End Of The Year
Captain’s Blog
12/11/09
West Jefferson, N.C.
You the reader will have to excuse the Captain’s tardiness in blogging. A very busy year has come to a close and the Permi crew is taking a much needed and well-deserved rest here in the beautiful Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. The end of our year found us very busy in the Washington DC area. Not only did we work a lot but our brought us into contact with folks that we don’t generally get a chance to work with. In DC and later, in Ashville, North Carolina we brought Permaculture to inner city audiences.
Often programs about sustainable living rarely reach low income and communities of color. Many factors play into these communities lack of exposure. Permaculture is nearly unheard of. It has able been part of the Skills Tour philosophy to bring information to such groups. That mandate is the primary basis why we work on a donation bases. Nobody is ever turned away because they haven’t any money. We can then readily make ourselves available to low income communities. Many of the groups we interacted with could not have afforded to pay the typical sustainability tour to come their community.
While in Dc we were invited to Howard University to be a part of their Green Fair. Unfortunately, the Howard experience served to demonstrate how far behind minority communities often are in the move to sustainability. Even at a university of Howard’s prestige recycling has barely moved forward. Howard was the only place where we were not allowed to set up our chickens. Still, our reception was warm. Folks have little information, permaculture was a very new idea that most had no exposure to. Like folks everywhere however, folks in DC were eager for information. We became the focus of Howard’s “Green fair.” The questions folks asked seemed mundane on one level but in fact were just the type of questions the sustainability movement must answer if we are to truly reach out, how do we live, where do we cook and sleep, what do we do for entertainment, and how do we go to the restroom. At Howard and at the other presentations we offered to the minority communities of DC, folks wanted to know how we lived the way we did. Many of the answers challenged the sensitivities of some very mainstream folks.
We also took the bus to Roger Moore School where the bus and chickens were swamped large groups of excited elementary school kids. Even at a very young age the kid’s questions focused on how we live. At Teddy Roosevelt High School the turn out was low but the kids who did come to see the bus wanted as well to know how we lived. At All Nations Baptist Church there were more questions about how we lived. Folks are surprised to see that in many ways we live no differently than they do. Our lifestyle is simply predicated on sustainability. It has become clear to me that the sustainability and permaculture movements must work hard to make sure what we teach always addresses the most important issues. How do we cook, rest, entertain, stay clean and relive ourselves is all more important than philosophies or gadgets. In low income community’s folks must see change that they not only must make but also can make. I also learned in DC that we are fulfilling well our work of bringing permaculture to everybody.
We presented at other places as well in Dc including American University and a NVDA training at the University of Maryland. We also brought the bus to the GLUT Food Coop’s 40th anniversary. Another engaging presentation came at Transition Greenbelt. Greenbelt is a community of 20,000 built by the federal government back in the 1940’s. Its citizens have joined the world wide transitional movement to ensure community members guide their communities into the new low energy dependence age. In Greenbelt a large group of folks took part in a discussion based on one pertinent question, can permaculture designed transition feed the folks of Greenbelt. In other words, can permaculture deliver on its enormous potential? I think the answer is yes, we left the folks of Greenbelt feeling the same way.
After Dc we finished up the tour in Ashville, North Carolina. In Ashville we met the GO, Green Opportunities folks. GO comes out of a local “weed and seed” program. I’m not a big fan of “weed and seed” but these folks have been able to organize effectively enough to have seen some of the “seed” part of the program. I presented before some 15 older inner city kids all working to keep and build their very challenged community. We talked about social permaculture, about their rights, and how to better organize. Hopefully after our break we will be able to return to Ashville and work with the GO kids in more dept. We also gave a small, two day community street medic training at Warren Wilson college then brought the Permibus to its current rest on Elizabeth and Debra’s beautiful land in the hills of North Carolina. Delyla and Megan are putting on a well-attended street medic training this weekend in Ashville and then we are done for the year. Our break is much needed and well deserved. We’ll see you again on the road in 2010.
Donate On-line:
Go to: www.permibus.org
Click on: Donate
Donate by Mail:
Make checks payable to:
Delyla Wilson.
Send to :
150 Daly Ave.
Hamilton, MT. 59840
“Via Con Carne”
Captain but not leader,
Stan Wilson
Permi Preacher,
Infrastructure Coordinator
Skills Tour.
permipreacher@gmail.com
www.permibus.org
12/11/09
West Jefferson, N.C.
