30 May, 2018 | Remembering Bill in Print
The Lost Stories are Bill Mollison’s articles published in the print magazine originally named Permaculture, then International Permaculture Journal and finally the Permaculture International Journal that was published between 1978 and 2000.
All stories and other content ©Permaculture Australia unless otherwise noted.
Story by Bill Mollison, 1987. Edition 26.
Feature photo: Bill and Lisa Mollison, Australasian Permaculture Convergence 9, Sydney, 2009.
©Russ Grayson 2009 https://pacific-edge.info
Published as an article in World visions… and realities
A KEY DISCUSSION PAPERÂ has just appeared, authored by Marc Nerfin for the IFDA Dossier (International Foundation for Development Alternatives.
It is called Neither Prince nor Merchant: Citizen, and probably predicates a new and long-felt movement towards a single global body representing ethical associations, not governments nor corporations.
Nerfin gives references and notes on the extremely targe number and wide-ranging concerns of modern associations and groups (non-governmental organizations). He notes that by 1981 France had 300,000-500,000 associations, forming up at the rate of 100 per day!
People who join or form associations subscribe to a common aim, ethic or project, and increasingly these associations are being formed to carry out a specific role or job in relation to environmental and human concerns at a local, continental or global level. There are large dictionaries of such groups, no doubt incomplete or out of-date even as they are published.
It has long been evident that if ethical groups could combine to direct their financial and consumer power they would be the largest unified world body in history. For while the ‘moral majority’ is a fiction of right-wing politicians, the ethical majority is a reality countable by the memberships of ethical associations.
Small nations
Such associations are, in fact, small nations of peoples who subscribe to common objectives. We can only define a ‘nation’ by some common factor, irrespective of place of residence (as for the Sikh Nation, the Shoshone Nation, Jewish peoples, and so on).
If we are to support our own world body — and even an annual $100 from such groups as the permaculture and Earthbank associations would probably pay for an effective international registry and journal — we would need to define a clear project area and function for such a body.
It is certainly important for us to count our numbers and to see how many of us there are. Thus, to record, census, convene and to collate a global policy paper to guide all groups in their action would be an admirable first aim.
To set a true united body up needs an early agreement on basic ethics. Minimal ethics today, in global terms, would be about as follows:
- Earthcare ethics
- groups and associations devoted to conservation, rehabilitation, protection and defense of the world’s natural, biological, atmospheric, water and soil environments.
2. Peoplecare ethics
- Groups and associations devoted to the accountability of corporations, opposed to torture, terrorism and repression; supporting equal rights and representation, defending minority rights and caring for a defined group of disadvantaged people, health and peace etc.
3. Investment ethics
- groups and associations ‘putting their money where their mouth is’ — associations for ethical investment, the redirection of money and resources from aggression and unethical enterprises, the application of social, environmental and fiscal audits and accounting to all enterprises, the establishment of trusts, charities and active projects; investment of human effort, resources, and capital towards all three ethics stated.
If any group feels no conflict in subscribing to the above broad ethical base, or at present have formed to act in one or other part of such an ethic, then they belong to or would be eligible for membership in such a body. Almost all governments would be excluded on the basis of ‘no common ethic’, torture, repression of minorities, non-accountability or devotion of resources to war, as would terrorist groups and exploitive industries or corporations and their members.
I would guess that within the next few years, again by co-evolution — an idea whose time has come — such a body will be put in place by a group or association formed to do just that. Even six to eight people could manage such a service to ethical associations.
All of us could then subscribe to a more detailed ethic in the areas of our interest and set the stage for the replacement of governments and corporations by a global association of small groups, trusts and charities devoted to beneficial projects.
The main role of governments to date has been to create monstrous bureaucracies, armies and secret services. None of these are needed by the world.
30 Jan, 2018 | Remembering Bill in Print
The Lost Stories are Bill Mollison’s articles published in the print magazine originally named Permaculture, then International Permaculture Journal and finally the Permaculture International Journal that was published between 1978 and 2000.
All stories and other content ©Permaculture Australia unless otherwise noted.
