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Food production where it's really needed.
:''This page is only a start.  Please see [[Talk:Emergency_permaculture#Emergency_permaculture_workspace]] for some rough ideas.''


= Name =
Food production, and more, where it's really needed.
We don't know what name this "beast" will eventually have, but we're starting off with a couple of less than perfect options: emergency permaculture, emergency sustainable agriculture, and maybe others.  We'll hammer the concept and hope that, eventually, inspiration will hit us back.


Calling it "permaculture" doesn't quite fit, because generally permaculturists are fond of taking things slow.  Supposedly, that's how Nature works when she builds stuff. Fast is for destruction, slow is for building.  I'd be glad if someone would provide counter-examples of this, i.e. some process where construction takes place fast.  OTOH, permaculture is about "design", and that can happen in a matter of minutes.
[[Permaculture]] is a set of thinking tools, in particular an awareness of context, threats and opportunities. What we normally think of as permaculture (such as planting gardens and fruit trees) may or may not be appropriate in the weeks after a population is forced to resettle; however the perspectives of permaculture may be valuable throughout the [[emergency management]] process.


If we end up calling it "emergency sustainable agriculture", which is not perfect because there are other sources of food, then we'd have "ESA plans", for region X, Y or Z.
== Potential ==


Whatever the name, the concept seems to be hitting the top of the list recently, with a number of crisis happening at the same time, a number of yet other crisis apparently ready to jump on us, and many people working on "compatible" projects, like LaRahna's "convertible community".
Emergency permaculture may be relevant for:
* [[Shelter]], in the short to medium term - look for threats (rain, [[flood]], [[wind]], structures in danger of collapse, electrical wiring...), locations that are safe from those threats, and available resources (materials, natural windbreaks...) that help protect against those threats.
* Food production in the medium term - where populations are resettled in one place for a period of months, there may be a benefit to beginning food production as soon as it is practical, to provide a supplement to diets, activities and a sense of normality for a traumatized population.


Expanded idea: In the concept of a convertible community, there are several agricultural issues being addressed, all at the same time. 1) sustainable agriculture (current permaculture, urban gardening, organic farming, etc concepts fit well), 2) crisis food provisioning (if there is an interruption in the food supply because of a)natural disaster b)economic collapse c)warfare/domestic attack - how do you eat?; and 3)emergency sustainable agriculture (taking a population the shortest most feasable route to being able to provide adequate food to survive).
There's another notion that could also be called "emergency permaculture": fast forests. Not an emergency for us, in people's usual emergency timeframes, but for the ecosystem. Think years and decades, not days to months to a few years. Should this be another notion, or is it a fractal-ish continuum?  


= Thinking about this stuff =
== Perceptions ==
* we need a group of people around this, really
* a vision/outline + plug-in modules
* this needs heavy thinking
* but i think its critical
* i am feeling this convertible community/space concept is going to be of vital importance soon
* i think if you take out the threats even ... its still a robust chunk to push through. the threats are the why do it ...
* i can "sell" it as a thought experiment: what if we wanted to reach sustainability in 4 months?
+1 month for preparation
* i mean, if we want sustainability, why not do that experiment?


* outline = why, what, how, what-if ... but with specific terms
Efforts to improve the situation in [[temporary settlements]] should not be seen as an acceptance of the current status of people living in such settlements long term, and should not distract from the primary goals, i.e. to return people to their homes where appropriate. It will be important to be very careful of perceptions, by refugee camp residents or outsiders, that they will be expected to stay there long term.
* why = brief summary of reasons to join in
* what = what such a place would look like, how things would work
* how = things needed for us to get there
* what-if = exploration of other ideas we might want to include in the model
* and there's the sense of urgency, yes
* i don't fully agree with the "emergency permaculture" term, but that we're using is as a provocation = something you use as a springboard to real ideas


= Convertible community =
However, the unfortunate reality is that displaced people, such as refugee camp residents, often do stay in such conditions for years, suffering stress, dangers, and shortages. Attending to the conditions in such settlements is of value to potentially millions of people around the world.
here is what i see as essential for a convertible community ... a solution that provides


# A pre-planned solution to restore (or more likely take) a community to levels of sustainability as quickly as possible
== Outline ==
# A means for working throug the variables that crisis can present like climate, land condition, region
# A kit resonse that provides at least 12 months of planned agriculture and the seeds to correspond
# Monkey-proof training to allow crisis stricken people to get their act together and not starve when the rations run out!
# Ensuring that the nutritional optimization of crops is considered. The most nutrient and calories possible.


