So my Oasis Farm and life partner, Wayne Morgenthaler, and I attended a fall bundle of necessary events, sessions led by amazing, brave, smart, guys and gals determined to save the humans from global warming, fire, alienation from nature, the breakdown of the American agricultural system WITH a dedication to justice all around: WE ARE ALL ONE and should speak kindly to one another and play fair (in a perfect world, graciously). These fine folk and their good works need our support!
Each group says their say differently and yet mirrors the others (there are still more groups to engage us!):
Bioneers calls for Revolution From the Heart of Nature (right on! Biomimicry, study of how Nature settles its challenges, could just barely save us!)
Ripple the World: is the annual HUMONGOUS fundraising breakfast for Daily Acts, committed to the belief that Daily Acts of goodness people and planet accomplish DO make a difference so Take Heart; Take Part; Take Action! Trathen Heckman, founder, visionary, is also a fixture at Bioneers as well as Board President of Transition US, based in Sebastopol. I was fascinated to hear at the DRAWDOWN Marin session at Bioneers, “We want to do more of what is happening in Sonoma County” – a reflection of the good works of Daily Acts from three people at my breakout table! WE ARE ALL ONE…
DRAWDOWN “The only comprehensive plan to reverse global warming” according to creator/editor/organizer/author, Paul Hawken, brings workshop participants to the chant “It’s not game over, it’s Game On!”. Makes great sense – the odds for our survival and wellbeing now at terrible risk, we still have a fighting chance, so fight as if your grandchildren’s world is at stake and it is!
We attended Farmers Guild/CAFF Pitchfolks and Policy annual gathering to keep us abreast of regulations regarding CA agriculture with focus on organic and permaculture farms. What on earth IS happening to the Farm Bill? Held up by Congress? Who gets hurt because of that? And how can we help? Call our Congress people on each issue; put them on speeddial. With this report out, Evan Wiig, Farmers Guild, and Wendy Krupnik, CAFF, and friends keep us tentatively hopeful amidst muddy and often worrisome policy news.
Center for Climate Protection held “The Impossible is Possible” thank you evening for donors which we are – and we received a cc of Adam Hochchild’s fine Bury The Chains tome about how mostly one determined Englishman reversed policy on slavery – only took 63 years! Message: Don’t give up the planet just yet! And they do a great deal to protect, preserve, restore the health of California lands and people not only in SoCo but Silicon Valley and now Central Valley. Clean energy all around, EV cars and much much more!
So very much crucial info. just in these sessions, seems never to end when you engage in the work, when you listen to Bioneers Radio, when you get involved with any or all of these groups. I’m overcome: MEGO, My Eyes Glaze Over, and must write out some of it in order to make any sense of the terribly/wonderful parade of events, people, portends, possibilities!
Memorable people and ideas from Sat. at Bioneers (check out the whole conference and archives at Bioneers.org). My name badge read Pathways Forward, which we all desperately need whether or not we know it! A tortoise graced my name badge carrying an enormous array of plant life! Bioneers, again bidding us Dig In for almost 30 years now!
– Introduction Sat. was by Kenny Ansubel, with wife, Nina, co-creators with cohorts of the whole Bioneers experience – a marvelous melange of activists from around the globe, their activist artist friends, children, elders; magical community you just dip into – or stick with for the rest of your life. I do some of each, stepping into Bioneers the conference each year, sending money, listening on occasion to Bioneers Radio, now athttps://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/bioneers-revolution-from-heart/id965064938 and covering every immaginable topic related to living in accord with nature, protecting and regenerating our planet and our relationships with each other. Always expecting to do more with Bioneers.
We heard:
– Google Earth’s Rebecca Moore, herself and associates responsible for changing 30 miles of what would be cut timber into a 30 mile open space near Santa Cruz
– The Ceibo Alliance Leadership Team, Guardians of the Forest on the frontlines in the Amazon, told us of their own small children lost to oil company pollution, use of ayahuasca for spiritual and farming practices and healing, tribe members afraid of huge corporations taking away their home, the forest, our lungs and real danger lurking in the near future.
– Destiny Arts Youth Performance Company of Oakland DANCED amazingly, vibrantly, lovingly.
– Kevin Powell elaborating on gender inequality, racism, how to be more loving humans by first exploring where we are not. Bought and love his book, My Mother, Barack Obama, Donald Trump and the last stand of The Angry White Man.
– Gar Alperovitz on Why We Need A Next System…yes. More to come on that am sure!
Loved being temporary part of Climbing Poetree at Bioneers – I got to help write a Visionary Sci-Fi story with a roomful of smart, sweet, caring people! SOOOO Fun and we imagined a cryonically frozen personage of Donald Trump and his military/money friends meet up with Amazonian trees who knew a magic song which wiped out aggression and turned violent, selfish people into TREE LOVERS!
Daily Acts? Well, heart and mind-warming with projects you can dig into in your own backyard, neighborhood, county while the core group stretches its good solid ideas further each year. Immense amounts of grey water have been captured, turned out into yards and gardens, saved by the remarkably simple process of reusing it and each city in Sonoma County participates. Again, not done in a day’s work; Daily Acts is about 18 years young and overbooked at its fantastically uplifting Ripple the World breakfast full of prayer flags painted by kids of all ages, pretty much every government official you can name in the county attends and the whole is overflowing with positive energy. There are benchmarks to celebrate here: Sonoma Clean Power is working! Sonoma Compost will return as Renewable Sonoma; the community that is Daily Acts is still in growth mode and looks to go on forever.
Same day we attended Farmers Guild/CAFF, the Pitchforks and Policy event held yearly to inform us of impending agricultural regulations – what to say about young smart farmers and their friends who work tirelessly to protect and enhance the experience of the threatened small farms, small organic farms, in California so we can continue to grow organically, sustainably, with our hearts on our sleeves. Seems the Farm Bill is in limbo as are the benefits carefully put in place as the SNAP or CalFresh program – which gives people who are food insecure twice face value when they use the coupons at farmers markets. Why any government would want to end this life saving and life affirming project is beyond me, but the program is severely challenged, adding insult to injury by making it known those who use SNAP may put their immigrant status in jeopardy.
Amazing, Scary, Uplifting calls to action from all sides!
So, with the fullness of the moon, my brain on overload, my heart both filled with joy and fear, I work to make each day count toward renewal of life, protecting and regenerating our only home, earth.