permaculture

["L.SantoyoDesigns" <santoyo@earthflow.com>]

...
Friends of Permaculture,

Surrounded by adoring fans and close friends, Simon Henderson died 
yesterday, in Seattle, waiting for a liver transplant.  He was alert, 
oriented, beautiful and calm...

Simon Henderson is a Permaculture Giant and a Cultural Creative 
archetype.  He was a romantic native american spiritualist, who 
became a story teller extraordinaire -making us believe in the 
promises of tolerance and in the beauty of a "Green Grass World."

Simon was my friend... In 1988, Simon and I co- founded Great 
Northwest Permaculture Institute.  Through the early 90's I taught 
eight permaculture design courses with Simon in Washington State and 
in California.  Hundreds of his students know his humor and know his 
passion for a sustainable world.  He admired and was a friend of Bill 
Mollison.  Simon was Bill's production assistant in the filming of 
the "Global Gardener" series -see him buying strawberries in the 
"cold climates" segment.  Simon also contributed to the world-wide 
research of bamboo and willow use in traditional agroforestry systems 
and consulted on development projects on, at least, three continents.

Before I met Simon, he was a 1960's Haight/Ashbury artist and theatre 
performer -a quintessential flower child... He traveled the globe 
with rock star and artist royalty of the day -even Salvador Dali 
gives Simon a mention in his writings.  While living as an artist in 
Tahiti, Simon developed a new connection to the Earth and later 
cultivated his path toward permaculture. 

The Permaculture Movement was enriched by Simon's spirals...


Larry Santoyo, Director
EarthFlow Design Works &
The Center of Natural Design

Special Thanks & Love to Brent, Cathy, Kirk and Ellen


> Keith Johnson wrote:
>
> > Simon Henderson has more than twenty years of experience in 
> > documenting traditional agriculture systems throughout the world. 
> > He traveled fairly extensively in  tropical regions studying 
> > bamboo'ss botanical characteristics and uses by many cultures.  In 
> > 1995 he established a bamboo agroforestry research farm where his 
> > friends continue to  conduct varietal trials on more than 30 
> > species of bamboo. Simon has consulted for bamboo projects 
> > throughout Asia, Central America and the US. He  carries, with his 
> > fellows of Bamboo Nation and  Bamboo People, Daphne Lewis and 
> > Stuart  Brune  (Bamboo Research Station at Coyote Ranch near 
> > Stanwood, WA, USA), a vision of  bamboo as an element woven into 
> > Permaculture agroforestry and human cultural life. Simon will be 
> > remembered as an inspired Permaculture designer/educator and for 
> > his extensive writing on bamboo in the agricultural landscape.Read 
> > his Raising the Dragon: Bamboo Agroforestry in Southeast Asia or an 
> > article by him at  http://www.permaearth.org/bamboo.html
> >
> > Simon, his colleagues, and fellow bambuseros have focused on urban 
> > gardening with bamboo introducing bamboo as a plant of world 
> > significance. They maintain  nurseries and offer instruction in 
> > installation, maintenance and harvesting of shoots and poles.
> >
> > Rick Valley and the gang in the NW USA knew him far better than I, 
> > though I would have enjoyed spending more time with him and on his 
> > projects. He's worked with Toby Hemenway, Michael Pilarski, the 
> > Bullocks, Larry Santoyo, Jude Hobbs, John Schinnerer, Doug Abberly, 
> > the folks at Lost Valley, Jonathan Scherch, and many others. He 
> > helped awaken a lot of people to wonderful plants and to 
> > Permaculture. He also appears briefly in the Global Gardener video 
> > delivering strawberries to Cascadian Farms. May we all join him, 
> > his students and friends in keeping all his good works alive and 
> > thriving.
> >
> > You can see a picture of Simon at http://fertileground.org/community/bamboo/
> > More at :  http://www.wildthymefarm.com/agrobamboo.html
> >
> >
> > --
> > Keith Johnson
> > Permaculture Activist Magazine
> > PO Box 1209
> > Black Mountain, NC 28711
> > (828)669-6336
> >
> > also Patterns for Abundance Design & Consulting
> > Culture's Edge at Earthaven Ecovillage
> > http://www.permacultureactivist.net
> > http://www.earthaven.org
> > http://www.bioregionalcongress.org



> All...
>
> Simon is the bamboo guru of Puget Sound.
> He's a Permaculture teacher of the first order.
> He was the master gardener of the Sun Bear Tribe for many years.
> He has Maori tattoos on his face.
> He's my best friend in the Permaculture community.
> I will miss him terribly.
>
> Will
>
>
> -- Will Carey, Director
> Center for Urban & Rural Ecology
> 32861 Lake Creek Drive
> Halsey, OR 97348
> cure@rtinet.com
> 541.369.2936



> > > Keith:
> > >
> > > Could you tell us a little about Simon, who he is and what he has done
> > > in the world of plants, permaculture and eco ag?
> > >
> > > Thanks,
> > >
> > > LL