* sum-up: a set of physical objects and implementable procedures (for advisors and implementers) that lets people go from crisis to post-crisis effectively, swiftly and practically
A crisis happens, triggering an immediate response which keeps people alive while preparing the way forward.  The way forward may be a bounce-back if the initial situation was good, but it may be a bounce-forward if the initial situation was bad.  "Good" and "bad" are defined in terms of sustainability and developement.
** convertible communities (or spaces) need to be prepared in advance = crisis hits means it's too late to be ordering seed catalogs
** i belive the time is rapidly approaching where "in theory" is not good enough


= Sequence =
This page intends to collect the models needed to quickly find the best way forward, using whatever combination of local resources and external help that's most suitable to the particular situation.
The end point of our trip is a human setting in which people grow their own basic food.  Given the simple fact that food takes time to grow, we need to look at the sequence of events:


* We plan 0. This is where we're at, right now.  Looking at the whole sequence, trying to make sense of things and design some general approach that may be workable in a number of specific instances, all over the world. Not just the general approach, but very importantly a set of tools that can be used in practice: a parachutable box for a specific number of people.
* What happens? A crisis happens. People stay put in an impoverished and more hostile environment, or move to a new place where they may not be welcome because there's just too many of them/us. It's not unusual for people to stay in refugee camps for several years (citation needed).
* Someone tries.  This stuff needs practical learning, much of which has already happened or can happen pretty quickly.
* What do we have?
* You plan 1.  Things get personal for you.  You look at your environment, possibly through the "6 ways to die" lenses, with some "appreciative inquiry" thrown in, and come up with a map of needs and resources.  Some folks live by a river that's full of edible fish.  Others are sorrounded by a monoculture of cereal or whatever. Close to a big city there's so much land, with specific resources. "Megalopolis decompression" begs that we look further away than "small town decompression".  We need criteria to select locations, plus data, plus actual decisions.
** [http://butteredsidedown.co.uk/scim.html SCIM]
** FEMA maps
** [[Permaculture|permacultural concepts]]
** WHTC is the natural , logical place for a pandemic flu attack in Atlanta, GA. Far enough from coastal weather threats. Close enough to siphon off people from the flu attack. And decent weather for year round growing.
** local haves
** we'd need many such places, so the criteria for selection + the data (satellite) data = a list of real places
** some global haves
** water
** (some global needs, if "the problem is the solution": maybe people could be paid to restore ecosystems.)
** whatever other natural resources that we can't possibly include in the parachutable box
* What do we need/want?
* You prepare.  You get seeds and tools, practical knowledge and detailed information.  You probably fill up a notebook or its electronic version.  Some of the information is automatically gathered when you input your location, if the system knows what grows in your area.  You DESIGN, which is a big issue, and what permaculture is all about.
** Short term SCIM, with [http://hexayurt.com hexayurt] & infrapak. "Staying alive" & "first do no harm" come before anything else.
* Something bad happens. XXX
** These emergency permaculture tools/templates we're developing.
** If the "attack" is present poverty, then it's a matter of acting now
** Long term SCIM/permaculture hope.
** If the attack is foreseable poverty, as in credit crunch etc, then it's real soon now
* What do we do?
** If the attack is a flu pandemic, then it's whenever it happens, or now if you want to, or on weekends if you're not sure
** SCIM: how is "6 ways to die" is covered now, and what's missing or at clear risk of failing.
* You plan 2.  You make a note of the season, what's in your pantry XXX
** Permacultural assessment done rapidly, with templates, looking at basic 6wtd, basic camp governability, basic contact with the outside world, and little else. Look at what you have with permacultural eyes, maybe taking video and asking for assessment, a la crisiscamp mapping, bringing in historical climate data and all the data for questions asked by permaculture practitioners. Ask for specific stuff from outside, and it's the locals who do the asking. Outside has concentric circles: close regions/countries first if possible. Look at the longer term.
* You move XXX
* You do stuff.  Plant, water, protect.  Eat from your pantry XXX
* You enjoy results.  Phew, that was close!  So now, you take the opportunity and run forward with it.  It's not just that you've survived: you want to build something more permanent, stable and simply great.