Story by Bill Mollison, 1980. Autumn Edition.
WELL, things at Tagari are starting to get a little hectic, but nevertheless exciting developments are taking place.
First of all, Permaculture Two‘s printing costs are virtually paid off so now we can expect some money back to put into developmental work.
Workshop helps develop a permaculture network
Back in the middle of January we held a consultant designers’ workshop to which 18 people came from all over Australia.
These people — among them architects, an Aboriginal community worker, a botanist, a design draughtsman, a landscape designer, a horticulturist — will become franchised permaculture design consultants around Australia, having completed the course and after submitting a number of design reports.
This is a further step in setting up an Australia-wide network of permaculture association members, regional permaculture groups, regional permaculture consultant designers (listed below), communities, alternative groups and interested people in order to foster information and resource sharing.
Bill Mollison is writing a pamphlet about this concept and its benefits for all which you will see within the next three months or so.
Short-term plans
We are holding a set of one week courses in April in Stanley for people who want to design their own property, for nurserymen or gardeners seeking contracts to build or supply permaculture plantings (advertised elsewhere in this issue).
Bill M, a group of Tagari communards and associates from around Australia are heading off to the USA in May for about three months to begin spreading the word as well as initiating a network over there by franchising designers contacted and interested and like-minded groups, and selling the books, quarterly subscriptions and some hardware. The feedback from this trip should be incredible.
On the way, Bill is doing a consultancy job in Hawaii for an island leper community. There is a possible broadscale design job in north India on the books too.
So, permaculture is spreading internationally.
Compiling the standard designs
The standard designs written of in Permaculture Two are now being put together for printing (with additional standards), the preliminary catalogue of which is printed opposite and will be available, finally, within three months from Tagari.
Also the Species Index written of in Permaculture Two is being worked up and will take quite a time to come together because its production entails a lot of methodical research and collation. We’ll keep you in touch by way of this magazine.
Much happening at Tagari
So, as you can see there is a lot happening apart from the building of a visitors’ centre, running a community, gardening, work on ‘the swamp’ etc.) at Tagari.
Consequently, with all this work and having come through a financially tight period we are looking for more members (we haven’t really stopped). At this stage looking for adaptable singles or young couples or older families who can afford to accommodate themselves. Tagari is a total commitment community with a minimum probationary period of three months.
For more information contact ‘The Gate’, Tagari Community, PO Box 96, Stanley Tasmania, 7331.
Permaculture consultancy
The Permaculture Consultancy services include:
- urban, small  and broadacre country permaculture design (involving total self-reliance design in energy, food, water, fire control, commercial enterprises, etc. and includes a species documented and diagrammed report)
- town/village siting and services design
- low-energy housing and structures design (‘The Permaculture House’Â etc).
Fees are $300 minimum (covering transport, on-site consultation and report production). Fees, or similar, will be negotiated with unemployed groups disadvantaged groups, Aboriginal groups, etc.
Low-energy housing and structures design has a separate fee scale with prices on application.
Head office covering at present Tasmania, Victoria, large contracts, overseas contracts and low-energy structures design, at P.O. Box 96, Stanley, Tasmania, Australia, 7331. (004) 58-1142.
Consultants:
- Simon Fell
- Andrew Jeeves
- Ted Lament
- Bill Mollison
- Earl Saxon.
And at 15 Niagara Lane, Melbourne, Victoria 3000. (03) 602-3624 (Low-Energy Structures Design).
Consultants:
- Denis Sweetnam
- Jenny Bolwelt.
Regional Consultants:
- Western Australia – 102 Holland St, Freemantle.
Ginger Gordy, Kirsten Beggs.
- South Australia – 26 Buller St, Prospect, 5082.
Doug Swanson, John Fargher and David Blewett.
- Queensland – 56 Isabella Avenue, Nambour.
Max Lindegger, Bill Peak.
- Rainbow Region – Rolands Creek Road, Uki. 2484.
Bob Roe, John Palmer.
- NSW – 12 Mansfield Road, Galston 2154.
