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Me vs We
30 Jan2012
This article is from an email received from Scott (Five Streams Community)
http://www.fivestreams.co.za
Imagine two intersecting circles. The left circle represents “me” and right circle represents “we”. A community must have these two components.
Firstly, it requires that each family have the ability to be totally independent if they choose. This is the “me” circle. In the Ringing Cedars books, Anastasia advises that each family have a domain that is 1ha in size. Although we do not specifically follow Anastasia’s principles at Five Streams, we happily adopt this concept. Put simply, the idea of 1ha domains is sheer genius. 1ha is just big enough for a family to grow their own food, have a house or two, and not have to talk to anyone if they do not want to. But… it is also just small enough to allow community to develop naturally. You can walk to your neighbours, share with them and commune with them without having to pay toll fees.
On the other hand the “we” component is what is created on the shared space (the space not taken by domains). On Five Streams, we have a full time farm manager, Sid, who manages a team of staff, and it is their job to maintain the main house and equipment, develop the land, grow vegetables and fruit trees, look after the animals, etc. This is the right hand circle, the “we” and nobody is under any obligation to get involved. The “we” circle is NOT community. It is what is happening on the land that facilitates community. This is very hard for many people to grasp. Apart from the above undertaken by Sid and his staff, the “we” also includes building our pyramid, our labyrinth, the walks and turning the main house into a community centre. It includes all those real and tangible things that are developed for the community to use, but it is not the true essence of community.
- In: Community
- Tags: communities, community, me vs we, sustainable
100% Bio-Organic farming methods course
6 Dec2011
Unbelievable results, minimal inputs
When: 3 – 5 January 2012
Three day courses at Doornlaagte, Rustenburg, North West, South Africa.
These courses will run weekly up until April 2012.
Cost: R6,800 per person
Food & accommodation included or adapted if staying nearby. Max. 6 persons per course.
BIO-ORGANICS
By Nico Snyman. B.Sc.Agric. (Agron) Pret. Cell: (071) 547-9814
Nico & Texas Grano onions. It was the 5th consecutive trial where the soil is now fertile enough that it does not need Bio-Muthi for the time being, only raw material for food for the organisms.
The image on the right: a single onion was placed on a side plate with 18cm diameter. These onions are too big for the market, but sweet and tasty. We donated 10 to the church fair where they fetched R4-00 each.
- In: Soils|Workshops
- Tags: Bio-organic Farming Methods Course
The Secret Life of Plants
15 Nov2011
If there is one book you should read as soon as you can, this is it. Your outlook on the plant world will be forever changed. Prepare to be amazed.
You can get the book from Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Life-Plants-Peter-Tompkins/dp/0060915870
- In: Recommended books
- Tags: The Secret Life of Plants
The Story of Stuff
12 Oct2011
A real eye opener – our addiction to acquiring, using and discarding stuff and the effects it has on us as well as the planet.
- In: Education
- Tags: consumerism
Kalala Karumba Aaron
Par la Présente, nous voudrions vous informer sur la pollution en cours par les pécheurs non informés sur le Lac Tanganyika; et plus particulièrement à Uvira.
Nous voudrions par votre autorisation, les sensibiliser puis les interdire sur la pratique des filets maillants ayant des produits chimiques toxiques dangereux pour la vie des poissons, d’autres êtres vivants et des personnes.
Permaculture défend la pratique des produits chimiques dans l’agriculture pour éviter des graves conséquences socioéconomiques et environementales.
A tous les membres des GEN-Permaculture Congo, vos commentaires sont bien venus.
Permaculture & Plan Africa DRC
By Niki Neave
When the question came up, “How could permaculture be applied on a commercial scale successfully?” it led to an amazing opportunity to meet up with Nico Snyman, a long time South African farmer, and his wife Janie, who are using soil organisms to rehabilitate polluted and damaged soils.
Nico & Texas Grano onions. It was the 5th consecutive trial where the soil is now fertile enough that it does not need GROW AGRA for the time being, only raw material for food for the organisms. The image on the right: a single onion was placed on a side plate with 18cm diameter. These onions are too big for the market, but sweet and tasty. We donated 10 to the church fair where they fetched R4-00 each.
- In: Soils|Sustainable farming
- Tags: EMs, soils
Permaculture Educational Posters by Afristar
31 Aug2011
The Afristar Foundation permaculture educational poster series to educate children, the youth and communities around South Africa on specific aspects of sustainable livelihoods, food production, greening and land care.
The posters all have the same look and feel and link to the permaculture curriculum to serve as educational resources for teachers wishing to establish “Outdoor Classrooms” and for communities wishing to establish viable organic gardening and food production programmes.
See more on Urban Sprout’s site for a great article about the posters:
http://www.urbansprout.co.za/awesome_permaculture_poster_series_by_afristar
See images of the posters here on Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/
To get your posters, please contact Nick at: nic@afristar.org.za
http://www.afristar.org.za
- In: Education
- Tags: Afristar, educational permculture, permaculture posters
We are writing to see if anyone on this network has links to people or organisations that may be interested in setting up or be involved with a group setting up sustainable schools in Tanzania.
Agricultural education is widely accepted as a vital part of economic development particularly for countries with high rural populations. A major problem is that low-income countries just don’t have the money to provide such education free to all those that could benefit from it, or the quality of the education is poor. This has given rise to the development of schools that pay for themselves – self-sufficient farm schools.
Afristar Foundation just received the last copies of the Earth User’s Guide To Permaculture: Teacher’s Notes by Rosemary Morrow. This book is now out of print. We have 28 copies to distribute to African Permaculturists.
The book costs R230 excluding postage.
Please contact nic@afristar.org.za if you would like to order a copy.
This book is designed as a guide to the internationally recognized 72 hour course that qualifies students as Permaculture Design Consultants as set down by the Permaculture Institute.
It provides an enormous amount of detail as it leads step by step through a recommended course structure. However, the teacher should take a flexible approach and adapt the course content to the specific conditions of the local bio region. With advice on teaching aids, topics for class discussion, extensive reading lists and tips on teaching adults, this book is bound to be an invaluable friend to the experienced and novice teacher alike.
ISBN 9780864178008
Binding: Paperback
Pages:160
Dimensions:280 x 210 mm
Released:01/03/1997
- In: Permaculture
- Tags: guides, permaculture books
Dr Michael Rudolph and Mandla Tshabalala talk about permaculture and the Siyakhana project at TEDx and on the programme, ‘Lunch Box’.
The Siyakhana Permaculture Food Garden on Lunch Box
- In: Permaculture
- Tags: permaculture, Siyakhana