[Scpg] Cuban Permaculturist Roberto Perez in Oakland August 24th

[vanessa carter]

Please distribute to your networks.



Occidental Arts and Ecology Center

and
Movement Generation Justice & Ecology Project

present:

Learning from the Most Sustainable Place on Earth
with Cuban Permaculturist Roberto Perez
 
Saturday, August 24, 6:00-8:30 pm 2013
The First Unitarian Church of Oakland

 Benefit Donation $15 -$20
A benefit for the Eleventh International Permaculture Convergence Scholarships 



The Occidental Arts and Ecology Center's Permaculture Program and the Movement Generation Justice & Ecology Project co-host Roberto Perez, Cuban environmental educator featured in the award winning documentary, "The Power of Community, How Cuba Survived Peak Oil" currently in the U.S. promoting the 11th International Permaculture Convergence (IPC11) to be held in Cuba in November of 2013.
OAEC Permaculture Program Director Brock Dolman has been invited to be one of the international co-teachers of the 2-week Design Course.  OAEC Permaculture Program Director Kendall Dunnigan and School Garden Program Director Vanessa Carter will travel with Movement Generation Justice and Ecology Project staff Carla M. Pérez & Gopal Dayaneni to Cuba to participate, learn and share during this critical international convergence. OAEC and MG's collaboration has led to Liberation Permaculture: a read of Permaculture that is about self-reclamation, cultural survival and independence. It is a direct challenge to the current social, economic and political system. Come hear more and learn about ways you can help support the nexus of ecological justice and social movement strategy.

The Living Planet Report from the World Wildlife Fund in 2007 identified Cuba as the only sustainable country in the world.  The study involved two key parameters for measuring sustainable development, a commitment to "improving the quality of human life while living within the carrying capacity of supporting ecosystems".  Cuba was the ONLY country on earth to achieve satisfactory benchmarks in both criteria for sustainable development.

Formerly importing most of its food, Cuba's agriculture is now 95% organic, with the city of Havana producing over 60% of its own fruits and vegetables within the city's urban spaces.  At the same time, Cuba has been engaging in a massive reforestation campaign, and has invested massively in alternative energy production, with a focus on solar and biofuels.  

A small island nation with 11,000,000 people, struggling with poverty, devastating tropical storms, and the U.S. Embargo, how did Cuba achieve these goals and distinction?  What can we learn from Cuba's struggles and successes?  

Born in Havana in 1970, Roberto Perez is the Environmental Education & Biodiversity Conservation Program Director of the Antonio Núñez Jiménez Foundation for Nature and Humanity, the oldest environmental organization in Cuba.  A graduate of the University of Havana with a degree in Biological Sciences, he later did post graduate specialization in Community Based Natural Resources Management at the University of Nova Scotia, Canada.

Roberto has been part of the Cuban Permaculture movement since its introduction in the country in 1993 after the so called "Special Period", caused by the collapse of the Soviet Union when Cuba lost access to oil, fertilizers, pesticides, and virtually all trading partners that the small island nation depended on to survive, facing economic collapse overnight.  Roberto has traveled extensively presenting Cuba's approach to sustainable living in the face of declining petroleum and other non-renewable resources.

As part of the Cuban Organizing Group for the upcoming International Permaculture Convergence in November, Roberto is touring the U.S. in support of scholarships for IPC11 attendees from sometimes cash poor, but skill rich countries and USA , wanting to attend and share their work & projects with other Permaculturists from around the world.

Traditionally International Permaculture Convergences take place every 2 years and switch between continents & hemispheres.  Past host sites have been Australia, USA, New Zealand, Scandinavia, Nepal, Croatia, Brazil, Africa & most recently Jordan in the Middle East.

The event takes place on Saturday, August 24, 6:00pm-8:30pmFirst Unitarian Church of Oakland, 685 14th St, Oakland, CA 94612. 
Corner of 14th St. and Castro
Street parking5-block walk from the 12th Street BART StationDonation of $15-$20, no reservations needed. 

https://www.facebook.com/events/197573503736629
More Info – Vanessa Carter <vanessa at oaec.org> and/or Kendall Dunnigan <kendall at oaec.org>

--

Vanessa Carter
School Garden Program Director

Occidental Arts and Ecology Center
15290 Coleman Valley Road
Occidental, CA 95465
707.874.1557 x 102
707.874.1558 fax
www.oaec.org
www.facebook.com/theOAEC
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