Ruby Kynast. John Llewellyn.
- ACT – 12 Greenaway Street, Turner, 2601.
Judith Turtev, David Watson.
Please send all correspondence to Permaculture Consultancy at the above addresses.
A further consultants’ franchising course is planned for October 1980. People are particularly sought for northern Queensland, Kimberleys and Top End, Pilbara and Goldfields WA and western NSW and Queensland.
Preliminary design catalog for the alternative nation
The Permaculture Consultancy Head Office, PO Box 96, Stanley, 7331, Tasmania, Australia is the design repository of the alternative nation, which means that they receive, edit, publish, mail order and wholesale any sort of design for the alternative nation (network), and at six-monthly intervals pay royalties of 15 percent to the authors, as a proportion of the retail price.
The consultancy prices each design, taking the advice of the author in this but having the final say on pricing as large-volume sales will mean price reductions and designs will therefore become cheaper as they are more in demand — sort of a self-pricing system.
Designs are standardized to A4 size and may be supplied punched or unpunched on a 4-post folder system. Folders can be bought from the consultancy, spine and front printed Permaculture Consultancy Standard Designs. Hand punches and 5-cut index sheets (packs of 10) can also be supplied. All these things can be bought at good stationery suppliers.
Kits and booklets are also supplied for specific areas and some of these may be handled on a retail basis only.
For some designs (eg. houses, boats and complex structures), a set of full-scale drawings are also available (at higher prices). Good books on specific design areas are retailed by mail order and entered into the general catalogue.
At long intervals (2-5 years) it is proposed to collapse all designs into a single volume publication and then to recommence new standard sheets. Microfiche and other condensed storage may later be available.
We appeal to any person with expertise to submit designs to the catalogue. Criteria are that they:
- are harmless to the environment
- use minimal energy or better, produce energy
- are clear, plain and well draughted
- are well-specified as to materials and usage.
We can draught for designers to a limited extent but prefer to receive A4 size sketches of good quality, with type written or clear handwritten copy.
A study of the preliminary catalogue will show that our designs and kits cover a wide range of alternative needs and will extend a lot further with time.
Code/Standard Design/Price($)
- A1 Tomato/Asparagus Polycutture $4
- A2 Culinary Herb Spiral $4
- A3 Home Production ot Potatoes $4
- D1 Complete List of Poultry Forage Species $6
- D2 Collecting Water from Rock Dome Seepage $6
- D3 Cattle Forage Species $6
- D4 Pig Forage Species $6
- D5 Sea Coast Species for Salt, Wind Resistance $6
Entrepreneurial Designs and Kits
- E1 How to Publish and Export Books (Australia) $20
- E2 How to Run a Festival Without Losing Money $20
- E3 How to Start and Run a Community $20
- E4 Criteria for Starting and Financial Enterprise $$6
- E5 How to Run a Trust (retail only) $40
- L1 Rock Dome Planting $4
- L2 Tidal Flats Ponds $4
- L3 Flatland dam and House Site $5
- M1 Farm Link $4
- M2 Wayside Marketing $4
- M3 Self-pick Sales $4
- P1 Mosquito Control $4
- P2 Blackberry Control $4
- P3 Fox Predation prevention $4
- P4 Planting in the Presence of Rabbits $4
- P5 Traps: 1-Rabbits $2; 2-Government Sparrow
- Trap $2; 3-Blowfly $2
- S1 Trellis Structures and Planting, Sun Traps $4
- S2 Collecting Water $4
- S3 Shade House (documented) $8
- S4 Attached Glasshouse (documented) $8
- S5 Flatland House Designs with Dam (and variations) P.O.A.
- T1 Pruning in Permaculture $4
- T2 Domestic Sewage Disposal $4
- T3 Community Sewage Disposal $7
- T4 Planting on Broactscale $4
- T5 Uses for Tyres $4
- T6 Fuel Production from Plants: 1-Alcohol Distillation Design Layout $8; 2-Diesel Oil Seed Processing $8.
