vue - Why Agriculture Can Never Be Sustainable, and a Permacultural Solution present by Toby Hemenway

1. Enlightening!
2. Thank you Toby for this insight!
3. Toby has so many things right ; it seems education has robbed him of of some of what is plainly right in front of him! if he could see the world as Tesla, or most indigenous peoples see it, then he could enjoy a much more fulfilled life.
4. agriculture's roots in fear and the beginning of a police state & unnecessary laws, slavery... yuuuge!
5. Ah yes bad bad white people, leave no chance out to bash whitey. He is probably not white but jewish, no sane white person would talk like that.
6. The story of permaculture vs agriculture is throughout the entire bible. Starting in Genesis, the Garden of Eden is a permaculture design and the curse is agriculture to Revelation where people become slaves to the system...
7. Ten thousand years of agriculture has devastated every ecosystem it has come in contact with? WHAT A BIG LIE! Tell that to the Incas and Mayans and Ameridians who practiced a highly productive self-regenerative agricultural system that can last practically forever and sustained their agricultural-based Empires for countless centuries. In one Spanish Chronicler's account accompanying the Spanish Conquistadores he said "IN THAT LAND HUNGER DOES NOT EXISTS".
   
   But the Spanish conquest for gold and silver and precious gems disrupted the agricultural infra-technostructure and manpower base that it is only a miracle that several Spanish Missionaries has the foresight and vision to write everything down in paper and to make as many copies as possible for one day they know this preserved knowledge will be of great use for the world, meaning the expanding Spanish Empire of theirs.
   
   The chinampa system can produce 3 times the yields of land based crops and produce produce 7 to 8 harvests a year. The terra-preta can produce a yield of 880% and several harvests a year.
   
   And both systems can sustain themselves indefinitely and freeing manpower because of their agricultural surplus to create an Empire that practically died out because of the Spanish conquest and by Old World European diseases that the Incas and Mayans has no natural resistance.
   
   They also use the annual Mexican marigold inter-planted with their potato crops to prevent potato blight and other plant and soil diseases and pests for countless millenniums. An another plant is the yerba de la pulga that practically repels insects away from their crops.
8. Great stuff in here. Some whiny, simplistic stuff too. One of his points at the end if to pick low hanging fruit in these progressive projects and actually be realistic. To title a presentation in an absolute that agriculture can never be sustainable is foolish. It can and must be a hell of a lot more sustainable than it is now, and small scale farms and homesteading are not always simply selfish individual pursuits nor was pioneer farming. Those people were mostly tough as nails individually and communally. The myth of the rugged individual can be a myth both ways.
9. Before I started this, I was thinking about how I love to learn this type of information... but I was expecting the talk to be slow or boring... I was completely wrong. That was outstanding. Very inspiring... the http://www.cityrepair.org/ movement in Oregon you talked about made me cry a little lol...
   
   what was said about agriculture disconnecting people from our food supply, and making us think that the "wild" is out there... and we're supposed to be in here... and that somehow we're supposed to be disconnected from mother nature for a reason... that was crazy.
   
   That was one hellova speech.
   
   Some of the notes I took in case they could help anyone: Agriculture is grounded in fear and scarcity. We were running out of the things that we were consuming, and we needed more, so we brought in agriculture, a system of continuous taking from the earth with out replenishing it... that system can only last for so long...
   On top of that, agriculture brought in a hierarchy, and rules and laws. Who gets what, who gets punished if they disobey.
   
   
   Permaculture is about grounding yourself in the abundance model, not the scarcity model. When you look at mother nature, it's full of abundance. You can take branches from a tree, and plant them in the ground in grow more trees.
   
   America was built on doing it alone... people came here as individuals, and made it on their own...
   That type of model isn't natural for us. We're built to make things happen together.
   
   Why garden on your property, to make food for yourself.... when everyone could be a part of it, growing things throughout the neighborhood, and brining people together.
   
   Permaculter Start with a plan. Observe what is available.
   What land, resources, skills and technology to do we have?
   Who’s going to help? Who will be friendly? Identify them, and create alliances.
   
   The Craigslist community section is a free place to advertise... - Meetup.com would be a great place to create a group, or join groups to find like minded individuals - And colleges could be an excellent resource for young energetic people that know that something is wrong, and want to be a part of a better world.
   
   What are the objections? "People will steal" - "what if ___?"
   Figure out the objections, and overcome them.
   
   Identify the people making policy. How can you make friends with them? Or with their friends? How do you create momentum?
   Our task is to re-design civilization. The rest of the world is waiting on us to re-envision our relationship with them.
   Permaculture is based on love and empowerment.
   
   I'm off to look at the last site you just talked about now permacultureskillscenter.org
   Thank you for that speech!
10. this is awesome :)
11. In everything I have found since starting to study permaculture and sustainability.
    
    AGRICULTURE is killing the planet.
    
    Farming done right is not Agriculture in my opinion.
12. Great presentation. The comparisons of earth spirits verses sky spirits is a good one. There is certainly a lot of gaia worship in permaculture. While I am neither judeo nor christian I do walk in the Scriptures as far as I understand. The idea of abundance verses scarcity and love/brotherhood verses egyptian slavery is very much grounded there. There is great abundance, health and prosperity in the ways of the Creator. While many permaculturists ascribe the bounty of the land, rain and sun to an impersonal "force" they are simply misdirecting. There is great abundance in the ways of the Creator which the judeo-christian religions are, in large part, not that familiar with. I actually feel most permaculturists are closer to the Creator than they realize while their religious counterparts are actually further away than they can admit.
13. Call it slavery, Toby. Call the Levitowns >> Plantations, please. :) let's say what is going on. <3
14. Thank you so much for this. :)
15. If we don't financially support a system we don't agree with, it will eventually die. Unfortunately, there are too many people who don't seem to be very worried or who flat out don't care enough to bother to make a difference. In all honesty, we are probably doomed, along with this beautiful planet. I'm trying with all my might to make a difference in my local community with my half perma, half mulched agriculture garden, some horticulture too. I don't fancy eating fruit and nuts all the time and i don't have the acreage, no offense. More and more people are coming over to take a look, having a taste, taking some food, talking some food. They're loving it, i'm loving it. I can talk all day and i grow surplusses of random potted herbs and veg to hand out, on purpose. Doesn't cost anything to motivate people to do something... maybe, i tried. Just a herb, just a cabbage, maybe the start of another madly passionate gardener, who knows. We are gardeners, we were born to do this and people will notice something cool when they see it. Too much preaching to the choir. It's the obvious people who will turn up for a workshop. It's the random unsuspecting passers by you want to capture. Do it, people will come and fall under it's spell. It naturally wants to flow that way.
    
    Thanks, PermacultureVOICES for another great talk! Love this channel.
    Peace and love to all the world.
16. As always Toby gives a captivating talk pulling back the covers on the unsustainable agriculture system society currently uses but still gives us hope explaining how and why it doesn't have to stay like this.
17. Great presentation! Wish the screen was more in view so I could see the presentation also.
18. The problem is obviously CROWN in all its CORPORATE manifestations, including perpetrating violence by the army, police and other govern ment officials. THATS the basis of the beginning of your speech.
    ag·ri·cul·ture
    the science or practice of farming, including cultivation of the
    soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide
    food, wool, and other products.
    fuctards who mow down massive amounts of forests and plant monoculture crops and put animals in cages all their lives is what you're moaning about. NOT the above done with sustainable methods and gentle cultivation.