All posts tagged: Australia

Day 5: An alternative to the Economic System via an Eco Village

Published by

We need an Intergenerational rebellion! That was the essence of the presentation by Helena Norberg-Hodge, an author, filmmaker, Global Eco Village founder and pioneer of the ‘new economy’ movement. Check her out, especially her film The Economics of Happiness (trailer here). Did you know that under the current economic system of trade agreements, governments can actually be sued by the Multinationals if they bring in any legislation which affects their profit-making capacity?? Countries literally export and import the same product, such as beef in America, and 97% of ‘money’ is made of thin air and run by algorithms. *shakes her head in disbelief and sadness But WE can BE the change! Despite all the depressing facts and figures she has collated from round the world, Helena remained positive, and upbeat, with a simple yet profound call to change direction from a global economy to a local one.  And shopping locally at the Farmers’ Markets is a gold-star resistance action-  did you know people have TEN TIMES more conversations at the Markets than the supermarket? We also need …

Day 5, 6, and 7 of Eco Village Intensive: my brain is fried sorry, I can’t do it yet

Published by

6.30 am now in Australia. This morning is Day Seven: a walk on the actual land, meeting under the giant fig tree. Last night was the Farewell Talent Night- not because we’re losing our talents, but because the Intensive is finishing. Seven days, 9-5, plus nightly optional activities… plus our real lives/work/families/blogs etc on top of that. MY BRAIN IS FRIED. And yes, I’m shouting a little bit there. So I’m pausing for a couple of days to recalibrate, then will write about the remaining days. Because, of course, The Blog Must Go On. But not at the expense of my sanity, which I’m sure you support. In gratitude for the Pause Button when I need it, and much love, G xO 

Eco Village learning Intensive Day Four: Permaculture

Published by

Day Four started with a 6am drive in the opposite direction, so I could teach a Pilates class. But my reward was this view of the extinct volcano Mt Wollumbin or Warning, on whose ancient skirts of lava we live and grow our food. Once I’d arrived at the retreat, we launched into Permaculture, formally created in the 1970s in Tasmania by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren. If you haven’t heard of it, PLEASE research it; I first heard about it in the mid-eighties when my then-boyfriend was finishing his Landscape Architecture degree in Sydney, and I can’t believe so little of it has been adopted. *sighs “‘Consciously designed landscapes which mimic the patterns and relationships found in nature, while yielding an abundance of food, fibre and energy for provision of local needs. People, their buildings and the ways in which they organise themselves are central to permaculture. Thus the permaculture vision of permanent or sustainable agriculture has evolved to one of permanent or sustainable culture.” Holmgren Design 2018 A truly passionate and highly-skilled Permaculture …

Eco Village learning Intensive, Day Three

Published by

Today was a real talkfest; I’m worded out! I drove straight from the rainforest to the beach, and walked silently along the sand for sunset, not even listening to music as I often do. I just needed quiet. But now I’m home, and keen to blog about the 3rd day’s topic, which was Dynamic Governance (DG), or Sociocracy. Have you heard of that? It’s an alternative structure to use rather than Democracy, Autocracy, or Anarchy to make decisions- it involves aiming for Consensus, or complete agreement, where everyone’s input is equal- whereas Democracy goes by majority vote, and Autocracy is one single person wielding power. That’s a big ask. Imagine trying to get 80 people to agree on whether the Eco Village should allow cats and dogs?? But that’s what they did, using ‘Circles’ of representatives of each of the 3 positions they narrowed it down to: No pets allowed Pets allowed Pets in transition i.e. you can bring your old cat or dog, but once it dies, you can’t replace it. Dynamic Governance has 3 …

Eco Village Intensive, Day Two

Published by

If you’ve missed what’s going on, please read about Day One here. After a huge day of study, I’m a bit exhausted as I blog this. But, I have had an Empathy Bath! Do you know what that is? Well, I’ll tell you later… First, we have to do the 9am Check in. So we all arrive, to sit in our wooden chair circle, then rather than ask how we’re feeling, the facilitator sends us out into the bush to find a plant that embodies how we’re doing today. Fine. I was awake till 1.30, and so was ’17’; we have no idea why we couldn’t sleep (an overstimulating dahl and rice?). The cat also escaped, so wanted to come in at 5am (by the way, there’s a No Pets policy at the proposed Eco Village, so I’ll be happily bringing that up with him real soon). We overslept, then the tradesman arrived at 8.15 as we were cranking up for that final 10-minute frenzy before actually leaving home… Anyway, everyone returned to the sacred …

