Ron Finley facts for kids

Ron Finley is a creative person from Los Angeles. He is known as a fashion designer and a big supporter of urban gardening. He became famous for his TED talk about guerilla gardening, which means planting food in unused public spaces.

Ron Finley's Career Journey

Ron Finley started his career by making clothes in his garage. His first collection, called the Dropdead Collexion, became very popular. Big stores like Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstroms, and Neiman Marcus sold his designs. Soon, famous people started to notice his unique ideas.

Finley also collects items that show the history of Black entertainment. His collection includes old movie posters. These posters help people see how Black actors and filmmakers have grown in the movie industry over time. His poster collection was even shown in a book by Miramax about that time period.

Growing Food in the City

In 2010, Ron Finley decided to plant fruits and vegetables on a small strip of land. This land was between his house and the street. At first, it was against the law to plant food there. But Finley worked with the city of Los Angeles to change the rules. Now, people can grow vegetable gardens on these strips of land without getting fined.

In 2013, Finley gave a TED talk about his work as a "guerrilla gardener." He talked about "food deserts," which are places where it's hard to find healthy, fresh food. He explained how growing food in cities could make life better for everyone. He famously said, "If kids grow kale, kids eat kale; if they grow tomatoes, they eat tomatoes." His talk has been watched over three million times online. Many celebrities and companies became interested in his ideas.

After his TED talk, Finley created a gardening training center. It is called The Ron Finley Project and is located in South Central Los Angeles. Even though his gardening efforts have helped, planting on public land is still sometimes against city rules. In 2016, The Ron Finley Project was told they had to buy the land for their garden for $500,000 or it would close. They started a fundraising campaign, and with help from natural food companies, they raised the money.

Ron Finley has also been in several movies about urban farming. These include Urban Fruit and Can You Dig This. He calls himself a "gangsta gardener." He explains that "Gardening is gangsta. Building community—that's gangsta." He means that making positive changes is powerful.

In 2020, Ron Finley started teaching a class on Masterclass. This class teaches people how to grow their own food at home. It became one of the most popular classes during the coronavirus pandemic.

Ron Finley first started gardening to help his neighborhood. He wanted to fight "food apartheid," which means that some areas have very little access to healthy food. He also wanted to encourage healthy eating and make the city look nicer. Finley believes that everyone should grow their own food. He calls himself an "ecolutionary," which means someone who cares deeply about the planet and fights for it. He says, "health is not just what you eat. It’s what you see, what you smell, what you feel."

About Ron Finley's Life

Ron Finley grew up in South Los Angeles with his seven brothers and sisters. He has three sons.