Getting Permaculture "out there"

["Marsha Hanzi" <hanzibra@svn.com.br>]

----- Original Message -----
From: Judith Hanna <jehanna@gn.apc.org>
To: permaculture <permaculture@franklin.oit.unc.edu>
Sent: Friday, June 09, 2000 7:35 PM
Subject: Re: Permaculture copyright


> Thanks Rick... who wrote...
>
> <<I want some better ideas on how to keep things positive; copyright won't
do
> it all, and being an example, doing the work- doesn't feel fast enough!


As is often pointed out in PC courses, people learn from various means, one
of which is being inspired by concrete examples.  But I have seen people's
lives change after seeing a video, talking to someone, reading a book,
participating in an event ( congress, course, etc.)... The first thing is to
change the paradigm, the way they see the world ( values etc.)  Second is to
give them the tools to do this with(Permaculture ( and other) techniques).
But third, we need to offer them places where they can get longer-term
hands-on experience ( traineeships), and we need to give them  regular
feedback in some way ( visitng them,  bringing them togther again ,
etc.)That's where the concrete on-the-ground examples are important.

In our process here in Brazil,  I have seen how ideas get sown into the
consciousness of the man-on-the-street.  When I arrived here 23 years ago,
no-one even knew where Amazon IS, much less worry about it.  Today , even
an unlettered street cleaner knows that it is  wrong to deforestate, it has
become common knowledge.

At this precise moment in time the consequent  idea, that there are other
forms of producing food ( organic, PC, biodynamic, etc.), other than the
destructive chemical/deforestation way has come into common consciousness,
and  organic fairs are popping up around the country. This is the net result
of many bits of information of the most varied type, including our
Permaculture courses . Proof of this is that a recent talk about organic
farming drew a paying crowd of 500 people...

So there is a definite need to "plant the idea" in as many varied ways as
possible ( Max Lindegger told us that a person has to see it seven times
before it registers...) but once it is there, the on-the-ground experiences
are fundamental for the next step, when people need to get deeper into the
subtleties of working with  live systems.

Marsha