= Chat (to be digested) =
== See also ==
* take that and crunch it and you geet something like sweet potatoes, peanuts, collard greens, etc...
* a list of many real places
* take that global!
* the attack:


* WHTC can take (a bit theory being put into practice) 200 families each with about 2500 cash and abilit y to earn $50/month and make them sustainable, and sheltered ... and even throw in health care. $1000 up front ... about $1500 to build ultra cheap housing and $50/month upkeep.
* [[Permaculture and development]]
* that's a fix for the economic crash but minds must change!
* i need 200 believers with $1K each! and its a done deal! and really i could do it with 50 believers


* one more thing for massive stuff: use available resources and build on that - for example, here we grow bananas, so maybe convert some of that land to other things, be ready to do that
== External links ==
 
* [http://www.globalswadeshi.net/forum/topics/2097821:Topic:4635 Emergency Permaculture kits]
* the payoff is they/you'd be building the booklet for many others, for that price
* [http://www.sopermaculture.org/SOPI/Blog/Entries/2011/2/12_The_Power_of_the_Permablitz.html Permablitz] as a model for 1-day design.
 
* http://opensourceecology.org/wiki/Land_Imprinting
* the project holds 10 acres in reserve..5 initially used for spiritual wellness stuff and 5 for training but on paper that could support additional crisis only lots!
* https://medium.com/ted-fellows/how-to-grow-a-forest-really-really-fast-d27df202ba09
* like camp pads that tie into the off-grid grid for temporary holding of people
* also, fungi and herds and ideas from extreme food under 5-year cloud with no sun on earth
* camp pads? extra lots?
* http://tcpermaculture.com/site/2015/02/20/designing-a-custom-native-plant-list/
* yes not big enough to grow on but able to put up a structure for temp living!
* climate analogues
* think camping pad...20'x20' somthing like that
* #FastForests
* that's 20x33=around 7x7 meters, i see
* @edgeryders @leashless @appropedia #bitcoin @hexayurt
* not for food growing at all
* thats about 20/acre vs. the 1/10 acre lots that an individual or small family would have
 
* you want believers who are not already in another group? could you accept an already formed group?
 
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polis there's a model there, maybe - small village + acres around it
 
* still thinking the intensive sub-acreage gardening direction
* so it's containers and seeds and booklet
* maybe print-on-demand booklet, with local satelite data feed in
* with tech..it could be dvd,s or such
* i mean, the whole encyclopedia would be huge, but here? here you do A, B, C.
* a friend in religiouscircles did a huge info database that was on cd but if you had internet when you clicked the links it went live online and got you current info..if your were offline it got you archived data from disk
* it was like 100,000 pages of info! on 1 disk
* http://www.appropedia.org/Global_Food_Swadeshi_Project -- here are all the factors, well, the general factors at least
 
= The time factor =
* well yes .. it's like if crisis were to hit in january ... what's the next planting opportunity and what would you plant
* as in "what would it look like?"
* but the plan needs to be fluid so if it hit in june ... the same info would be available, just modified for the seasonal change
* so no matter when crisis hits, there is a plan and the can covers 12 months..so there is a jan and a feb and march packet, etc
* so "season" is one factor, a variable in the model, an input variable that leads to spitting out * a specific booklet - 50 pages out of 100000 pages
* season/climate
* it's planting almanac meets can o seeds!
 
= The location factor =
* so, we need to simplify realities and look at a bunch of them, not at a thousand different realities
* it will give you planing guides..if you hav ethis soil you need to construct raised beds or use a liner system cause crap will grow in your soil ... or greenhouse or ... or ... or ... a plan a, b,c
there are only a few zones ... so if we start with perhaps the growing zones and move out from there
* i'll summarise the aims for our page, maybe over at the emergency-permaculture appropedia page, and then suggest an outline
* if we took it from a zone by zone basis. could we pair an almanac planting guide with some intel on the most nutritious efficient mix..something like that
* and basic gardening tech...sq ft, key hole, the skills of gardeing and spit out an ondemand guide
* there must be some work done already, on zones
* i think zones will reduce the bulk of it
* and get it manageable
* i guess it looks like a tree: biosphere ... 12 zones ... 12 thousand microzones
* most seed guides use about a dozen zones
* so we need to look for the wide-enough, simple-enough branch level if that makes sense
* shouldn't be hard to find out. i have some seed catalogs
* http://www.usna.usda.gov/Hardzone/ushzmap.html
* perhaps there is a global chart
* but i think that is a good breakdown plan. "usda hardiness zones"
* plantings are based on this scale
* if you are zone 9 you should plant this and this during these periods
* http://www.thegardenersresource.com/hardinesszones.html
* if we make sure the zones correspond consistently so a zone 7 in the UK or US ... same climate
* variables in soil, etc. but similar kits would work
 
