In January, HopeDance
Magazine published the article "Peace
through Permaculture: Choosing a Sustainable Way of Life."
The article was written in response to the events of September 11th.
We're honored that the article has been adapted by others.
In Jerusalem, the article was transformed by Eli Kaufman to promote
the Sustainable Jerusalem - Peaceful Permaculture Project:
...In Jerusalem we've been cultivating the links between peace
and permaculture since 1998, when the Society for the Protection
of Nature in Israel established a compost and urban gardening program
as a holistic strategy to foster community-based solutions to restore
soil, water and biodiversity for all residents of Jerusalem's diverse
communities....
...The path of "peace through permaculture" offers a
more hopeful solution than "peace through military attack-retaliation."
We encourage people from all communities in Jerusalem to visit us
to learn more about permaculture and join us on the pathway for
a sustainable Jerusalem for all.
In a recent response to an email about the escalation of violence
and the impact it has on the community's ability to work together,
Eli wrote: "Yes, we are quietly working together. Many good
years of friendship have deep roots, even in this time" and
he sent the following excerpt from the Jerusalem Cityfarmers newsletter
(March 2002):
'If you're here, please come see our garden. It has a lot of new
energy - and even a lemon tree! I love it. My second generation
kale is going to seed - and did I tell you that it magically restored
itself after it had some weird stuff on it. Amanda told me to pull
it out but I only succeeded in breaking the stalks? New leaves grew
and I had a whole new batch...amazing. Ruth Mason'
The plant that survives adversity sets deep roots, and pulls in
its strength until nourishing conditions return. This plant is the
strongest. The renewed growth is more vital than the earlier generation.
There is power and potential in the work that we are doing, the
seeds that we are planting. This is the inner power of regeneration
of our people; our plants deeply rooted in the soil.
May our Garden set forth new shoots and resilient seeds for the
future.
We ask people to visit the website of Hopeflowers
just south of Bethlehem, and support their school garden:
We invite partnerships and contact with other cityfarmers.
Kindly,
Eli Kaufman <humus1@clinic.net>
