Subject: Permaculture newsgroup

From: [email-masked] (Anne Benson)
Date: Tue, 8 Mar 1994 13:30:48 +0800

>Is there any interest in seeing the following newsgroups formed?
>
>alt.agriculture.ipm (Integrated Pest Management)
>alt.agriculture.permaculture

Yes, I am very interested. I have been involved in Permaculture in Western
Australia for many years now, am doing designs, and have a well established
Permaculture (urban), but also a lot of experience on rural properties.
Have reached the stage that when I need to know something, the answers
aren't all that easy to find, and an international network would help.

We have a thriving Permaculture Association in Perth. It has about 800
members. I was convenor last year. We set up local groups for our whole
membership, about 45 groups. Also started a LETS system for PAWA members,
and a parallel association, the Permaculture Communities Association, for
people wanting to form intentional communities along a Permaculture model.
There is also the Permaculture Institute of WA, the professional body. We
have quite a few teachers in Perth running regular introductory and
certificate courses, and now more specialist courses. There are a number of
centres set up, and a number of designers offering professional services.

The biggest problem we face is the tension to make money out of
Permaculture as a business, instead of putting our energy into sustainable
models of sharing skills and developing cost free sustainable alternatives.

The climate in Perth is great for growing, and masses of sunlight for solar
energy. Water is more of an issue, and we don't have soil, just bottomless
sand, so we become experts on making soil. The movement here is quite
middleclass.

Anyway, here is a bit of info to let you know there are people out here in
the world, and we would like to share regularly. Quite a lot of us are on
networks, too.

Anne Benson
Counselling Service
Curtin University
Kent St
Bentley
Western Australia