permaculture

[Michael Pilarski <friendsofthetrees@yahoo.com>]

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Could I get your attention for a few minutes on the topic of
permaculture convergences…

 

I am looking for presenters for two events:

 

1) The Northwest Permaculture Convergence, October 5-7. Fort
Flagler, Puget Sound, Washington. http://www.northwestpermaculture.org

 

2) The Inland Northwest Permaculture Conference, November
9-11, Missoula Montana

http://inlandnorthwestpermaculture.com

 

Why am I putting this on the national permaculture
listserve? Because I think it is a good idea for permaculturists to
cross-pollinate across the regions. 
We should send representatives to other bioregions’ convergences to see
what they are up to.  

 

If anyone is interested in presenting at either of these
convergences please contact me.

 

Another reason people might want to attend convergences in
other regions is if they are considering moving. For instance if you are
thinking of moving to Montana or the Inland Northwest then it would be a
terrific idea for you to attend our regional convergence in Missoula.  You 
will get a chance to meet hundreds
of people from around the region and especially from Montana. 

 

Anyone interested in Cascadia (the Maritime Pacific
Northwest) should consider attending the Fort Flager convergence.  Similarly 
anyone interested in moving
to the Northeast US can attend the Northeast Permaculture Convergence, etc.  

 

I have organized and attended quite a few permaculture
convergences over the years, Mostly the Pacific Northwest region, but I also
attended three of the International Permaculture Convergences & Conferences
and an Australian National Convergence. I am thrilled whenever I hear of a new
regional permaculture convergence starting.  I feel that attending 
permaculture gatherings is one of the
most productive and meaningful activities we can engage in. Convergences are
places to share knowledge, information, inspiration, friendships, and
synthesis. Building the movement and the networks. We can all do more 
effective
work locally if we learn from our far-flung peers.  This is accomplished to 
some extent with the internet and
printed media like the “Permaculture Activist”; but there is nothing like
getting together in person with large numbers of permaculture folks in festive
convergences. 

 

I have spent some time researching this topic and my article

A HISTORY OF PERMACULTURE GATHERINGS HELD IN THE UNITED
STATES & CANADA can be read at:

http://inlandnorthwestpermaculture.com/articles

 

I have written before on the permaculture listserves about a
North American Permaculture Convergence. I reiterate my willingness to support
one, but my schedule does not allow me to propose anything at this time. 

 

Michael Pilarski, 

509-486-4056, Michael@friendsofthetrees.net
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Subject: [permaculture] Local Food Networks | Was: Dacha Movement: History
 and Effects In Russia
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On 8/7/2012 4:09 PM, Toby Hemenway wrote:

 >> While I'd love it if everyone gardened, a
 >> coordinated community food system
 >> is more resilient and allows more
 >> diversity than individual dachas, and fits better with American
 >> culture and land ownership patterns.

 > I think a coordinated local food system that networks
 > backyard and community gardens, CSAs, local farms and markets, and
 > even some commodity foods for as long as they exist (I'm not real
 > keen on raising all my grains) can generate a surplus that can help
 > feed those who aren't able, or for whom it makes no sense, like
 > skilled workers in critical roles, to grow their own.
>> While I'd love it if everyone gardened, a
>> coordinated community food system
>> is more resilient and allows more
>> diversity than individual dachas, and fits better with American
>> culture and land ownership patterns.

LL writes:

 > A computer/web/internet-based product
 > and services production, marketing and distribution network, PSPMDN.
 > could be created and made to work serving everyone participating,
 > no matter how small, as consumer or seller, barter, trade, donate,
 > have its own currency and be compatible and cooperative with the IRS.

Possibilities:

The idea of starting some sort of network that connects food producers
and consumers is interesting and could be worth pursuing.

I have thought through a food network concept that could work. It would
be very much like the traditional food coop. It could involve a variety
of currency types: money, coop credits (a type of currency), direct
exchange of goods between parties

It would be a roll-your-own, homebrew,
you-get-out-of-it-what-you-put-into-it kind of thing; I will elaborate
on this further.

The system would be made up of:
consumers, producers, workers and those supplying resources

It would be very much like the old food coops (remember the Community
Food Coop on West Rosemary St. in Chapel Hill at the Community Bookstore?)

