permaculture

[<permed@nor.com.au>]

Pc Designers Gathering  - Edging into the Mainstream
Keynote Speaker: David Holmgren
Friday 23-Sat 24th August 2002
PLUS
* David Holmgren Workshop Sunday 25th
* Pc Teachers Seminar Monday 26th
at Djanbung Gardens, Nimbin, Nthn NSW

an open letter about the Gathering from a personal perspective.....

This is the 3rd Annual Permaculture Gathering at Djanbung Gardens. 
These gatherings have been offered to provide an opportunity for us to come 
together to share what we are doing and thus enrich our own knowledge, 
strengthen our networks and support systems, collectively address issues that 
effect us as a movement and identify ways in which we can cooperate to 
further our work and permaculture generally in creating a more sustainable 
society.

These gatherings have been initiated to help fill the void created by an 
absence of offers to host a full Convergence. The last Australasian 
Permaculture Convergence (APC7) was in 1997. Big events are a huge task to 
take on and I fully understand the reticence to take on such a venture. 
Perhaps the big convergence format is being gradually relaced by smaller, 
more localised events such as the Sth Australian Permaculture Festival and I 
hope that more groups will be inspired to host such events. Still I harbour 
the desire to see (and participate in) larger Convergences and hope that 
someone out there will take the challenge on board in the not too distant 
future.

Meantime I have a venue (Djanbung Gardens) which can comfortably cope with 
short events of a few days with 50-150 people, conveniently located on the 
edge of a vibrant little village with plenty of accommodation outside of peak 
holiday and tourist times. My overheads are low, most of the infrastucture 
already exists and we can meet in a beautiful environment where our Œtalk is 
walked¹ - eating vegies from the gardens and eggs from the chickens around 
us, dodging wallabies in the camping area and battling with that stroppy 
gander ŒBongo¹!!!   

As a practicing permaculturist (teacher, designer, activist etc) I personally 
have a great need for these occassions to come together with collegues and 
fellow permies to update myself on what is going on elsewhere, to expand my 
knowledge base, renew old friendships and make new ones, and to participate 
in a collective process that embraces the big picture of permaculture and 
where we¹re going as a movement. I find these occassions are essential to 
maintaining relevence in my work and in sustaining the passion for what I do. 
It has been disconcerting seeing the fragmentation that has occurred in 
recent years and I can¹t simply stand aside and let things slide away. 
Permaculture is more relevent today than ever and it is only through 
concerted cooperative effort  that we can make the impact that will bring the 
kind of change that¹s required.

The future doesn¹t simply unfold - the future is what we make it. 
We need to think seriously about the future of permaculture, our collective 
efforts, of what kind of organisational structure and support will sustain 
our endeavours and how we can harness the  wealth of experience, knowledge, 
skills and insights we collect along our individual journeys to enrich each 
other as a collective voice that has real solutions to offer a world 
struggling with inequities, fear and dislocation. 

It¹s not just for ourselves we do this, but for all peoples on this beautiful 
planet that express a need that we can help fulfill. What are we doing for 
the refugees? where are the competent teams to help rebuild Afghanistan? what 
assistance is needed in East Timor? who is helping IDEP with village 
education in Indonesia? And when someone asks for help, who do they go to and 
do they know who is available for the job with the right skills and 
experience? How do we find each other to form project teams and how can we 
fund our work in these situations? These are but a few of the bigger 
questions we need to find answers for, and while we work in isolation and 
fragmentation it remains difficult to meet these needs effectively.

There are initiatives like Permaworld raising funds for PIL, but PIL is 
struggling with basic administration. For these kinds of fundraising efforts 
to continue and to grow we must begin to organise ourselves on a more 
professional level so that we can harness the opportunities that present 
themselves. We need to be professional to attract funding from mainstream aid 
agencies who are seeking the solutions we offer, in short we need to get 
organised and we need people with good organisational skills to facilitate 
this.

The chaos of the movement has highlighted the need for us to reorgaise 
ourselves to take permaculture to the next level and into a future where it 
can truely make a difference. Thus I am inviting those concerned and 
available to come together in August to explore pathways of cooperation to 
harness and coordinate the immense human resource that we as a body of 
permaculturists represent.
See you there.....

love, peace and compost
Robyn Francis

Djanbung Gardens Permaculture Education Centre
home to: 
Permaculture Education
ERDA Institute Trust
Nimbin Eco-Village Project Office
Robyn Francis - permaculture designer & educator
PO Box 379, Nimbin NSW 2480 Australia
Ph 02-6689 1755 Fax 02-6689 1225
permed@nor.com.au  www.earthwise.org.au