I CAME across a very cool futuristic design for a monolithic farm smack dab in the middle of NYC this week.
True to their avant-garde selves, a group of French architects designed the structure to sit in the middle of the East River, dwarfing the skyscrapers of Manhattan Island to its left.
They based the design of the super structure on a Dragonfly wing and would have every kind of farm animal in house as well as fields of crops, fruit and veg, powered by solar panels and wind turbines – with even a fish farm in the river next to it.
It’s an amazing design and a great idea.
I can envisage every major metropolis on the globe with their own urban farm supplying the needs of an entire city, not to mention some of the poorest countries benefiting from the technology.
The UN predicts urban populations will grow by billions in the next 20 years and the demand for food along with it. By growing all the requisite foodstuffs in the heart of the city instead of shipping it in from the sticks, you cut down on greenhouse-gas emissions that transport would generate and import from the back of beyond and overseas.
Furthermore, it is hoped that such an abundance of healthy, fresh food on your doorstep would tempt folks away from the fast and frozen alternatives.
I recently set up a funky wee herb garden in my flat in Brighton, lovingly attended by ‘im indoors when I find myself across the pond, such as now!
We’ve got the essentials on the grow at the mo, coriander for, well ... everything, and tons of mint for the summer mojito binge!
I was so chuffed when the first signs of life pushed through the soil. A packet of seeds, a splash of rain, a dose of sun and I’m jumping round the house like Felicity Kendall in the Good Life!
Talking of sunshine I recently found myself driving along the California coastline in a convertible Mustang (they were out of pink Cadillacs) from LA to San Francisco Bay. What a drive folks!
I’d visited San Fran briefly a few years back whilst on a promo tour and ended up in the seedy underbelly of the town, hands permanently on my purse and eyes peeled for Dirty Harry beating the mean streets with his magnum.
After last weekend’s visit I am hitting the brakes and pulling a U-turn – San Fran is the Man, baby! What a stunning place, which now features in my “top ten places I would happily hang my hat”.
Beautiful coast, a marina chock full of mega-yachts, Napa Valley aka “Wine Country”, not to mention the iconic Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz and Starfleet Academy!
In addition to the tourist hotspots, the city emits a killer vibe, cultured and cosmo, with a fantastic and intoxicating energy, very similar to how I feel in Edinburgh, NYC and London. I thoroughly recommend a visit !