permaculture

["Felicity Wright" <flickwright@ozemail.com.au>]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Rebecca Joyce" <rcj22003@yahoo.com>
To: "permaculture" <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>



> Sorry, but I don't believe this topic is related to permaculture...

I get bored to tears by some of the threads on this list - especially
political ones - and quite often delete whole threads, but that doesn't mean 
I don't think they are somehow related to permaculture. For some reason this 
racism one - and denial of it being an issue related to permaculture (or 
denying that it's an issue full stop) - really hooks me. Probably because 
for me it violates two of the
core foundations of permaculture - the ETHICS: "Care of  People." and "A
Fair Share" that form the ethical base along with "Care of the Earth".

Why do we (or some among us) bother attempting to be, or calling ourselves,
'permaculturists' when we can be so cavalier about or completely disregard 
caring for people?
I thought it was a fundamental (that's why we have ethics) ... if we are not 
going to care about people
and acknowledge and work out how to address the inherent, pervasive and 
global injustices and prejudices
against some cultures and races (and the advantages many of us inherit due
to the luck of our birth as white and middle class) - what's the point of
this Brave New Permaculture World we are trying to foist on everyone?. Is it 
a just a coincidence that the wealthiest, most resource guzzling countries 
(the ones causing the majority of this global crisis who then turned around 
and promoted/sold their 'lifestyle' to other countries like China to 
stimulate economic growth on this planet) happen to be white? Is that a fair 
share?

Which bits of permaculture philosphies and principles and activities do we
conveniently discard when they don't suit us and which one's are the bits we
like and keep? Let's talk swales, obtain a yield, animals, carbon 
sequestration,  herb spirals, observe and interact, eco-building design, 
keylines.... but let's also flame others and/or tell them their reality (of 
racism, prejudice, disadvantage) is irrelevant and a non-issue?

Last October I participated in the Advanced Permaculture Principles Course
with David Holmgren and Su Dennett in Victoria, Australia. It was three days
of information, conversation, stimulation, and challenge. It was bloody hard
work, and very confronting at times. To paraphrase my kids, it was
"awesome". I was deeply appreciative of being able to do it.

One of the last activities was the future scenario planning - looking at
peak oil and decline intersecting with climate change. We got into groups.
Unfortunately I was in the "worst" scenario group (there were four) - and it 
was scary for two
reasons a) because of what we are potentially faced with and b) because of
the way the group struggled as humans to work through the scenario. There
were about 7 of us. Never was it clearer that every last one of us carries
cultural baggage (even a nice bunch of well-meaning permaculturists) -
whether it is ethnocentricism, sexism, racism, ageism or whatever - and it
will come to the fore as times get harder. In our group we found big lines 
of division and tension
forming around some fundamental stuff about how we viewed the world and how
we valued or respected humans within that world - that were related to our 
class, gender and RACE. To try and keep us on track, the tools we used were 
the permaculture ethics and principles .. as a compass through the fear and 
uncertainty.

Faced with our current situation and the need to make decisions in the 
future, we need to be able to work together with coopertion and respect 
and - if we
sincerely believe in this permaculture stuff-  that means 'Caring for
People'. If we are not going to care for people I reckon we're gonna be
f*#*%^d! It's kinda basic really.

flick

PS: This response actually took quite a bit of thought, Lawrence. So does 
that mean it IS permaculture?