Subject: Permaculture Internships

From: Kirby Fry <[email-masked]>
Date: 04 Oct 95 09:47:52 EDT

Dear Permaculture Organization,

I believe that Gary Shea has already sent you part of this message, but
once I found your address I wonted to make contact with you myself and let
you hear about our internships from the horse's mouth.

We are very interested to hear more about what you do and get on the
permaculture mailing list if possible.

Please excuse the impersonal address as I only have an e-mail address and
no actual contact with your organization.  We would like to make you aware
of the internship and volunteer opportunities at the Cross Timbers
Permaculture Institute.  As you may well know, permaculture (permanent +
agriculture) is the study of the design of those sustainable or enduring
systems that support human society, both agricultural and intellectual,
traditional and scientific, architectural, financial and legal.  It is the
study of integrated systems, for the purpose of better design and
application of such systems.

The Cross Timbers Permaculture Institute's mission is to form and support
sustainable agricultural practices in north central Texas, create a living
model of sustainable agriculture, and offer courses and technical
assistance to the general public and land owners in north central Texas.

Cross Timbers was conceived in April of 1994 as a result of Bill Mollison
teaching a two week permaculture design course at the Fossil Rim Wildlife
Center in Glen Rose, Texas.  Bill is returning to Texas to teach another
design course April 13 through the 26th, 1996 and an advanced design
course May 3rd, 4th and 5th.  The institute was incorporated and granted
non-profit determination as of January, 1995.  It's founders are Jack
Rowe, Inger Myhre and Kirby Fry.  Our offices, residence and demonstration
fields sit adjacent to the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center which receives over
100,000 visitors annually.  We are in the heart of dairy, beef, corn,
peanut and cedar timber production.

Cross Timbers and Fossil Rim offer a rich learning environment for
students.  In their permaculture studies the interns will be surrounded by
a 3,000 acre wildlife preserve devoted to the conservation of some of the
world's most endangered species including the Atwater's prairie chicken,
the gray and red wolves, and black rhino.  Participants also will gain
some experience working with our local, state and federal conservation
agencies as several of our projects (rock/reed black-water treatment
system, constructed wetlands, no-till agriculture, and key-line pasture
renovation with a chisel plow) are in partnership with them.

Specific projects that interns would be involved with are: natural farming
of winter oats, a medicago cover crop, and summer corn and millet (as
described by Masanobu Fukuoka in, The One Straw Revolution), pasture
renovation, straw bale house construction, ferro-cement water cistern
construction, teaching and giving tours, forest enrichment, micro-business
development and grant writing.

We are generally seeking a commitment from six weeks to a semester, but
there is no set time as the most important factor is to be present for at
least one season.  Room will be provided and the intern will partake of
all of the produce locally grown.  It is recommended that the intern bring
at least $100/month for other groceries and spending money.  We hope you
will contact us for more information.

        KIRBY [@ Cross Timbers Permaculture Inst. 817-897-9402]