Systems and their various and immense problems have been on my mind for a long time… I’ve been frustrated and disgusted with capitalism and, often, angry that I have to exist and be a part of it– that I routinely contribute to it! I’ve been told, often, that I need to work within it, I need to play the system, that I need to find the good and worth in it. Why? Why do we have to hold onto capitalism and re-mold it into another form? Is there not another way, a different system? Why can’t we tear it down??
I have no good answers and I’m frustrated and full of introspection and self doubt as I write this post. But this longing for a different way of seeing and living led me to seek out an internship at Songaia and to learn about permaculture methodology. I just finished my second week in my internship and I’m still grasping the basic principles and ethics of permaculture. The first week at Songaia we had a workshop on liberation permaculture and at the end of that week we had the privilege of hearing Pandora Thomas speak, a maven in the permaculture movement. This past week we were able to learn about the basic principles and ethics from Matt Powers and then at the end of the week I was inundated with information on systems thinking from Faith Addicott, our week’s guest speaker at Evergreen. Phew. This is my first post on the topic of permaculture and my exploration of it, and my hope is to continue to post about it as my understanding deepens.
For me, permaculture, could be that different way of seeing– an existence system outside of capitalism. There are so many systemic problems within our current systems and most of them are so interconnected and enmeshed– systemic racism, privatised prisons (the prison system in general), healthcare, homelessness, poverty, climate destruction, food security, and the list could go on… Permaculture is a way reconnecting to the earth, to ourselves, and to each other. It's about leaving a footprint, but a good footprint and not a carbon one. I think permaculture could be connected and used within all of these flawed systems. I feel like I’m still looking at everything through a capitalistic lens and I haven’t begin to explain anything really but I’m going to end this post with sharing three books that I have discovered this week from others. These are not all on permaculture specifically, but books that explore different ways of seeing and existing:
I have no good answers and I’m frustrated and full of introspection and self doubt as I write this post. But this longing for a different way of seeing and living led me to seek out an internship at Songaia and to learn about permaculture methodology. I just finished my second week in my internship and I’m still grasping the basic principles and ethics of permaculture. The first week at Songaia we had a workshop on liberation permaculture and at the end of that week we had the privilege of hearing Pandora Thomas speak, a maven in the permaculture movement. This past week we were able to learn about the basic principles and ethics from Matt Powers and then at the end of the week I was inundated with information on systems thinking from Faith Addicott, our week’s guest speaker at Evergreen. Phew. This is my first post on the topic of permaculture and my exploration of it, and my hope is to continue to post about it as my understanding deepens.
For me, permaculture, could be that different way of seeing– an existence system outside of capitalism. There are so many systemic problems within our current systems and most of them are so interconnected and enmeshed– systemic racism, privatised prisons (the prison system in general), healthcare, homelessness, poverty, climate destruction, food security, and the list could go on… Permaculture is a way reconnecting to the earth, to ourselves, and to each other. It's about leaving a footprint, but a good footprint and not a carbon one. I think permaculture could be connected and used within all of these flawed systems. I feel like I’m still looking at everything through a capitalistic lens and I haven’t begin to explain anything really but I’m going to end this post with sharing three books that I have discovered this week from others. These are not all on permaculture specifically, but books that explore different ways of seeing and existing:
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