[Southern California Permaculture] Soil Not Oil/Reporting Back/Individual Reports/we share!

Thu Sep 1 12:16:51 PDT 2016

We have been sharing reports from the recent Soil 
Not Oil conference we attended in Richmond CA a 
few weeks ago on facebook...but forgot to share with our PC listserves!

You can learn more about the conference tonight 
at the Soil Not Oil Reporting Back event taking 
place at Explore Ecology/Art from Scrape Art 
center (see event info below), but if not able to 
attend,  please enjoy & learn from the individual 
posts we will continue to share next few 
weeks.  It was an exceptionally good conference, 
with local & global activists determined to 
create a better future for ourselves and the 
planet. Our initial reports, more to come...

<<<>>>

We continue to report back from the recent Soil 
Not Oil conference in Richmond, CA.  Margie 
Bushman attended the workshop session with Dr Ann 
Lopez, was profoundly moved by her talk, 
encourages others to learn about her work.

Workshop Session: Alternative Agriculture:  Food & Social Justice for All
Presenter:  Dr. Ann  Lopez, Executive Director of 
Center for Farm Worker Families, author of The Farmworkers Journey.

Ph.D. in Environmental Studies, UC Santa Cruz, 
2002 Dissertation Title: From the Farms of West 
Central Mexico to California’s Corporate 
Agribusiness: The Social Transformation of Two 
Farming Regions.  http://www.farmworkerfamily.org/mission/

The current agro-industrial farming model is 
anathema to ecological principles that maintain 
and restore the biosphere.  Agro-industrial 
farming is responsible for 30-40% of so-called 
greenhouse gases, using a tremendous amount of 
oil-based synthetic agrochemicals and pesticides 
with much of it is dependent on a virtual class 
of slave laborers who often live in grinding poverty.
Illuminating the dark side of economic 
globalization---Dr Ann Lopez shares a rare 
insider's view of the migrant farm workers 
life.  With up-to-date research portraying a 
world hidden from most Americans—a world of 
inescapable poverty that has worsened 
considerably since NAFTA was implemented in 
1994.  In fact, today it has become nearly 
impossible for rural communities in Mexico to 
continue to farm their land sustainably, with 
cheap corn from the USA flooding their markets, 
they are unable to compete,  leaving few survival 
options except the perilous border crossing to 
the United States, arriving as undocumented 
workers with literally no rights, women and 
children often the most vulnerable.
This current global laissez-faire economic model 
is aggravating negative trends in the name of 
profits over the health and well-being of people 
and planet.  Scientific studies have shown that 
there are alternatives that can protect and 
restore the planets ecosystems, while providing a 
sustainable life for the farm workers who 
maintain the crops.  This talk explores three of 
the most common cropping systems: agro-industrial 
farming, agro-industrial organic farming, and 
agro-ecological farming.  We will discuss the 
plight of the farm workers that are hired into 
these systems and conclude with a solid direction 
for the future well-being of the earth and all its inhabitants.

Farmworker Reality Tours in Watsonville/Next one August 21, 2016
contact: http://www.farmworkerfamily.org/events/

This tour will include members of the Lantern 
League (a nonprofit that supports women and 
girls). Tour participants will be challenged to 
learn about three current farming practices in 
the area, the role of NAFTA in forcing farm 
worker immigrants out of Mexico and into the U.S. 
as NAFTA economic refugees, and the conditions 
farm workers live with in the U.S. as they and 
their families struggle to survive grinding 
poverty, poor diet, crowded housing conditions, 
pesticide exposure, sexual harassment and no 
health insurance. These factors contribute to an 
average life expectancy of only 49 years for farm 
workers . Farm workers provide the labor 
responsible for the nation's supply of fruits, 
vegetables and nuts. Participants will assess 
whether or not we are doing enough to support the 
individuals that make up this critical labor force.

<<<>>>
What affects India, affects the world...

As many of you know, Wes Roe and myself (Margie 
Bushman) have been involved with the 
International Permaculture Convergences for more 
than ten years, the next one to be held in 
Hyderabad, India in 2017, when they will 
celebrate 30 years of permaculture! (http://ipcindia2017.org/)

Because of this, we were particularly interested 
in the talk given by Anandi Ghandi at the recent 
Soil Not Oil conference in Richmond CA.  India is 
an emerging superpower, the 7th largest economy 
in the world, also the largest democracy in the world.

In her presentation Anandi talked about India's 
dire water crisis, especially in the Western 
Ghats, the eight "hottest hot-spots" of 
biological diversity in the world, where both 
wildlife and farmers are under extreme duress.