- U1 Contact Cropping in Neighbourhoods $5
- U2 Dispersed Tree Crop with Contract Sates $5
- U3 Dispersed Livestock With Contract Sales $5
- U4 Types of Public Allotments $5
- U5 Urban City Farm Development $8
30 Jan, 2018 | Remembering Bill in Print
The Lost Stories are Bill Mollison’s articles published in the print magazine originally named Permaculture, then International Permaculture Journal and finally the Permaculture International Journal that was published between 1978 and 2000.
All stories and other content ©Permaculture Australia unless otherwise noted.autumn
Story by Bill Mollison, 1980, Â Autumn Edition.
There are now enough of us (the alternative society) with enough talents and land to link-up throughout Australia.
Already, we have set up an Australiawide (and NZ) distribution network through which we can distribute books and goods, seeds and manufactures.
Now after many group discussions we can isolate skills, needs and opportunities. Permaculture people are more or less one large, hard-working community.
What is proposed is:
Gene pools
Gene pools of plants and animals in each main climatic area, possible as a linked institute.
We have some 300 species at Stanley and expect to plant more. Others have sub-tropical and tropical areas under way.
These may eventually be a new sort of botanic garden system demonstrating design, technique and species assemblies for the area.
Distribution Net
Our publications or goods can enter this at any point.
Tagari can cover Tasmania, and MeIbourne city has core groups in every state and nearly every district.
Shopfronts, markets, warehouses and groups need to be registered.
Accommodation
Brisbane Alternative Group (BAG) is developing an ECHO (Environmental Community Hostels Organisation). Contact Daryl Bellingham, c/- PO Box 238, North Quay, Brisbane, Old 4000.
BAG has plans for a hostel and we hope others take up this idea. Tagari is in the process.
What other system can we offer ‘ecological travelers’?
Locating
A catalogue of addresses of talent is needed — if we need a design engineer, lawyer, planner, poultry breeder, where do we find them?
Permaculture Nambour may collate this as a group project. The idea is not to list all people, but to list all the skills known to exist in any area with a key person there to locate each request.
Designs and Instruction Kits
As Tagari already lists and sells permaculture-related designs and catalogues these, we could include any others for resale and listing on a fair royalties basis.
Land Loans
Many of us have spare land or money and with these we could set up our own land bank and land loan system.
Who will run or will help run this?
Transport Co-op
Carriers are expensive — can we pool or run local transport for our own goods?
Who will collate?
Specialties
Let us co-operate, not compete.
Again, PO Nambour has PO T-shirts and bumper stickers — ‘Permaculture is Growing’. Let us buy from them (and submit designs) instead of duplicating.
What other ways can we fund other groups?
Insurance
Dare we tackle a combined insurance (fixed amount) scheme for ourselves, replacing funds only when they are used?
Now, who can help, who can suggest new and better links?
Talented, scattered and many
We are talented, many, scattered, mobile and ready tor the next evolution — that of a truly linked community.
It’s time (to pinch a phrase) and if life wasn’t meant to be easy at least it could be better organised to support the alternative.
By co-operating we can support each other instead of people who don’t care and people who use the profits for themselves.
…Bill Mollison
Editor’s note
In the second last paragraph Bill makes reference to what became two cultural artifacts from the late-1970s.
“It’s time”, with which he starts the paragraph, was a popular song of the Australian Labor Party’s 1972 election campaign that saw Gough Whitlam elected to lead an federal Labor government.
Listen: http://whitlamdismissal.com/1972/11/13/its-time-audio-video-lyrics.html
The later passage in the same paragraph, “life wasn’t meant to be easy”, was a line by 1970s Australian prime minister, Malcolm Fraser, that was taken out of context .
The line was a quote from George Bernard Shaw that, rather than signifying only difficulty, signified the taking of courage. Left from the quote by Malcolm Fraser’s critics was the rest of it: ” …my child, but take courage: it can be delightful.”
More: https://en.m.wikiquote.org/wiki/Malcolm_Fraser
Links with other ideas
The article suggests that Bill Mollison and his Tagari Community communards saw the development of a national network as necessary to permaculture’s spread. Design consultants qualified through a consultant’s course at Tagari would form a core of the network.
