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Bill Mollison and Geoff Lawton Team Up for Melbourne PDC Again! (Sept. 2010)
Courses/Workshops — by Tagari
For full details on this excellent opportunity to take your Permaculture Design Certificate course under the combined tutelage of legendary Permaculture teachers, Bill Mollison and Geoff Lawton, please click on the links below (all PDF files):
This information can also be found in PRI Australia’s course listings.
Comments (0)Posted on: February 8, 2010
My Experience of Permaculture in Guatemala
Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Education Centers, Food Forests, Food Plants - Annual, Food Plants - Perennial, Land, Plant Systems, Project Positions, Rehabilitation, Trees, Water Harvesting — by Kevin Mascarenhas
The Ijatz cooperative is possibly the best demonstration of the transformative power of permaculture in Guatemala. The site, in San Lucas Toliman near Lake Atitlan, was purchased at low cost since the parish council considered the land to be of low value. Previously, it was a swampy bog inundated with refuse and flood water from the surrounding hills.
In classic permaculture style, within the problem lay the seeds of the solution. The deforestation due to conventional agriculture in these surrounding hills has caused soil erosion and during the rainy season much of this rich volcanic black top soil is washed downstream. This annual bounty has been redirected through the Ijatz site using a sequence of channels and sink holes, which in turn slows the water flow enabling the nutrient rich humus to be captured and stored on site. The earth has been moulded to create slopes, edges and contours essential for increased growing opportunity.
Comments (0)Posted on: February 7, 2010
When the Water’s Gone
Conservation, Consumerism, Potable Water, Waste Systems & Recycling, Waste Water — by Nichole Ross
As I lay here writing this, the last inch of water is being intentionally drained from our 5000-gallon rainwater catchment tank. Although we live in the rainforest on the southeast side of the Big Island of Hawaii, we haven’t had any significant rain for almost 2 months. According to our neighbor, this kind of drought happens every couple of years. I can’t believe that the once abundant supply of water we took for granted only a few months ago is almost gone. Now the only thing coming out of the tap is a red-colored silt-laden bottom-of-the-tank soup. Even though we probably would have had a couple days supply left, we ultimately decided it was time to clean out that dirty tank.
We chose to gamble. The forecast predicts rain for Kapoho ever day this week, but only a 20% chance. In the meantime, we’ll make sure to keep the containers we generally use only for drinking water filled up to the top with water from the Pahoa water station. If we don’t get significant rain over the next few days, we may have to pay a water truck to come fill our tank. $180. Otherwise, no showers, no toilet flushing, no water for dishes or laundry.
Comments (1)Posted on: February 3, 2010
A Farming Model to Sustain the World
Uncategorized — by Devinder Sharma
Ten years from now, in 2020, when we try to look back, Indian agriculture can be transformed into a healthy and vibrant system where farmer suicides have been relegated to history, where distress and despondency has been replaced by the lost pride in farming, where agriculture becomes sustainable in the long run, and does not add on to global warming.
As we enter 2010, the script for a futuristic agriculture, which brings back the smile on the face of farmers, without leaving any scar on the environment, is being rewritten.
What began as a small initiative some six years back in a non-descript village in Khamam district, has now spread to over 2 million acres in 21 districts of Andhra Pradesh. I remember when I first talked about the miracle brought about in village Pannukula in Andhra Pradesh, many thought I was simply trying to romanticise agriculture. How farming can be done without the use of chemical pesticides, I was repeatedly asked.
Pannukula dug out a lonely furrow, but eventually blazed a trail. In the next four years, more than 318,000 farmers in 21 out of the 23 districts of Andhra Pradesh have discarded the intensive chemical farming systems, and shifted to a more sustainable, economically viable and ecologically friendly agriculture. A silent revolution is in the offing. In Kharif 2009 (the monsoon season), some 1.4 million acres was covered with what is now known as Community Managed Sustainable Agriculture (CMSA).
