permaculture

[Erin Schey <erinschey@gmail.com>]

Here's a book review (just published in the Redwood Coast Review, winter
issue, pages 8-9) that I wrote for Andy Couturier's book, A Different Kind
of Luxury, an amazing account of 11 Japanese people living simple,
resilient  lives in rural Japan. A fascinating book and a must-read for any
permie.

http://www.stephenkessler.com/rcr.html

A quote from the review:
"Many of these folks present an organic understanding of their own
relationship to and values regarding the natural world (an understanding
which many westerners are only now discovering through the modern
permaculture and sustainability movements).  This book left me intensely
curious as to the diversity of living examples of resilient modern life
that Japanese communities and individuals may provide to the rest of the
world. As a nation with a living memory of both urban and rural sustainable
culture (Edo Period Tokyo was a fully regenerative and sustainable city of
over one million people), Japan may offer the most relevant examples of how
over-developed nations can begin post-industrial, post-carbon renewal.
 Certainly,
Couturier’s work moves us in a new direction and is not just a call to
revert to some traditional ideal. As Astuko Watanabe, one of the
interviewees, asserts, “I am not a traditional person. I am just a woman
living a simple life in the mountains.  That’s all.” "

Warm regards,

Erin Schey
Facilitator and Instructor
Lyons Permaculture Design Course
http://www.lyonspdc.com/