It would be of, by and for the participants, serving their needs for
food and income.

Ideally it would allow the producers to spend their time growing produce
and not driving making deliveries. Producers would include:
backyard growers, those with proper kitchen making processed foods (kim
chee, kraut, baked goods, jam and other canned goods, vinegars and
obviously much more, cheese?, kombucha, artisinal goods), market
gardeners, market farmers, community garden members and those who are
willing to make bulk orders for foods then resell or barter portions to
those members of the network who are interested in such goods, rice,
flour, other grains, beans, seeds, garden seeds!, and much more (this is
pure food coop activity). Maybe we just need to start a food coop.

I came up with an idea for a national network, a products and services
production, marketing and distribution network made up of nodes as small
as one individual to national regional nodes made up of states or groups
or states which are made up of counties or groups of counties made up of
homes & homesteads > farms > hamlets > towns > cities > counties >
groups of counties. There are other ways of organizing groups of members
as components of the network, by trade or interest in special products,
i.e. cheese, eggs, kombucha. The range of products offered would include
food: produce, herbs, flowers, prepared goods, etc., manufactured goods:
Ex.: tools, clothes, furniture services: bookkeeping, web development,
legal medical services (massage, homeopathic, naturopathy, etc.),
writing, editing, photography, graphical arts, works of art and much
more. Livestock and meat products would require much more work,
management, inspections and certification but could be a possibility.
Cottage industry and work from home is the theme here.

So, you have the following member categories:

consumers, which would probably include all members

producers: growers of all types and producers of artisinal products,
resellers to coop members of goods bought outside the immediate network

workers: those who supply or borrow and use transportation to pick up
goods from producers and take them to some to-be-defined central point
or points; those who process collected goods, maintain the "warehouse"
facility and make as-needed deliveries, i.e. to network members without
transportation or as per prior arrangement; those who perform office
duties of all sorts

suppliers of resources: those resources might include a warehouse
facility (could be a garage, a house or a building), refrigeration
equipment (a walk-in cooler, portable coolers, refrigerators and
freezers), vehicles donated or loaned, office equipment, ISP DSL
accounts for access to email and the web for the network and more

I am thinking that it would be wise to include entire community gardens
or individual gardeners growing there

Currently it seems that we already have the following types of food
distribution services:

community food shuttles (I know of at least two but there are probably
more and they move an enormous amount of food each year, TRS & IFCFS,
food pantries, churchs that gather and donate food to the needy,
Gleaners, and food donations by Salvation Army type groups and more

farmers markets

local independent and coop grocers

direct sales by producers to individual customers, people or businesses
such as restaurants

CSA's and CoOp CSA's

marketing coops (I do not of any that are owned by growers)

privately owned or corporate marketing coops

produce brokers buying from local producers

on-farm sales

roadside stands and on-farm stands

pick-your-own operations

local independent grocers buying as much as is available from local
producers

subscription agriculture services: I know of one of these operating
mostly in the Triangle ares; they buy from farms across the state,
sending their refrigerated truck to pick up goods on site or within
reasonable driving distance from the farm. They package goods at their
warehouse and hand deliver to their customers

<>

I have forme3d a new discussion forum, hosted by ibiblio at UNC, Orange
Grapevine. I have added many fancy bells and whistles with forum
mirroring using great Google resources: groups, sites, blogger (blogs),
google docs and more. I was thinking that those of interested in local
sustainability and foodsheds, fertile crescent concept, food networks,
food security, local currencies and related subjects could use that
forum to carry on discussion.

Orange Grapevine
http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/orangegrapevine

"The Grapevine"

About the forum:
1) a place to post listings of farm and homestead-related items for
sale, wanted-to-buy, swap and barter or donate.
2) anything to do with local agriculture and permaculture, artisanal
production/cottage industry/crafts/woodworkig/metalworking
with an emphasis on locally made, locally grown

Intertwining threads of activity in Market Farming, Orcharding,
Vineyards, Home Food Production, Landscaping, Fruit and Vegetable
Growing and Breeding, Homesteading, Local Food Production and Permaculture.

And I would add that the primary focus is developing a community
food network. Discussion of such systems, coops, foodsheds and the
fertile crescent concept is also encouraged.

I have updating and reconfiguring to do to align it with
a food network orientation.