Comments (0)Posted on: January 30, 2010
Permaculture and the Western Syndrome
Aid Projects, Deforestation, Food Forests, General, Insects, Plant Systems, Society, Trees — by Warren Brush
For tens of thousands of years intact peoples from around the world have been intricately woven into the fabric of the landscape that nourishes them. Culture itself has sprung from the land through the people’s relationship with all that sustains them. This is not as esoteric as it sounds… Imagine a group of people who live in a particular watershed with a distinct mix and availability of flora and fauna, weather patterns, sun angles, sound resonance, distance to other bio-regions, etc. Everyday necessity would be provided for by these and other more subtle structures and influences that would provide unique implements for survival, foods, hunting practices, shelters, musical instruments, honoring practices, ceremonies and stories. These peoples have known the origins stories of all that give them life, this in turn became the foundation of true, intact culture where the land would express itself very tangibly through the people
Posted on: January 29, 2010
PRI-De: A Detroit Story
Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Economics, Education Centers, Urban Projects — by Killian OBrien
 Detroit: time to turn the problem into the solution |
Permaculture in Detroit seems like a bit of an oxymoron, but urban agriculture is blooming all over the city. From the city-wide efforts of The Greening of Detroit in educating people on gardening techniques to the smaller-scale efforts of individuals such as Kate Devlin and her Spirit of Hope garden to groups such as the Detroit Black Community Food Security Network and their 2-acre D-Town Farm and the Georgia Street Community Gardens/Collective, community gardens are being sown on vacant lots dotting this city of nearly a million, filling the holes left by the loss of nearly half its peak auto industry-driven population. Photos of the streets of Detroit from eras long past and rusted nearly away show tightly packed, neat homes. Today, half those homes have devolved into ruins or grassy, often debris-filled, lots. Estimates on the number of lots range from 60,000 to 80,000. Those numbers don’t include the many parks now being left largely untended by the city government.
Comments (1)Posted on: January 28, 2010
Hope for Detroit
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Education Centers, Urban Projects — by Nichole Ross
 Mark Covington (left) & Killian Obrien |
Whenever I mention I’m taking a trip back to Detroit, I always seem to get at least one “why would you go there?” To those unfamiliar with the City, the word “Detroit” often conjures up the negative image of a city gone wrong. Crime, poverty, blight, unemployment – all terms synonymous with Detroit’s reputation for so long. Fortunately, I’m here to inform you that Detroit’s image is undergoing a major makeover, thanks to people like Killian Obrien and Mark Covington. These are two amazing men who are working to bring positive change to one eastside neighborhood. Hope for Detroit also means hope for many other forgotten cities.
I was born into a Polish-Hungarian community on the South Side of Detroit, known as Delray. My great-grandparents made the area their home in the early 1900s. Most of my family continued to live and work in the close-knit community for many years. They were very self-sufficient. They planted food gardens, raised chickens and made their own beer to earn money. They had to be. They were poor.
Comments (4)Posted on: January 26, 2010
Permaculture in the West Bank
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Education Centers, Urban Projects — by Sakina Grome
A spotlight on Marda Permaculture Farm, Palestine
Marda Permaculture Farm, Palestine
Olive trees, some over a thousand years old, grow in the shadows of the settlement on the hillside above, their gnarled old trunks spiraling towards the open sky. Tended through the generations by local farmers in a once verdant countryside, they stand as a testament to human and ecological resilience in an occupied land.
The village of Marda (pop. 2,600) is located about twenty kilometres south of Nablus in the Salfit District in the West Bank of Palestine, beneath one of the largest illegal Israeli settlements, Ariel.
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Ho avy: Growing a Future for Madagascar
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Eco-Villages, Education Centers, Energy Systems, Land, Nurseries & Propogation, Trees, Village Development — by Martina Petru
Editor’s Note: This is an update for the Ho avy project.
A gentle slice of moon on the star crowded sky of southwestern Madagascar just set gracefully and yet another day is over; we are now in the second half of January 2010.
And what day is today: Monday, Wednesday or perhaps Sunday? We easily lose track when in the field, especially during our prolonged stays – keeping busy in the nursery, forest and the village of Ranobe with several community participatory projects – keeping the momentum of excitement and action. The dynamics are encouraging and there is wonderful energy flowing. Every day is somewhat special; ups and downs along the journey to the ultimate balance. Capacity building is about trust building and about generosity, patience, humbleness as well as discipline. It’s a wonderful lesson for all of us, for ho avy team and for FIMPAHARA.
Comments (0)Posted on: January 24, 2010
Micro-Hydro for a Slovak Village
Community Projects, Energy Systems, Urban Projects, Village Development, Water Harvesting — by Craig Mackintosh
A turbine with a 21 kWh generating capacity is the centrepiece of
a little village in the mountainous north central region of Slovakia
The village of Necpaly sits at 510 metres above sea level, on the eastern edge of the Necpalská Valley, in the Turiec region in the mountainous north of landlocked Slovakia. The area is filled with rolling hills and cascading valleys framed by mountain ranges peppered with deer, wild pig and bear. And, noteworthy for this particular article, the area boasts abundant flows of crystal clear water.
