If you
\nwant to learn how to properly trim small trees and how gardens should be taken
\ncare of in spring, a good alternative would be to join the initiators of a
\nproject entitled ‘A Garden with People’. All you need to bring along is your
\ngood cheer and gardening clothes and you are to be welcomed with tea, coffee
\nand the right equipment. In the following minutes, Alex Oprita, organizer with
\nthe Civic Initiative Group Cismigiu is going to tell us more about this civic
\neducation project.<\/p>\n
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We got the idea from the first event that we staged with the Civic
\nInitiative Group Cismigiu, after we did a survey of what people cherish the
\nmost in Cismigiu Park and what they dislike most. And we were surprised to find
\nout that although people came from many walks of life, they almost had the same
\nlikes and dislikes. Most of us don’t like the fact that the area is not well
\nmaintained and not very clean. We aren’t very pleased when music festivals are
\nbeing staged in the park. We don’t like the noise, we don’t like when the park
\nis dirty and littered. And we decided to come up with a project to solve part
\nof these issues.<\/p>\n
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\n
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A
\nsolution to the aforementioned issues started to take shape after funds had
\nbeen granted to several components of a project entitled ‘A Garden with
\nPeople’. Here is again Alex Oprita with details about this programme.<\/p>\n
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This is a
\nproject by means of which we intend to get people involved in the conservation
\nof the eco-system in the Cismigiu area. We have already been running a
\ngardening branch of this project, in the green zones between various blocks of
\nflats. The park is a historic monument, a protected area and we aren’t allowed to
\nintervene. What we can do instead is get citizens involved in gardening
\nactivities around their block of flats, help them improve these plots of land
\nand make them look better. The second component is focusing on preserving the
\npark’s wildlife, where we are assisted by Paul Tigu, an ornithologist, who
\nhelps us monitor the birds in the park. We’ve already installed three bird
\nfeeders around these blocks of flats and five hand-made nests in the gardens
\naround the Cismigiu Park in order to offset the poor nesting conditions the
\nregion offers. The third component addresses noise pollution and we are
\ncooperating with the authorities to reduce the level of noise in the area. On
\nthe long term, our vision is that Cismigiu ought to be a spot of peace and
\nquiet at the heart of Bucharest as its historical status deserves a lot more
\nrespect than it now has, since it is the first public garden in Bucharest. The
\nfourth branch is that of urban beekeeping, we stage beekeeping workshops in the
\nneighborhood, we have brought two hives and placed them on a roof nearby the
\npark, we visit them every so often, and we look after them. Actually, we wanted
\nto offer people in the neighborhood the opportunity to spend their leisure time
\nin a constructive way, in the area they live in.<\/p>\n
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A
\nproject of applied education, inviting us in the park, in spring. An invitation
\nextended to all those who may be willing to learn what landscape architecture
\nmeans, what plants best suit the urban gardens, and all sorts of trips and
\ntricks for all gardeners, small or big,
\njust as Alex Oprita told us. Our guest says people are taking part in
\nthe project in large numbers. <\/p>\n
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Initially,
\nwe wanted to stage the workshops for the people in the neighborhood. Gradually,
\nwe realized a community was defined not by the area it inhabits, but by the
\ninterests it shares. So attending our workshops are people who want to do
\ngardening and who are attracted by that kind of activity as a leisure activity,
\nalso dedicating their own time, by their own free will.<\/p>\n
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People
\nwould do well to announce their participation in workshops well in advance, for
\norganizers to use their resources. Here is Alex Oprita once again, this time
\ntelling us what the options are. <\/p>\n
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Usually, quite a few people come to the gardening
\nworkshops, which helps us a lot, since we’ve got so many things to do. We have
\nmore than 20 participants in the gardening workshops. We even had as many as 40
\nparticipants. In the ornithology workshops, for instance, people are anxious to
\nsee the birds, we have around 15-20 participants. For beekeeping, we have two
\ndifferent kinds of workshops: we have visits taking people to the bees’ special
\narea, we stage such visits making the required gear available and with people
\nwho have already showed their interest in beekeeping and who are capable of
\ncomplying with specific circumstances. And, every so often, we stage open-to-everybody
\nworkshops where people may join in, get acquainted with the bees and with the
\nidea or urban beekeeping.<\/p>\n
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