Whenit comestofreshstartsandmaking
significantlifechanges,IndiraNaidoois
thefirstpersonwhocomestomind.She
hasleda deeplyinterestinglifeandis one
ofthemostarticulateandknowledgeable
peopleI know.Shehasa passionfor
community,sustainabilityandcollaboration,
andis incrediblygenerouswithsharing
herknowledgeandexperience.
Sheis anextraordinarycommunicatorwhotrulymakesa
positivedifferencetoourgreatercommunity,bothlocallyand
abroad.Indirawalksthewalkandradiatesanintense,warm
andall-embracingenergy.Shehashadanamazingcareerand
lifejourney– I lovehersenseofcuriosity,hercourage,butabove
all, I love her compassion. Indira Naidoo is a force of nature.
I
ndiraNaidooisn’tsurewhattocallherself
anymore.Sincequittingherjobasa television
newsanchorandcurrent-affairsreporter
morethantwodecadesago,she’sadded
mediamanager,climateactivist,gardener,author,
producer,breakfast-radiohost,sustainability
consultant,curatorandconnectortoherCV.But
asimpressiveasthatis,Naidoo’snotconvinced.
“AsI age,I feellikeI knowlessandless,”shesays.
“I lookat mypottedcurry-leaftreeonthebalcony,
andI think,thereis somuchaboutyouthatI will
neverevenbegintounderstand.”
Duringhertimeworkingasa journalist for
theABCandSBS,SouthAfrican-
bornNaidoo,realisedshewastelling
thesamestoryoverandoveragain.
“Particularlyintelevisionnews,the
storytoldis often,‘Hereis anethnic
groupfightinganotherethnicgroup.
Hereis thewar,andhereis the
famine.’Butthatpatternis being
drivenbyfoodandwatershortages,
andwhenI realisedthat,it started
thisjourneybacktocommunity.”
Hercommunityforthelast 20 yearshasbeen
Sydney’sinner-citysuburbofPottsPoint.It’sthere
whereherenthusiasmforgardeningbegan.“IfI put
a seedin,canI geta tomatoandwhatwouldit taste
like?”Hercuriosityquicklyevolvedintoa wayoflife.
“I realisedit wassomuchbiggerthanme.Thefactthat
a littlebeecouldcomealongand,withina fewweeks,
turnmyflowersintozucchini.Realchangeis possible
when you put yourself in the grand scheme of things.”Naidoo’s“grandscheme”includeda gigworking
withtheUnitedNationsFood&Agricultural
OrganisationinGeneva;beingselectedbyformer
USvicepresidentAlGoretostudytheeffectsof
climatechange;andtwobest-sellingbooks,The
EdibleBalconyandTheEdibleCity. “Realisingthat
I waspartoftheproblem,I realisedI couldalsobe
partofthesolution,”shesays.
Circa2020,Naidoo’sthirteenth-flooredible
balcony,withitsfour-year-oldpassionfruitvine,
floweringbroadbeans,chilliesandherbs,is her
sanctuary.“I haveabout 30 differentediblesat the
moment,”shesays.“AlotofthethingsI likegrowing
givememultiplebenefits– ediblesthathappentohave
beautifulfragrancesandflowers,too.Youdon’thave
tojustgrowpotatoes.”
Whatshe’dliketoseeis everynewwarehouse
andofficeblock,fromBunningstoWoolworths,
fittedwitha greenroofinthefuture.“Therearereally
veryfewincentivestogetonboardwithgreeningour
citiesinAustralia,”shesays.“Whenyougotomuch
poorercountries,andseethespeedat whichthey
areadapting,it’sveryfrustrating.”
Forthatreason,she’scommittedtousingher
extensivebroadcastingandcommunicationskillstohelp
growawarenessaroundfoodsecurity.Whetherit bevia
herformergighosting2CHbreakfastradio,theSBSTV
seriesFilthyRichandHomeless(nowinitsthirdseason),
oras MCoftheNewSouthWalesGreenGlobeAwards
eachyear.Naidoois alsoa volunteerambassadorfor
WaysideChapel,a charitya fewstreetsoverfromwhere
shelives,andconsultswithmultiplebusinessesand
communitygroupsabouthowtheycangreensmall
urbanspacesandreducetheircarbonfootprint.“I
justkeepinterconnectingpeople,”saysNaidoo.“I'm
passionateaboutmakinginterconnectionsbetween
different organisationsthatleadtochange.”
Changecomesinmanyguises,
andsometimesit’sas simpleas getting
a bunchofbusinessmentotaketheir
shoesandsocksoffandfeeltheearth
betweentheirtoes.“Wedon’tgetthat
joyfromconcrete,steelandtarmac,
andwe’renevergoingto.Butwe
needtoberemindedoccasionally.”
Peoplearebusy.Naidoogets
it,butshedoesn’tlikeit.“Busy
tendstostiflea lotofopen,creative
thinking,”shesays.“It’swhygardensaresopowerful.
Beingwithplantsandengaginginthenaturalworld
helpsyoustayconnected.”
Heradvice,inspiredbyWaysideChapel’sretired
pastor,ReverendGrahamLong,is simple.“Thatlittle
voicethatwetrytoblockbecauseit’sinconvenient?
Listentothatvoiceandfollowit.It’salmostalways
asclosetoyourauthenticselfasyoucanbe.And
that rarely puts you on the wrong course.”●“Gardensare
sopowerful.
Engaginginthe
naturalworld
helpsyou stay
connected.”GOURMET TRAVELLER 35