permaculture

["Kathleen O'Brien Blair" <ktho@comcast.net>]

Okay - who are the "good" seed houses who could be told about this?
Territorial? One Green World? Who else? I've alerted the American
Heritage Breeds Conservancy. What about Paul Hawken?

I'll send e-mail to the NW Earth Institute and Salmon Nation up here.
And to Baker Creek seeds in Missouri. 

Who else can we think of?

Is there a way to set up a public but secure archive so that all letters
and communiqués in support to Kent & in protest to the Board from all
SSE members and interested parties can be posted there? The *volume* of
it can be shown to build up very very quickly and it keeps it public and
available so it can't just disappear into the ethers.

What about letters of protest to the Iowa Secretary of State's office
about the Board not operating properly under their not for profit law?

What about letters to the IRS asking them to audit both Johnny's Seeds
and SSE because of a conflict of interest between a for-profit and a
501c3? What about the possibility of excess and unjust enrichment to Amy
Goldman and others being contrary to 501c3?

What about letters to the FTC and Dept of Ag about the forcible takeover
by Johnny's? I know I know - but it *documents it*!

What about letters to - I dunno - is there a UN committee or office for
preservation of non-GMO and non-patented seed?

Many of the AmerIndian nations and/or members thereof have donated seed
to SSE seed bank -they surely would have an interest in this - those
particular seeds begin taken by Johnny's could constitute cultural rape.

Any possibility of getting people on the ground there with web cams and
picture phones to record and transmit comings and goings?

Isn't there a progressive community in Madison, WI that is close enough
to this to be eyes and ears?

All SSE members who routinely save seeds and share them through the
Yearbook need to immediately slap a Trademark and Patent Pending on the
seed they hold right this minute. That at least preserves an argument
for court if necessary in case Johhny's is moving quickly to sew up the
entire germplasm at SSE. And - it allows an immediate reconstitution of
the mission of SSE and a way to grab out and redistribute some of the
germplasm that is not currently held hostage in Decorah.

Kathleen

-----Original Message-----
From: permaculture-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:permaculture-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Lawrence F.
London, Jr.
Sent: Saturday, January 19, 2008 11:57 PM
To: permaculture; Sustainable Agriculture Network Discussion Group
Subject: [permaculture] Power grab at Seed Savers Exchange - Re: changes
at seed saver's exchange


See this URL for a digitized photocopy of Kent's letter:

http://www.mustangmods.com/ims/u/1016/1377/217012.pdf

> Johnathan Yelenick wrote:
> 
>>I am forwarding this from the Bioregional listserve.
>>This letter is hauntingly germane to recent discourse on this list.
>>Like, "politics has nothing to do with permaculture institutions and
>>activities".  I beg to differ.
>>
>>Anyway, anyone interested in the maintenance of Seed Saver's Exchange
>>should closely be paying attention to this.
>>
>>Warm Regards,
>>Johnathan Yelenick

>>----------------------------------------------------------------------
--

>>Many of you may be familiar with the work, buy garden seeds from or
even 
>>be members of Seed Saver's Exchange in Decorah Iowa.  You may have
heard 
>>Kent Whealy give one of his inspiring talks.  Here is a letter that
Kent 
>>sent out after he was fired.  It sounds pretty apalling.  It sounds
like 
>>this massive and amazing  seed bank may have fallen into the wrong 
>>hands.....one of the many perils of centralization.    The link to the

>>letter is below.   Dan'l B

>>http://www.mustangmods.com/ims/u/1016/1377/217012.pdf 
>><http://www.mustangmods.com/ims/u/1016/1377/217012.pdf>
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I note that the following are on the SSE board:

Amy Goldman
Neil Hamilton
Deborah Madison
Rob Johnson
Cary Fowler

Rob Johnson, Johnny's Seeds? if so I will never do business with them
again ...
Cary Fowler?  in he now in the pocket of agribiz?

Anyone know more about this?

Yes, there are a lot of people who care about Kent, his staff and his
work at the SSE
(he started SSE 32 year ago!)

Sal will say there is nothing surprising about this...

C'est impossible.

LL



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