[Pil-pc-oceania] Fwd: IPC8 - 2. Who came - surprises and expectation: was it just a junket?

[Rosemary Morrow]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Rosemary Morrow <rowe at lisp.com.au>
> Date: 25 August 2007 6:02:38 PM
> To: pil-pc-oceania at lists.permacultureinternational.org
> Cc: Pat Rayner <bmpermac at iinet.net.au>
> Subject: Re: IPC8 - 2.  Who came - surprises and expectation: was  
> it just a junket?
>
>
> IPC8 was a stimulating mix of people.    It worked well because of  
> the people balance.    There were a few oldies and I found myself  
> among the "permaculture elders" and was treated with great respect  
> which was so good I felt quite sad to be home and not selected to  
> be as an honourable icon.
>
> The importance of the older people, who included Tony Andersen and  
> Declan Kennedy, were that they carried the international  
> permaculture memory - who was there and what was accomplished and  
> Bill and Davis's contributions.  Robyn Francis was an important  
> part of this discussion.  They spoke, often informally in small  
> gatherings, the story of permaculture as it was first taught  
> internationally by Bill and later David, then the teams and  
> individuals from Australia and USA particularly - where they went  
> and the impact of this teaching.   They remember what was discussed  
> in the IPC fora over the years.
>
> There were many, many young Brazilians who would break into dance  
> at the tap of a drum.   They were thrilled with the conference and  
> many, after the Conference, hitched and begged rides and turned up  
> at Perenoplis for the convergence.  Their chief qualities were huge  
> enthusiasm for permaculture and curiousity to talk to others - from  
> other countries and to make contact with the "permaculture seniors'  
> to find out about the history and present directions of  
> permaculture.  They were dedicated and fun and fired up to change  
> the world.
>
> Daily you could see older participants giving time and  
> consideration to younger ones who often said they didnt know where  
> to start.    In hindsight, it would have been valuable to offer  
> pairing older permies with younger ones as a type of mentoring..    
> A few younger ones said they hadn't dared to approach some of the  
> more celebrated seniors.    They didn't want to invent the wheel -  
> they wanted to start -immediately.  They wanted to know how to  
> start teaching, and where, whether to work in the city or rural  
> areas, and all the issues that perplex new permies.
>
> The permies from India, Nepal, Cambodia and African countries had a  
> similar approach.   They are dedicated and very serious about  
> permaculture as being absolutely fundamental to present and future  
> survival of their farmers.   Narsanna asked us at the Conference,   
> in some anguish,  what we can do about the growing numbers of the  
> world's  landless poor? (in his case India's)   I think it is a  
> reflextion of our lack of real experience of this that we had no  
> answers for him.   The world's landless poor people are likely to  
> become a much bigger problem as countries become more urban than  
> rural.   This question seriously exercises me and I'd be glad to  
> talk with others who have thought about it.  This group of  
> participants spoke often about their gratitude in being able to  
> attend IPC8.   They dug out people they had wanted to speak with.    
> They asked questions and gave compelling presentations on their  
> work in their own countries.   For many participants  it was a  
> superb opportunity to exchange experiences and evaluate themselves  
> and their programs with others in the same situation.
>
> Those of you who contributed to the bursaries for these  
> participants - it broke their isolation, helped professional  
> exchange and centred them as doing probably the most valuable work  
> of all the participants.
>
> The Africans and the Asians had, as we had coincidentally done in  
> Viet Nam and Cambodia, made it a condition of permaculture courses  
> that each participant return home and teach one or more others.    
> They often need only small funds to do big and effective work.    
> Narsanna is one of these.
>
> The participants from USA, Australia and Europe were, on the whole,  
> more concerned with certification.   They want permaculture as  
> mainstream and to share knowledge and research worldwide.   They  
> presented different ways of conferring diplomas and other recognition.
> They spoke for Gaia University,  the Chaordic Institute and TAFE  
> and university level grades and their equivalence.   They had the  
> ecovillage and the ecocentres.     I'd like to write about this  
> later - especially the process set out by the Nordic Papers.
>
> Of critical importance was the accomplishments of permaculture in  
> Cuba.   We were all thrilled and inspired by what the Cubans took  
> on from the small team from Australia.   The Cubans were proud,  
> others convinced and the rest of us probably all wanted results  
> like that.
>
> Cuba will probably host an National permaculture conference next  
> year and invite people from tropical wet and dry regions, and it  
> will be especially important for towns and cities in the tropics.    
> Robin Francis is following this.
>
> Importance of a cultural mix
> 1.    The young are anxious to talk to and to learn from their  
> elders?    How can we facilitate this more where we live?
> 2.    Should we focus on extending our influence throughout our  
> neighbourhoods and councils - should a condition of learning  
> permaculture be to teach others on return home?    What would  
> happen if our farmers did this?
> 3.    How can we support our permaculture colleagues better in  
> African and Asian continents?
> 4.    What are our biggest successes from the viewpoint of impact?
>
> What other questions occurred to you about "who came"?
>
>
>
>
>

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