Subject: Re: Permaculture in a Burr Oak Nutshell

From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 2 Oct 1996 07:31:58 -0400

Hey, Steve, I hate to disagree in public with someone who has done me a
number of recent favors, but I disagree with most of your Permaculture
definition and want to go on record as not being limited by it.

For example, I feel that sustainable agriculture doesn't exist and can't.
 Sustainable food systems have and their relationship to permaculture is that
of a stomach to a whole person.  All personal opinion, of course, but based
on what I was told I was getting into when I took the Permaculture Design
Course from Bill in 1981.

Dan Hemenway

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From: [email-masked] (Steve Diver)
Date: Wed, 2 Oct 1996 10:22:18 -0500 (CDT)

Dan, 

I am glad you spoke your mind.  I am not finished with this
"permaculture in a nut shell" deal yet and I am looking for 
input and feedback.  I can understand why a permie would not
like to be limited by what I have proferred so far.  It does
not feel complete to me either. 

The nutshell effort is due to the fact that I have 15
minutes at an upcoming co-housing gathering to introduce 
permaculture.  Usually I need one hour for slides and
explanations. 

The time limit presents an interesting problem as well as an
opportunity.  How can one explain permaculture in 15
minutes?  

What would you add to the "permaculture in a (burr oak)
nutshell" to make it more complete?  Of course you need 
the biggest acorn around to fit permaculture into because
PC does not lend itself to a brief explanation.

Please note the reference to sustainable agriculture in PC-nutshell
was related to visioning ag without N-fertilizers.  The implication 
from this scenario is that organic agriculture practices become 
prominent. 

This excercise (which was quite insightful in my way of thinking;
i.e., to understand how organic agriculture practices indeed form the 
basis of a sustainable agriculture) was a precursor to quickly visioning 
permaculture through the implication of decentralized infrastructure 
combined with integrated food production.  

To quickly invision permaculture though, other factors need
to be added to the A.T./integrated food production picture.

Other images/implications that perhaps need to be added to this 
PC-nutshell pie include: 
  - Ecological land use design
  - Utilization of plant resources and sectors (wind, sun
    exposure, water)

Any input and insights from the list will be appreciated to help this
PC-nutshell ripen to maturity. 

Steve Diver

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From: [email-masked] (Steve Diver)
Date: Wed, 2 Oct 1996 10:22:18 -0500 (CDT)

Dan, 

Steve Diver