Comments (0)Posted on: January 22, 2010
U.S. Feeds One Quarter of its Grain to Cars While Hunger is on the Rise
Consumerism, Economics, Food Shortages, Peak Oil — by Earth Policy Institute
by the Earth Policy Institute
The 107 million tons of grain that went to U.S. ethanol distilleries in 2009 was enough to feed 330 million people for one year at average world consumption levels. More than a quarter of the total U.S. grain crop was turned into ethanol to fuel cars last year. With 200 ethanol distilleries in the country set up to transform food into fuel, the amount of grain processed has tripled since 2004.
The United States looms large in the world food economy: it is far and away the world’s leading grain exporter, exporting more than Argentina, Australia, Canada, and Russia combined. In a globalized food economy, increased demand for food to fuel American vehicles puts additional pressure on world food supplies.
Comments (0)Posted on: January 21, 2010
Money Literacy – Part V
Alternatives to Political Systems, Bio-regional Organizations, Consumerism, Development & Property Trusts, Eco-Villages, Economics, Ethical Investment, Financial Management, People Systems, Society, Village Development — by Thomas Fischbacher
Editor’s Note: This Part V of a series. Before continuing, please read Part I, Part II, Part III and Part IV if you haven’t already.
"Money" is nothing but a social construct that comes with a number of "rules of the game". In one way, "money" has much in common with computer operating systems: most users are completely unaware of the degree to which these rules are flexible, malleable, and allow very different designs. So, before we ask ourselves: in what way could a different design of rules lead to a different role of money, it is worthwhile taking a look at what sort of phenomena the present arrangement gives rise to. A telling passage can be found in Bill Mollison’s autobiography:
Posted on: January 20, 2010
Permaculture Master Plan: Planting up the Global Garden
Aid Projects, Alternatives to Political Systems, Bio-regional Organizations, Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Eco-Villages, Education Centers, Ethical Investment, Networking Sites, People Systems, Project Positions, Society, Urban Projects, Village Development — by Andy Homer
You’re trying to say that you can live in the modern way and continue to think in the traditional way. That’s not true. The way you live affects the way you think. – Danny Billie, Traditional Seminole
I’d like to recount here my impressions of the PRI, and how different it is from many other organizations. We (Tribal Networks) first came across them when looking for solutions to problems we found in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco, where we were starting a project to bring in a school and an internet / community centre. Searching for "dry land permaculture" soon found Geoff’s "Greening the Desert" clip, and things progressed from there.
Posted on: January 19, 2010
Jeff Rubin – $225 p/barrel Oil in 18 Months and the End of Globalisation
Consumerism, Economics, Food Shortages, Peak Oil — by Craig Mackintosh
Jeff Rubin, former chief economist at CIBC World Markets and author of the book Why Your World Is About to Get a Whole Lot Smaller: Oil and the End of Globalization, was the keynote speaker at the Business of Climate Change conference in Toronto a few months ago. The clip below is the excellent presentation he gave, one that bleats the same message I’ve been sharing for a few years (see some of the links in ‘Further Reading’ section below, for example). Mr. Rubin predicts $225 p/barrel oil within months, and with it a forced relocalisation as long distance globalised trade becomes an economic impossibility. In it he talks about the insignificant scale of new oil finds in comparison with increasing demand from developing countries in tandem with the annual declines we see with our older fields. He talks about the absurdity of saddling our grandchildren with debts they can never afford to repay, just to bail out automotive industries that have no future in a world without oil anyway. He goes on to talk about the failures of Kyoto and the need for financial mechanisms that could speed a transition to a low carbon, relocalised platform.
Have a watch, and let us know your thoughts.
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Posted on: January 18, 2010
A Report on ZERI Training Course (Zero Emissions Research Initiative)
Consumerism, Courses/Workshops, Society — by Owen Hablutzel
December 3-5, 2009
Orella Ranch, CA
Remember the Chicken?
The ‘Permaculture Chicken’ is a classic example used by Bill Mollison and many subsequent Permaculture teachers to illustrate an extremely useful analysis technique for use when designing systems. In the case of the classic chicken example, this ‘element’ of the system – the chicken – is analyzed for its needs (inputs) and its products (outputs). Using this information a designer can begin to make connections between each of the diverse components of the system, integrating all of these elements into a whole, functional system.
