as the garden continues to grow.

First week of Gardening! -Chatrice White

Saturday marked our first weekly garden experience and it was a great day for it.  Besides the 20 mph wind, the sun was shining and the temperature was perfect for a day in the garden.  Now, as part of our research question, we will be looking into the power dynamics of the community of Lumbisi, and I found it very interesting how the gardens have their own power dynamics as well.  Starting with Mother Dawn, as head of the community gardens because of her knowledge of the ins and outs of what needs to take place in the gardens to have the greatest success.  At the garden there is a list of tasks that need to be done at the gardens for whoever wants to come and work.  When I showed up to the garden, I jumped right in to what the other workers were doing which was raking out the dead leaves in the crop beds.  Then, Mother Dawn suggested that I work on hauling and setting out new mulch in between other crop beds on the opposite side of the garden.  I found it interesting how there is a culture at the garden where everyone knows that Mother Dawn is the head and she and her task list are what the workers look to for the next move.  This relates to our research question because of how the community members work together with a shared goal in mind, under a common authority.  Because we are so early in our research, our group is looking forward to continuing our research at the community gardens for the rest of the semester.