Normal programming suspended: Day One

Published by

So, I launch into the first day: interested, a little nervous, definitely excited. The driveway to the study retreat feels special, tucked down a dead end road up in the hinterlands- the actual eco village site is still in negotiation with the local Council for approval. What is an Eco-village? One of the main facilitators is a member of the Global Eco Village Network, which summarises over 40 years experience of community living worldwide, reflecting on what’s worked. In essence, it’s an alternative to the way so many of us currently live, that aims to be sustainable and regenerative. We were Welcomed to Country by a young Indigenous woman, who performed a smoking ceremony for us by the rushing creek. It was a wonderfully sacred way to start the proceedings. There are 21 of us, from a variety of backgrounds and places, between ages 25-70, and attending for a number of reasons. Some, like me, are curious, and investigating alternative options for living, especially as we age; others want a safe place to raise their …

Normal programming has been temporarily suspended, because…

Published by

… because I’m attending a 7-day intensive on the creation of an intentional Eco Village community near the beach, so I’ve decided to try and blog about each day’s events, partly as a way of integrating all the experiences. “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead The vision is a Permaculture-based village, with clusters of dwellings, and shared community resources, such as a school, a restaurant, a community centre, a swimming pool and a small commercial centre that will include a general store, a medical centre and a community bank. “We’re doing things differently. We’re challenging the mainstream concept that success = ownership and are advocating for the concepts of success = connection and success = energy independence, but also success = interdependence.” BEV website 2018 One of the most basic premises is that no one ‘owns’ their home; they’ll already be built by local architects and builders, to passive-solar designs, then you buy a share in the Village, and pay a weekly …

Fiction Friday: Full long version of short story “Roadside”

Published by

  Hello All- I’m posting this Australian fiction short story in its entirety, so feel free to skip this post if that’s not yer thing obviously. Make a cuppa and spend five minutes with Lucy and Eris, as several readers commented that they’d prefer a longer read, to sink into it, so I decided to post the full story. This piece won tiny accolades in several small writing competitions here, although it’s a few years old now. I hope you enjoy it, and thanks so much for reading. In gratitude for words, G xO    “Roadside”- (c) bone&silver 2018 Lucy’s silver waterfall hair tilts when she moves. The tiny peace badge on her jumper glints. She leans like a rusty hinge to stroke the cat, book forgotten. Elegant fingers smooth the purring animal. She always wears gloves when gardening, and marinates in moisturiser every night. Like Cleopatra, she wishes she could bathe in milk. She knows she looks good for her age, but still bristles against seeming ‘invisible’ to anyone under thirty. She can remember …

World Weds/Random Thurs combo: What we can all do about plastic, ‘cos it sure ain’t fantastic

Published by

I walked on the beach here in Australia yesterday morning after the farmers’ markets; it was wild! I’ve never seen the water so high, and I wouldn’t swim in that ocean if you paid me money; it was thrashing, and whirling. Still, I pounded my way up and down for 45 minutes, as I’m beginning training for a 4-day hike… but that’s another post (and hence the fairly ugly new boots I’m breaking in, and old shorts- sorry ‘H’, I know you don’t really like them. *grins) The point is, I began to pick up bits of litter/plastic. I always do, but this time, perhaps because of the storms and rain we’ve just had here, there was much more. Which reminded me of this fantastically-informative, well-laid out, beautifully-photographed blog I like to follow called The Zero-Waste Chef. Whose recent post was called Go Plastic-Free in 2018 (or Close to It). Please check it out, and let yourself be inspired. Let’s do it together! What ways do you think you could easily reduce your plastic consumption? Here’s …

Me Monday: celebrate Australia Day? No damn way. And here’s why

Published by

I emigrated to Australia in early January 1987, aged 20. Moved into a run-down three level terrace house in a dodgy inner suburb of Sydney, and began settling in to the new ways, sights and scents of my adopted home. The smell of sickly sweet mangoes rotting and fresh frangipani flowers still triggers memories of my first real Australian summer. A national day of celebration was quickly upon me: January 26 is nominated as ‘Australia Day’, celebrating the first arrival of Captain Cook, who claimed this land for the British Crown. It’s a public holiday 3-day weekend, involving beer, barbecues, and ridiculous waving of the ugly Australian flag with patriotic pride. That particular morning dawned hot, and outside our scruffy student home, on a wide street where the heat was already shimmering off the asphalt, folk began to gather in the park. There were banners, drums, didgeridoos, ochre body painting, and cardboard signs everywhere, plus lots of black. Black armbands, black T-shirts, black flags, and of course black, brown, white, and pink faces. It was a …