A mountain range much less familiar to most of us 
than the young Himalayan range, the very old 
Western Ghats have soils great for farming, but 
vulnerable to the powerful storm events that are 
happening with increasing frequency with climate 
change--a single storm can sweep away all the 
soil of a farm, even a region, leaving only the  hard rock beneath.

Anandi mentioned permaculture has been a major 
inspiration in her life!  She will also be 
attending the North American Permaculture 
Convergence in Hopland, CA Sept 14-18, at the 
Solar Living Institute, a chance to meet and say hello if you are attending.

REPORTING BACK: Soil Not Oil Conference, Richmond, CA
India's Vanishing Water Crises & Community in the Western Ghats
Presenter: Anandi Gandhi

Talk Description:
The presentation focused on the NGO Grampari's 
work mainly with watershed management in villages 
of the Western Ghats mountain ranges of 
Maharastra; an Indian state increasingly affected 
by drought and climate change in India.

Grampari is a small non profit organization 
working with rural communities within this 
biodiversity hotspot.  The main thrust of 
Grampari's watershed work is on protection and 
recharge of springs and aquifers through a a 
community based approach.  The implementation of 
springs management and spring-shed development 
methods have had a direct impact on drought 
mitigation and increased accessibility of water 
for villagers and farmers in 14 villages.
The presentation highlighted how a large amount 
of strategic, determined and compassionate 
community building work has created a space for 
the emergence of an understanding of water as a 
common pool resource and the formation of the 
Ghujaldharak Samiti (Aquifer Protection 
Committee).  This committee is the first of its 
kind in India, and its members are from 6 
villages dependent on the health of the 
aquifer.  These simple solutions aim at providing 
both long-term ecological conservation and deep
personal change.

EVENT, Thur Sept 1, 2016:
Santa Barbara Permaculture Network presents

A Special Evening Gathering
  Reporting Back from
the 2nd Annual International Soil Not Oil Conference
Thurs, Sept1, 7-9pm, 2016 - FREE

Location: Art from Scrap Art Center (outdoors)
302 E Cota St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
[]

Discussion & Short Films about Soil & Carbon Farming
  including excerpts from
  the soon to be released Seeds of Vandana Shiva 
documentary; The Soil Solution to Climate Change 
by Jill Cloutier & Carol Hirashima;
Losing Ground, with Guner Tautrim, & Kiss the 
Ground short film narrated by Woody Harrelson
Conference reports from Margie Bushman, Wes Roe 
of Santa Barbara Permaculture Network & others

Regenerative agriculture provides answers to the 
soil crisis, the food crisis, the climate crisis 
& the crisis of democracy. Vandana Shiva

This event a part of the ongoing Civics 101 for Climate Change series
[]

The 2nd Annual Soil Not Oil Conference in 
Richmond was organized to bring together farmers, 
ranchers, scientists, policy makers, NGOs and 
community leaders to explore how sustainable, 
regenerative agriculture practices can help mitigate global warming.

Speakers at the two day conference were both 
local and international and came with plenty of 
expertise & positive solutions.  Among the many 
presenters were John Roulac of Nutiva foods, 
speaking about the exciting developments of Green 
Wave 3D Ocean farming; Anandi Ghandi, talked 
about India's water crisis, especially in the 
Western Ghats, a biodiversity hot spot, where 
both wildlife and farmers are under extreme 
duress; Kiss the Ground, a group of young 
activists from California shared their strategies 
for making carbon sequestration and carbon 
farming understandable to mainstream America.

In the area of social justice, Dr. Ann Lopez of 
the Center for Farm Worker Families spoke 
passionately about her long term research on the 
impact of NAFTA on Mexico's farmers creating a 
flood of economic immigrants to the U.S. while 
losing the caretakers of the seeds and soils in 
Mexico.  SNAP (food stamps) were suggested as a 
creative way to support farmers who use best 
sustainable practices for the soil by encouraging 
use of SNAP benefits at local farmers markets.

Local politicians enthusiastically participated 
in the conference, including California 
Congressman Jared Huffman, Richmond's Mayor and 
Council members, with many citizen activist 
groups from the region in abundance.  Andrew 
Kimbrell, founder & Executive Director of the 
Center for Food Safety, and author/editor of 
Fatal Harvest, was the excellent keynote speaker 
who updated the audience on current legislature 
in Washington around food safety issues.

Come with your thoughts about positive directions 
for soil and the planet.  Event discussion will 
be facilitated by Wes Roe & Margie Bushman of the 
Santa Barbara Permaculture Network. Local 
organizations will participate and table.

Santa Babara Permaculture Network Logo

(805) 962-2571
P.O. Box 92156, Santa Barbara, CA 93190
margie at sbpermaculture.org
http://www.sbpermaculture.org

P Please consider the environment before printing this email

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