The ‘alternative society’ mentioned is a reference to the large numbers then participating in what was a significant social movement around environmentally and socially-better ways of living. Although the movement was amorphous and lacked any set of core ethics and principles, those participating in it felt part of it and also felt themselves apart from mainstream society. Permaculture incorporated some of the elements of the movement and, in turn, came to influence it. Many of permaculture’s early recruits came from the alternative movement.
The ‘Accommodation’ idea listed under Proposals might be seen as the incipient idea that would years later manifest from outside the permaculture network as WWOOF — Willing Workers On Organic Farms — the farmstay-in-return-for-work scheme. Although not stated in the article, there is a tenuous like with Bill Mollison’s idea of permaculture educators and designers moving around the country, teaching and designing in different places.
11 Aug, 2017 | Remembering Bill in Print
— an initial contribution to domestication
The Lost Stories are Bill Mollison’s articles published in the print magazine originally named Permaculture, then International Permaculture Journal and finally the Permaculture International Journal that was published between 1978 and 2000.
All stories and other content ©Permaculture Australia unless otherwise noted.
Story by Bill Mollison, August 1978. Edition: 1979, Autumn/Winter.
IN TRIBAL Aboriginal areas and in forests and permacutture systems designed for complex yield, wallaby and other Australian native species have a place. All those listed in the title yield furs, meat and sinew products. All have a role in forests for fire control (as ‘marsupial lawn’ browsers), weed control (especially for the fireweeds such as Ericthtites), thinning of seediings after fire and as natural components of the total system.
In today’s forests they are poisoned or fenced out and few farmers, gardeners or public authorities have a positive management policy towards marsupials.
Some notes on their usefulness are therefore in order, as the marsupials have been banished from the European-oriented ecosystems and the forests of the pulp companies.
The value of native animals
First, graziers such as Ian Swan of Birralee, Tasmania, who is also a qualified forester, have analysed the economics of wallaby versus sheep.
Needing neither improved pasture, machine tilling, complex buildings and no drenching etc, wallaby can be managed by fewer men on worse country and for greater energy gain than sheep. The situation is analagous to the African savannah analyses, where clearing, ‘improvement’ and fencing plus monoculture of sheep and beef reduced the animal protein available to 1/80th of its ‘unimproved’Â yield.
Population dynamics of native herbivores
Antelope (the dik-dik is under investigation) and the wallaby are quickly tamed by feeding, are efficient in utilising low-quality browse, and have a variety of management potential. For instance, males are 67 percent, 47 percent and 18 percent of the tertiary (adult) sex ratios in mature populations of brush possum, Tasmanian pademelon and the rednecked wallaby respectively. These are part-arboreal, dense scrub and scrub edge species, in that order.
Plains or mob species of kangaroo may have even fewer males in association with breeding females. The ‘mobbing’ or social gathering size, and the social structure (familial, undifferentiated group and differentiated ‘family’, plus male mobs) is influenced by the sex ratio. The more males, the less the species can gather or split social functions. Analogies can be made with seals, swans, etc.
In every case, it is the number of mature females that keep the population size up, and the number of immature animals (both male and female) plus surplus males that can be harvested without affecting populations.
Where no harvest occurs, overgrazing, seasonal drought, disease and crowding stress will do the harvesting, sometimes in a catastrophic way. All bushmen have seen the crash of native cat, possum and wallaby populations in such crowded conditions, sometimes taking years to replace themselves. As Aborigines undoubtedly knew and practiced wise management of marsupials (by a system of taboos) it is doubtful whether managed populations ever reached disaster numbers in tribal areas.
Most species of marsupial breed regularly where rainfall is sufficient to maintain steady forage. In cooler areas there is usually an Autumn (May) oestrus with a smaller Spring (November) oestrus, so that 100 percent, and then (say) 15 percent of mature females breed in these seasons, weaning August-September and April-May.
