permaculture

[Pacific Edge Permaculture <pacedge@magna.com.au>]

The following email is a further contribution to the ongoing discussion in
Australia about the future of permaculture and Permaculture International
Limited.

Please make your responses to the group by clicking 'reply all' on your
email screen...


PIL - THE FUTURE
The future direction of PIL will be decided at this August's permaculture
convergence in Nimbin when the organisation's annual general meeting will
take place.

In making any decision on the organisation's future, the asking of a number
of questions is critical:

- what does the permaculture community really need?

- why does it need this?

- how can these needs be met by PIL and its membership?

Identifying the strengths and weaknesses, the threats to permaculture and
PIL and the opportunities which could be opened to it will be necessary to
gain a picture of influences on the organisation's future.


PIL - THE INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION MODEL
Over the past couple months, this conversation has disclosed that people see
a Permaculture International Limited website, designed to act as a portal to
other permaculture locations, as viable.

A more ambitious model would see Permaculture International Limited develop
an enhanced role. Sure, it's a more ambitious role than that of PIL as a
website portal. And, certainly, it would have to be unrolled over a period
of time. My point in mentioning it is, simply, to put it on the agenda, not
to advocate it.

THE MODEL 
Here's what PIL rebuilt along the lines of an industry association
could look like.

What... PIL would provide access to members and/ or permaculture
organisations, permaculture courses and people offering goods and services
compatible with the ethics of permaculture design

Why and How To: - make credible information about permaculture accessible to
the general public through a PIL website acting as a portal to other
permaculture and compatible entities

- provide and adequate and accurate description of permaculture design

- provide a history of PIL and permaculture

- set and publicise minumum standards for permaculture design and education
offered to the public

- list approved goods and services offered by PIL members and provide access
to, contact details and information about the track records of approved
permaculture educators, designers, aid and community workers to assist the
public/ employers/ contractors make informed choices; this may help uplift
the reputation of permaculture in some quarters

- administer PermaFund, actively seek donations and make disbursements
approved by the PIL board of management and advisers they may consult

- administer the annual permaculture awards, should resources be found to
revive them

- publish information through any medium

- make public comment on permaculture via any media

- publish, on a PIL website, a member's newsletter and information useful to
the public

- to set up, were resources to become available, a national listserv to
facilitate discussion of permaculture-related issues via email

- to house, in an accessible manner, the Permacultue Design Certificate
graduates list if this is not at present being done by the Permaculture
Institute or the Permaculture Research Institute (the list verifies the fact
that a person has completed a PDC and is therefore entitled to offer
educational, design or other services using the name 'permaculture').

ELIGIBILITY
A decision about eligibility for listing goods and services/
other information on a website/ other media would have to be made:

- would this be available only to PIL members? (restricted to PIL members it
could be used to build membership)

- would it be available to non-members involved in permaculture?

- would it be available for non-member graduates of PDCs?

FUNDING 
Establishing...

- a website portal with design to current website standard and content
produced to current web usability standards, and

- promoting extensively the existence of the 'authorative' website

...would provide an incentive for membership were member goods and services
to be listed.

This would provide a trickle of incoming funds to support maintenance of the
website.

......................................

THE DECENTRALISED MODEL
A woman at a recent Sydney Innovator's Forum at UNSW EcoLiving Centre made
the suggestion that PIL could 'decentralise'.

The decentralisation would see the organisation set up PIL groups in
different places.

A development of this idea could see these decentralised, regional PIL
groups performing a networking and coordinating role in their region. They
could, for instance:

- organise regional 'mini-convergences' - organise 'permaculture
converstaions' along the lines of the Conversations for the 21st Century
model 

- coordinate regional seed banks/ networks of useful plant species

- negotiate among regional permaculture teachers for the staggered
presentation of their courses to avoid market saturation.

The role for existing local permaculture community-based-organisations in
such an arrangement would have to be investigated.


...Russ Grayson

---------------------
PACIFIC EDGE
Permaculture & Media
Russ Grayson and Fiona Campbell

PO Box 446, Kogarah NSW 2217 AUSTRALIA
Phone/ fax   02-9588 6931   (IDD-61+2+9588 6931)
Email: pacedge@magna.com.au
WWW: http://www.magna.com.au/~pacedge/

PERMACULTURE/ COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: permaculture education + Community
Gardens Network (NSW contact) + organic gardening training + overseas
development aid project services.
MEDIA: publication design + desktop publishing services  + website design &
content production + journalism/ photojournalism.