Gardens just may be the solution to the world's problems. A garden can bring together a community, reunite us with Nature, create food and medicine, and can be a symbol of pride and majesty. A garden teaches us that we cannot control our world, and that we should not want to, either; yet if we allow ourselves to, we can make a garden into whatever sort of space we desire for ourselves. A garden recycles all of its resources and balances itself as well, and this inspires us, in turn, to balance our lives and use our own resources wisely.

Such a garden can exist at the Claremont Colleges, and it can inspire us and give us pride in ourselves and in Nature.

We have a unique opportunity to have a true garden on campus with the Guerrilla Organic Farm located at the Wash. This farm can be a garden for us all, and I am certain that it can benefit anyone on campus, regardless of each of our passions. Everyone should visit the Farm as soon as they can. All you have to do is take a walk down to the Wash someday.

The Guerrilla Organic Farm is part of a larger social context. For instance, there is the issue of agriculture in general. Around 100 years ago, the Green Revolution came, changing traditional organic methods of farming in many ways.

We found that we could increase our yields of crops through the intensive use of petrochemicals, in the form of fertilizer and pesticides. This became easier as oil became more abundant.

However, the long term costs of this are that we have forgotten the basics of farming: the web of plants, animals and insects that, along with healthy soil, have for time immemorable been the best way to make plants grow. Instead, today we have depleted soil and weak, inbred plants that will only survive because of our high expenditure of petroleum-based chemicals. Who knows what will happen when we have no more petroleum?

And when we have washed all the good soil away, will petroleum fertilizers be enough? Unfortunately few people wonder about what goes into the food they get on their dinner table.

With a farm on campus, even one that is just a few acres, we can better ponder the world's future of food production.

Community is a natural component of a garden, and the Farm has already shown its potential to create community. Dozens of people use the Farm every week to relax, garden and socialize. Think of all the places where gardens are so rare and appreciated.

I recently heard that there are at least 700 community gardens in New York City.

These gardens allow older people and younger people to interact for the first time; they develop the inquisitive minds of children; they act as after school programs; and they keep teenagers away from drugs and crime.

Can you think of anything else that we need to work on in America right now?

The sobering reality in New York City is that the city government is actively engaged in destroying these gardens to auction them off for cash. It appears that a few politicians have not had a garden in their lives.

In San Diego this week a few students were killed by a young boy. This also happened in Columbine, CO, Springfield, OR, and too many other places.

The gut reaction has been to step up the offensive and stop the dangerous kids before this happens again. Yet again we declare war on our problems instead of healing the roots. Yes, I have every intention to relate this to agriculture.

What do we do in agriculture? We attack the pests, manipulate the plants and soil. Is a troubled child a weed that should be uprooted? I don't presume to know the solution to school violence, but perhaps gardens have the solution. A garden has struggle between organisms, but no violence. In a garden, diversity is celebrated. Perhaps if the violent kids in Columbine, Springfield, Santee, and elsewhere had experienced the community of a garden they would have learned the values of a garden, rather than the values of our modern suburbanized TV nation.

A garden can be an important part of our education. Through it, we can find ways to improve our world. The Farm fills a gap in the life here on campus, and through it we all can learn to appreciate the importance of community, and connection to the natural world.

Take some time to visit the Farm. It is open to anyone who is curious, and there is almost always someone at the Farm enjoying its splendor. We can find great hope in the strong community and ecology that is growing there.