Dryland species may breed opportunistically following rain, and tropical species more irregularly as befits the continuous and steady plant growth in the tropics.
There is little doubt that we could manage or select for double breeding in many species much as one selects for twinning in sheep flocks.
The cultivation of wallabies
The forest wallabies are of special interest as they thrive in dark understorey, feeding on moss sporangia, fungi and the rare shrubs under canopy and along forest edges. They occupy niches no
domestic species can fill. Similarly, plains species select coarse browse left untouched by sheep, geese, or other domestic livestock. All species become very tame after a few days of supplementary feeding if not hunted by men or dogs. All are easily trapped in solid wooden traps, easily handled in bags and can be selectively culled.
Bran, pollard, calf food and like feeds are readily accepted by all species as are waste materials such as vegetable peelings and culls and food scraps.
Wallaby — a plus for polycultural farmers
Free of fat, with useful furs, subject to crashes of overpopulation, good-natured, useful in a variety of ecologies and in the management of forest and pasture, the marsupial has a valuable but as yet underdeveloped and neglected part to play in every sane ecology as does the water buffalo, the forest bison of Poland, the Canadian beaver, the African dik-dik, the hare and the deer. All need management (as do all domestic species) but all have unique values.
In short, the wallaby is a plus in any ecology and should be encouraged by all polycultural farmers. Trapping, handling and culling data and some yield estimates should be available from reports to the Division of Wildlife Research, CSIRO, Gungahlin, ACT.
We have wasted and mismanaged our wildlife resources (bird and mammal) by unthinking and often harvesting, taking valuable adult females and the selected (by survival) adult males. No species can stand the harassment and senseless culling, the poisons and monoculture philosophy currently practised.
It is long past time we set up study groups and management systems to include such species in an integrated colony.
Why look at pine forests as pulp? Why not sow Mitchellia repens below the canopy and raise partridge or pigeon?
A new diversity
I point out, in conclusion, that all I am proposing is a commonsense and controlled approach to a new diversity. I am not advocating the release of unmanageable species in unregulated lands. Large species, being visible, can always be regulated and slow-breeding small species (eg. hares) are the same. Predatory and fast-breeding species (eg. rabbits) are a danger and should be closely regulated.
Both our managed ecologies and our nutrition would improve by wise inclusion of useful species.
2 Jun, 2017 | Remembering Bill in Print
The Lost Stories
Remembering Bill in print — the legacy of Bill Mollison from the pages of the Permaculture International Journal
The Lost Stories are Bill Mollison’s articles published in the print magazine originally named Permaculture, then International Permaculture Journal and finally the Permaculture International Journal that was published between 1978 and 2000.
All stories and other content © Permaculture Australia unless otherwise noted. ……….
Permaculture aid
1985, Edition 22, Permaculture
SEVERAL PEOPLE have written indicating support for a Third World ‘Trust in Aid’ to teach permaculture courses in areas where people need help. Some have sent sums of from $100 to $1000 to go into such a trust, and we have established the account. We do not as yet have tax deductibility but have instructed our lawyer to try to get this for us, if necessary by changes to our trust document.
Some people have indicated that they will be approaching organisations like Live Aid to assist, and we would be grateful for any independent initiatives to any such nongovernmentat organisations or even government organisations for grants towards our Trust in Aid.
We have been giving this subject considerable thought and have discovered that very few Third-World projects work.
Those that do seem to work have these characteristics:
- they arise from projects that are seen to be important by local people; while there is no reason not to lay out a smorgasbord of possibilities, the choices of priorities and possibilities must be left to the people on the ground
- they know what time they have to spare and what skills can be developed.
Once some priorities are defined:
- the approach that works is practical-educational — actual ground projects formed as teaching projects but solving a specific problem or set of problems and developing local skills
- assistance may then be required as back-up; materials, plants, and seed or information supplied to support local initiatives
- all of this works only if people get a direct return for effort; if we do not we dependency and exploitation; this is the critical impediment to aid where large landlords or corrupt bureaucracies benefit from aid (most cases funded by foreign banks or governments)
- any project should have the potential to make its own way, either as savings, sales, or a teaching centre, and preferably all of these approaches.
