Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

permaculture - [permaculture] Where do those people go?

permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: permaculture

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Gaden@ziplip.com" <Gaden@ziplip.com>
  • To: permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [permaculture] Where do those people go?
  • Date: Fri, 13 Jun 2003 04:48:06 -0700 (PDT)

Anne Schwarz said: "The problem is, where do those people go? There are so
many densly populated places that are not self sustainable."

Sure, the maximal productivity (sustainability) of a given region is
certainly a significant factor. I think there is a more fundamental (and more
immediate) consideration.

Wastefulness. Sounds silly perhaps but most people today lack the ability to
frugal with their existing resources. Frugality doesn't mean to live 'poorly'
but simply within one's means. Maximising the use of available resources and
redirecting excess to others (or storage).

Take whatever resource you like. Most people waste them all. For example, I
know so many people who won't touch something like fruit grown in their home
yard (suburban) because the fruit might not be perfectly shaped, unblemished,
and neon bright waxy colours. And yet they will pay expensive prices for
'plastic' fruit from the hypermarket.

A couple of years ago, I met an elderly man who was complaining that his
social security money had not come through on time. He was worried about not
having enough for food. So I spent a couple of hours taking him on a tour
around the neighbourhood parks & vacant lots. We found a basket full of
different herbs, veggies, fruit growing wild (escapees).

We repeated the exercise over the next couple of weeks, attracting several
other attendees as well. They were all amazed at how much was freely
available. And food is only one example of many.

Yeah, perhaps people can move to new pastures. Perhaps new technology (and
ancient techs.) may come on line. But the fear is that the wastefulness will
continue and people will unnecessarily decimate to the limits of available
resources. The problem isn't always availability of resources but how we use
what we already have.


Gaiden




Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page