Slum Rooftop Gardens

Group leader Josh Meyer inspects a water hose used on a hydroponic growing device in the Santa Marta slum in Rio de Janeirio, August 19, 2005. Using hydroponics, a little hard labor and lots of ingenuity, the Temple University students spend their vacation time building and installing a farming apparatus that turns the walls and roofs of slum residents into small gardens. The technology, part of a broader environmental movement known as green roofing, helps residents compensate for land shortages by supporting miniature plant nurseries from their homes. Green roofing is popular in Europe for its environmental and aesthetic benefits, but this is an initial attempt to show that the technology can also provide sustenance for the poor. (Australfoto/Douglas Engle)(Australfoto/Douglas Engle)(Australfoto/Douglas Engle)

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Group leader Josh Meyer inspects a water hose used on a hydroponic growing device in the Santa Marta slum in Rio de Janeirio, August 19, 2005. Using hydroponics, a little hard labor and lots of ingenuity, the Temple University students spend their vacation time building and installing a farming apparatus that turns the walls and roofs of slum residents into small gardens. The technology, part of a broader environmental movement known as green roofing, helps residents compensate for land shortages by supporting miniature plant nurseries from their homes. Green roofing is popular in Europe for its environmental and aesthetic benefits, but this is an initial attempt to show that the technology can also provide sustenance for the poor. (Australfoto/Douglas Engle)(Australfoto/Douglas Engle)(Australfoto/Douglas Engle)

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