- Our teaching courses are good initiators of such an approach but must be followed by support of a group in-country. ‘Self-help training for long-term development’ sums it up.
The needs of volunteers
Aid volunteers need to be very practical and skilled, able to give training at certificate level in any one area. Enthusiasm is not enough and in fact an inexperienced enthusiast creates more problems for everybody.
Other points to watch are:
- That individuals are not selected for help. This causes a host of local problems and leaves the community situation unaffected. Thus, aid should be to local groups, preferably as aid in training and in business.
- Aid should never be charity, which is dependency-generating, but should be invested in basic change (independence and self-help assistance). Injustice is the root cause of poverty.
- There should be no strings or requirements on aid, no ‘thanks’ required nor reports to be given. Donors need to trust local people once a good group has been selected.
- Prestige projects and paid administrators are often insupportable locally.
- A joint project may very well work. For example, a trade exchange where profits are split. There is no charity involved here, just some initial investment and work on both sides. •
- It is a good idea to work with an already-established aid group made up of nationals and locals. Their achievements are easy to see and many cultural impediments can be avoided.
There are probably three to four levels of aid, each suited to a different set of conditions:
Aid in disaster (plague, famine, flood, earthquake)
This does seem to be a suitable area for government-to-government aid although most studies reveal that very fast action to help people help themselves is the only effective course, and it would seem sensible to have funds set aside annually to mobilise within days, not to slowly react over a period of some months by which time an aid programme has become a refugee programme, longterm and basically insoluble.
Training aid
For ‘normally bad’ conditions. the training of in-country designers for self-help and long-term change. This is where ourselves and many agencies believe we can most effectively operate, but even this sort of aid is ineffectual if we ignore, or fail to develop strategies for basic justice and honesty in the government of the country. There is no apolitical aid.
Joint projects aid
This seems least contentious. It involves setting up a small industry, enterprise or cooperative project, selling locally and on a world basis and sharing profits with the disadvantaged group. Carefully planned, this seems straight-forward. The main ethic to observe is that what is exported or sold doesn’t impoverish the area. Information and seed are good examples, or manufactures from imported raw materials. Publishing is a possible area.
Local enterprise aid
Effective if soundly assessed for social, ethical, and environmental impacts. Such fields as food preservation, domestic water purification and crop storage as well as autonomous energy supply using biogas. Training and funding local people to supply or improve on existing systems is usually effective and creates little harm, whereas expanding cattle herds and supplying large institutions or centralised power systems does have profound social effects favouring an already-privileged class (landowners) as do ‘miracle crops’, large irrigation systems and large technology centres. Even large biogas systems disfavour households.
Aiding change in land tenure to give people access to owned housing and land, or to legal systems to allow or facilitate community self-help is a key strategy unrelated to technology or crops but permitting any changes to benefit people. Aid to individuals is ineffective and creates a new privileged class. Aid to existing effective groups is ideal.
How we intend to proceed
As our plan is to spend only the interest from monies donated to the Fund, we may have to wait a few years while funds are accumulating. As stated before, we intend to deposit royalty payments from the next permaculture book into the Fund, and so we hope that within three years we would have a tidy sum if all goes well with book sales. In the meantime, we will be researching effective aid programmes already in place it would be pointless and expensive to go looking for projects when there are so many that already exist and concentrating on those that offer educational programmes. There are many nongovernmental organisations to contact, ranging from Community Aid Abroad to World Neighbours, and we will eventually be able to narrow the list to those with whom a mutually beneficial relationship can develop.
Over the next few years, many of our trainee consultants will be gaining experience, and some have already had overseas work. Although initially we from Australia or the US. may be the first teachers we hope eventually to fund Asians, Mexicans, Africans, etc. to teach both in-country and across borders.
We will be collating information on skilled and experienced people over the next two years. We are grateful to those who have already donated to this Fund, and hope that more people will follow suit.
Bill Mollison, Permacuiture Institute
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