permaculture

[John Schinnerer <eco_living@yahoo.com>]

Aloha,

Some such people are already (still) doing PC without calling it that. 
I reckon there's a lot to learn from such people.  Or as Tom Ward
exhorts:

Assessment, Assessment, Assessment!

Concerning this part:

> find an
> appropriate locally respected person (priest, clan-elder, chief,
> teacher,
> you get the idea), and get them to understand that something can be
> done
> about it, 

I just heard a story about this sort of thing with health practices -
working with the local medicine man (somewhere in Latin America) and a
microscope, a foreigner enabled the local to see certain soil critters
under the scope. The local correctly identified them as the evil
spirits that caused some sicknesses in his people.  When he did a
ritual on the soil to do in the evil spirits and then observed the
critters were still alive under the scope, the foreigner offered a
different ritual that the local could observe did do in the evil
spirits.  The local was then able to consider a different option within
his own cultural parameters.  The foreigner did not diss the local ways
of explaining - he rather worked with them to expand their possible
choices in dealing with this health problem.

This is the same person who while kidnapped by some rebel group or
other in S. America for a year or so, taught his captors to read and
write...spent much time chained to a tree...there is a site about him,
if anyone knows of it please send me the URL.

cheers,

=====
John Schinnerer, MA
--------------------
- Eco-Living -
Cultural & Ecological Designing
Food - Shelter - Community
john@eco-living.net
http://eco-living.net

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