permaculture

["Graham Burnett" <grahamburnett@blueyonder.co.uk>]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Mark" <mpludwig@facstaff.wisc.edu>
To: <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Thursday, October 31, 2002 9:50 PM
Subject: Re: [permaculture] For the survival thread...


> At 02:14 PM 10/31/02 -0500, you wrote:
> >The awareness training is so useful in that it develops one's ability to
> >understand the landscape, observing and knowing what is there and what
the
> >land wants to be.  So much of this is brushed over in the Permaculture
> >design courses, or misinterpreted as an analytical exercise.  To me,
> >earthskills and caretaking in particular are what you do in zone 5.
> >Mollison says not to do anything there except learn; well, if you are one
> >with zone 5 then there's pleanty you can do there.  The great
observations
> >and illuminations come from zone 5; it is there that you can learn to be
at
> >home.
>
> At the risk of offending, this kind of quasi mystical stuff not only does
> very little to inspire me, if I was one of the many deeply religious
people
> I have met through the years at organic farming functions I would likely
> find it out right offensive.  IF this really is a system for everyone I
> would strongly suggest separating the new age gloss form the main body of
> the design system, it is not at all necessarily to develop good designs.
>

Just dipped into this thread, so maybe this is out of context, but I can
only go by what was quoted...

I agree with Mark that new age flakiness should be viewed with skepticism-
however I never saw the zone 5 stuff (eg, observing the patterns & processes
of unintefered with natural systems & wilderness, and from that learning
deep and profound respect for nature) as being quasi-mystical or new age
flakiness, just common sense!

Cheers Graham
www.landandliberty.co.uk