FarmvilleNYC, a conceptual design project, proposes a continuum between virtual and physical space, where people in avatar form can participate in the cultivation of farmland. In a sense, it takes the idea of crowdsourced foraging one step further into crowdsourced urban farming. There’s also some form of video game element here. Apparently I’m the only person in the world who hasn’t played Farmville, the game. But if this concept becomes reality, all those people frittering away precious moments of their finite existence on Facebook might actually be able to contribute to the production of a real harvest.
Taking the concept of applying social media phenomenons like crowdsourcing one step further, how about greening flash mobs, to descend upon vacant lots and make pop-up parks, farms and gardens in an instant. What would these be called, ‘green mobs’? ‘Grobs’? ‘Crop mobs’? Ah, wait … of course it exists:
http://cropmob.org/
Although, interestingly, this concept seems focussed on existing farms, not transforming voids.