i need a global map - and i'll look at the concepts behind the map - you see, in the canary islands there are microclimates
 
consistency


i'm sure i'll find it. i can find us and uk pretty easily...i'll probably need to search for each continent
well, we'll have to translate hardiness, maybe wikipedia has the translations and look at the concepts behind it, too
africa: http://www.plantideas.com/zone/africa.html (need to talk to neighbours in some circumstances)
= External links =
* [http://www.globalswadeshi.net/forum/topics/2097821:Topic:4635 Emergency Permaculture kits]


[[Category:Emergency logistics]]
[[Category:Emergency logistics]]
[[Category:Permaculture]]
[[Category:Permaculture]]

Revision as of 08:33, 21 February 2015

This page is only a start. Please see Talk:Emergency_permaculture#Emergency_permaculture_workspace for some rough ideas.

Food production, and more, where it's really needed.

Permaculture is a set of thinking tools, in particular an awareness of context, threats and opportunities. What we normally think of as permaculture (such as planting gardens and fruit trees) may or may not be appropriate in the weeks after a population is forced to resettle; however the perspectives of permaculture may be valuable throughout the emergency management process.

Potential

Emergency permaculture may be relevant for:

  • Shelter, in the short to medium term - look for threats (rain, flood, wind, structures in danger of collapse, electrical wiring...), locations that are safe from those threats, and available resources (materials, natural windbreaks...) that help protect against those threats.
  • Food production in the medium term - where populations are resettled in one place for a period of months, there may be a benefit to beginning food production as soon as it is practical, to provide a supplement to diets, activities and a sense of normality for a traumatized population.

There's another notion that could also be called "emergency permaculture": fast forests. Not an emergency for us, in people's usual emergency timeframes, but for the ecosystem. Think years and decades, not days to months to a few years. Should this be another notion, or is it a fractal-ish continuum?

Perceptions

Efforts to improve the situation in temporary settlements should not be seen as an acceptance of the current status of people living in such settlements long term, and should not distract from the primary goals, i.e. to return people to their homes where appropriate. It will be important to be very careful of perceptions, by refugee camp residents or outsiders, that they will be expected to stay there long term.

However, the unfortunate reality is that displaced people, such as refugee camp residents, often do stay in such conditions for years, suffering stress, dangers, and shortages. Attending to the conditions in such settlements is of value to potentially millions of people around the world.

Outline

A crisis happens, triggering an immediate response which keeps people alive while preparing the way forward. The way forward may be a bounce-back if the initial situation was good, but it may be a bounce-forward if the initial situation was bad. "Good" and "bad" are defined in terms of sustainability and developement.

This page intends to collect the models needed to quickly find the best way forward, using whatever combination of local resources and external help that's most suitable to the particular situation.

  • What happens? A crisis happens. People stay put in an impoverished and more hostile environment, or move to a new place where they may not be welcome because there's just too many of them/us. It's not unusual for people to stay in refugee camps for several years (citation needed).
  • What do we have?
    • SCIM
    • permacultural concepts
    • local haves
    • some global haves
    • (some global needs, if "the problem is the solution": maybe people could be paid to restore ecosystems.)
  • What do we need/want?
    • Short term SCIM, with hexayurt & infrapak. "Staying alive" & "first do no harm" come before anything else.
    • These emergency permaculture tools/templates we're developing.
    • Long term SCIM/permaculture hope.
  • What do we do?
    • SCIM: how is "6 ways to die" is covered now, and what's missing or at clear risk of failing.
    • Permacultural assessment done rapidly, with templates, looking at basic 6wtd, basic camp governability, basic contact with the outside world, and little else. Look at what you have with permacultural eyes, maybe taking video and asking for assessment, a la crisiscamp mapping, bringing in historical climate data and all the data for questions asked by permaculture practitioners. Ask for specific stuff from outside, and it's the locals who do the asking. Outside has concentric circles: close regions/countries first if possible. Look at the longer term.

See also

External links

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