2020-01-01_Her_World_Singapore

HERWORLD JAN 2020

KIMBERLY HOONG, 24

She's the deputy

head of Foodscaping

at Edible Garden

City. A life-changing

six-month stay in the

Indian Himalayas

made her see the

different ways of living

more consciously and

sustainably.

The idea of slow living for

Kimberly Hoong is simply taking

a step back and not getting

caught up in the daily grind. The

24-year-old once suff ered from

anxiety as a result of packing too

many activities within a day.

Kimberly, the deputy head of

Foodscaping at Edible Garden

City (EGC) in Queenstown,

says: “Being in nature makes

me realise that there is so much

more out there (in life). Slow

living translates to happiness because I live

more consciously and mindfully, thinking twice

before I buy something.”

The EGC, an urban farming social

enterprise, sells fresh produce to food and

beverage outlets, builds and maintains food

gardens in the city, and conducts farming

workshops.

She adds: “You don’t need so many clothes

or all the expensive food to be happy. You don’t

need to earn a million bucks. You can be happy

if you learn how to live simply.” The millennial

female farmer discovered her passion for

farming at 19.

She started an urban farming group in the

National University of Singapore (NUS) that

involved environmentally related activities such

as visits to community gardens and local farms.

The group also set up an edible garden in school

with composting and vermicomposting, which is

the product of the decomposition process using

various species of worms to create a mixture of

decomposing vegetable or food waste.

As fulfi lling as the work was, Kimberly often

felt tired as she overloaded herself with too

many activities. It wasn’t until a life-changing

six-month stay in the Indian Himalayas that

made her see things quite diff erently.

The trip was part of an exchange

programme during her Yale-NUS College days.

On that trip, she realised that she could live life

and take things at a much slower pace.

Of her experience, Kimberly, an

Kimberly

Hoong

tending to

the EGC

garden in

Queenstown

with pockets

of sweet

fruits, edible

flowers,

vegetables

and fragrant

herbs.

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