You the reader will have to excuse the Captain’s tardiness in blogging. A very busy year has come to a close and the Permi crew is taking a much needed and well-deserved rest here in the beautiful Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. The end of our year found us very busy in the Washington DC area. Not only did we work a lot but our brought us into contact with folks that we don’t generally get a chance to work with. In DC and later, in Ashville, North Carolina we brought Permaculture to inner city audiences.
Often programs about sustainable living rarely reach low income and communities of color. Many factors play into these communities lack of exposure. Permaculture is nearly unheard of. It has able been part of the Skills Tour philosophy to bring information to such groups. That mandate is the primary basis why we work on a donation bases. Nobody is ever turned away because they haven’t any money. We can then readily make ourselves available to low income communities. Many of the groups we interacted with could not have afforded to pay the typical sustainability tour to come their community.
While in Dc we were invited to Howard University to be a part of their Green Fair. Unfortunately, the Howard experience served to demonstrate how far behind minority communities often are in the move to sustainability. Even at a university of Howard’s prestige recycling has barely moved forward. Howard was the only place where we were not allowed to set up our chickens. Still, our reception was warm. Folks have little information, permaculture was a very new idea that most had no exposure to. Like folks everywhere however, folks in DC were eager for information. We became the focus of Howard’s “Green fair.” The questions folks asked seemed mundane on one level but in fact were just the type of questions the sustainability movement must answer if we are to truly reach out, how do we live, where do we cook and sleep, what do we do for entertainment, and how do we go to the restroom. At Howard and at the other presentations we offered to the minority communities of DC, folks wanted to know how we lived the way we did. Many of the answers challenged the sensitivities of some very mainstream folks.
We also took the bus to Roger Moore School where the bus and chickens were swamped large groups of excited elementary school kids. Even at a very young age the kid’s questions focused on how we live. At Teddy Roosevelt High School the turn out was low but the kids who did come to see the bus wanted as well to know how we lived. At All Nations Baptist Church there were more questions about how we lived. Folks are surprised to see that in many ways we live no differently than they do. Our lifestyle is simply predicated on sustainability. It has become clear to me that the sustainability and permaculture movements must work hard to make sure what we teach always addresses the most important issues. How do we cook, rest, entertain, stay clean and relive ourselves is all more important than philosophies or gadgets. In low income community’s folks must see change that they not only must make but also can make. I also learned in DC that we are fulfilling well our work of bringing permaculture to everybody.
We presented at other places as well in Dc including American University and a NVDA training at the University of Maryland. We also brought the bus to the GLUT Food Coop’s 40th anniversary. Another engaging presentation came at Transition Greenbelt. Greenbelt is a community of 20,000 built by the federal government back in the 1940’s. Its citizens have joined the world wide transitional movement to ensure community members guide their communities into the new low energy dependence age. In Greenbelt a large group of folks took part in a discussion based on one pertinent question, can permaculture designed transition feed the folks of Greenbelt. In other words, can permaculture deliver on its enormous potential? I think the answer is yes, we left the folks of Greenbelt feeling the same way.
After Dc we finished up the tour in Ashville, North Carolina. In Ashville we met the GO, Green Opportunities folks. GO comes out of a local “weed and seed” program. I’m not a big fan of “weed and seed” but these folks have been able to organize effectively enough to have seen some of the “seed” part of the program. I presented before some 15 older inner city kids all working to keep and build their very challenged community. We talked about social permaculture, about their rights, and how to better organize. Hopefully after our break we will be able to return to Ashville and work with the GO kids in more dept. We also gave a small, two day community street medic training at Warren Wilson college then brought the Permibus to its current rest on Elizabeth and Debra’s beautiful land in the hills of North Carolina. Delyla and Megan are putting on a well-attended street medic training this weekend in Ashville and then we are done for the year. Our break is much needed and well deserved. We’ll see you again on the road in 2010.
Donate On-line:
Go to: www.permibus.org
Click on: Donate
Donate by Mail:
Make checks payable to:
Delyla Wilson.
Send to :
150 Daly Ave.
Hamilton, MT. 59840
“Via Con Carne”
Captain but not leader,
Stan Wilson
Permi Preacher,
Infrastructure Coordinator
Skills Tour.
permipreacher@gmail.com
www.permibus.org