permaculture

[Wesley Roe and Santa Barbara Permaculture Network <lakinroe@silcom.com>]

FORWARDED FROM DAVE JACKE

Hello friends! 

We hope this message finds you fulfilled and healthy after a 
wonderful summer/autumn.  I'm writing because Mark Krawczyk and I 
have begun writing what will be, to our knowledge, the first North 
American manual on coppice agroforestry, and we have two favors to 
ask of you.  

For those of you who don't know, coppicing is a traditional forest 
management practice where deciduous trees get cut during dormancy and 
then regrow from the stump.  We can later harvest these sprouts to 
make crafts, fuel, fodder for livestock, and many other useful 
products. Though humans have coppiced for over 6,000 years, no 
comprehensive resource exists that describes coppice system design, 
management, and establishment for our continent, well-suited North 
American species and projected yields, and the economics of coppice 
systems.  It's a big gap to fill and we're eager to fill it as best 
we can! 

We're already well underway, writing, researching, and building 
connections and a portfolio of case studies.  Mark will travel to the 
west coast and Midwest this December to learn more about how folks 
have been using coppice there.  Dave has begun combing the literature 
for any and all existing research on the subject so we can 
consolidate what researchers know.  He is also building a database of 
species and their coppicing characteristics.  We hope to complete our 
first draft by winter's end. 

The first favor: while we've contacted publishers about this project 
(and they are interested), we've elected to self-fund our manuscript 
development.  We ask you, our friends, colleagues, students and 
supporters, to help make it happen by engaging in our Kickstarter 
campaign.  If you're not familiar with it, this wonderful web-based 
service enables folks to financially support creative projects in 
return for various creative rewards and a connection to the project's 
creative process.  Like Community Supported Agriculture, this 
Community Supported Authoring structure helps us maintain our 
financial viability while we create a resource the permaculture 
community needs. Even small amounts-$5 and $10 offerings-will help us 
achieve and pass our $5,000 goal so we can travel to interview and 
photograph practitioners, acquire resources from overseas, and cover 
at least some of our living expenses while we work.  Check out the 
write-up, video, and rewards on our campaign page at:

<http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/coppiceagroforestry/dave-and-mark-write-a-coppice-agroforestry-book>http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/coppiceagroforestry/dave-and-mark-write-a-coppice-agroforestry-book.

The second favor: if you or someone you know already uses coppicing 
as a way to produce crafts, biochar, animal fodder, or other 
products, we would LOVE to hear about it.  Please send the person's 
contact information to both of us at the email addresses above. 
Also, if you have or know of any written materials, research papers, 
or references, we'd also love to hear about those.  You can send 
references to Dave 
at <mailto:davej@edibleforestgardens.com>davej@edibleforestgardens.com or 
at 308 Main St. #2C, Greenfield, MA 01301.

We feel grateful for whatever support you can provide (moral and 
otherwise) and will deeply appreciate you passing this email along to 
friends, listservs, and networks that may also be interested in 
helping support our work.  (I guess that makes three favors!  Thanks! 
:-)

With sincere thanks,

Mark and Dave

-------------
Dave Jacke
Dynamics Ecological Design
308 Main St. #2C * Greenfield, MA * 01301
603-831-1298 
* <mailto:davej@edibleforestgardens.com>davej@edibleforestgardens.com

Visit <http://www.edibleforestgardens.com/>www.edibleforestgardens.com for 
information on or to purchase my award-wining two-volume book, Edible 
Forest Gardens.

Mark Krawczyk and I are now writing a new book on Coppice 
Agroforestry!  Find out more and support our effort at 
<http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/coppiceagroforestry/dave-and-mark-write-a-coppice-agroforestry-book>http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/coppiceagroforestry/dave-and-mark-write-a-coppice-agroforestry-book.

It is not the strongest species that survives,
nor the most intelligent,
but the one most responsive to change.
   Charles Darwin