[GJM] Cuba - The World Leader!

[ecotort at gn.apc.org]

thank you Mary....

Cuba -  The World Leader!
What they have done is what I have been proposing for thirty years...
a state of emergency for the environment,
it is illegal to pay tax until it is done!

God Bless Fidel Castro and His Beard !   (Bob Dylan said that... :-) )


mary rose wrote:
> 
> The original message here is from the GJM list which originates in 
> England, so
> is locally-oriented. However, it does hold a "heads up" for people 
> everywhere as .
> these two sentence exhibits:  "Houses are being squeezed into any 
> available land & new communities are springing up all over the UK. It 
> is vital to embrace local food if we are to cope with the twin 
> challenges of climate change and Peak Oil:"
>  
> But the real jewel of this message is news of the documentary film: 
> "Power of Community" which tells the story of
> "Cuba's attempts to feed itself after the Soviet Union collapsed and 
> they lost 90% of their oil supply almost overnight ."  Here is a URL 
> http://www.powerofcommunity.org/cm/index.php for more on this film.
>  
> And here, written by Janaia Donaldson, a member of the Co-learner's 
> List, is a review of this film published by "Yes" magazine. 
>  
> The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil 	PDF 
> <http://www.powerofcommunity.org/cm/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=35> 
> 	Print 
> <http://www.powerofcommunity.org/cm/index2.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=35&pop=1&page=0&Itemid=49> 
> 	E-mail 
> <http://www.powerofcommunity.org/cm/index2.php?option=com_content&task=emailform&id=35&itemid=49> 
>
>
> Reviewed by Janaia Donaldson
> /Yes Magazine/
>
> Winter 2007 Issue
>
> âEURoeThe Power of CommunityâEUR? is creating excitement in 
> localization groups, and with good reason. In this film, individual 
> Cubans tell us how they responded to an artificially imposed 
> âEURoePeak OilâEUR? in the 1990s, when the fall of the Soviet Union 
> caused the loss of most food and oil imports. Their stories serve as a 
> valuable model for a world facing Peak Oil on a global scale. 
> CubaâEUR^(TM)s transition to a low-energy society is hopeful and 
> instructive.
>
> Interweaving a cogent overview of global Peak Oil with the story of 
> CubaâEUR^(TM)s experience, director Faith Morgan outlines the dire 
> consequences of CubaâEUR^(TM)s energy crisis. Transportation halted. 
> Electricity was available sporadically. Lacking substitutes for 
> fossil-fuel-based farming, food production was devastated. The average 
> Cuban lost 20 pounds.Morgan shows us the innovative responses of the 
> Cuban people. We see city-dwellers planting urban gardens on every 
> available plot, using permaculture and organic farming to reclaim 
> soils destroyed by chemical fertilizers and pesticides. These local 
> farmers reconnect with their neighbors and willingly supply free food 
> to elders, schools, workers, and pregnant women.
>
> We also see how Cuba coped with a sudden lack of energy for modern 
> infrastructure. Without fuel for cars, Cubans walked, carpooled, and 
> rode buses. They even massively adopted the bicycle, despite the prior 
> absence of a cycling culture. We also see Cubans creatively reducing 
> energy consumption in their homes and workplaces and implementing 
> small-scale renewable energy projects.
>
> Most of the innovations Morgan presents arose from the Cuban people, 
> but she shows how the government fostered them. To increase food 
> production, the government divided state farms into smaller private 
> farms and cooperatives. With smaller farms and local control, farmers 
> replaced fossil fuels with labor-intensive practices, animal power, 
> and Cuban-developed biopesticides and biofertilizers, resulting in 
> increased per-acre productivity.
>
> To help people survive, the Cuban government even expanded their free, 
> localized medical system.
>
> Cuba adapted, survived, and thrived because they mobilized their 
> entire culture. They made changes requiring cooperation, adaptability, 
> and openness to alternatives. As one Cuban in the film remarks, 
> âEURoeWhen told they needed to reduce energy use, everybody did it.âEUR?
>
> Janaia Donaldson is the host and producer of âEURoePeak Moment,âEUR? 
> www.peakmoment.tv <http://www.peakmoment.tv/>, a TV series about 
> community responses to Peak Oil.   
>
>  
>  
> ----- Original Message -----
> *From:* ecotort at gn.apc.org <mailto:ecotort at gn.apc.org>
> *To:* undisclosed-recipients
> *Sent:* Thursday, June 19, 2008 2:37 PM
> *Subject:* [GJM] Permaculture Association Ebulletin....Allotment petition
>
> **
> A*llotment petition***
>
> Houses are being squeezed into any available land & new communities 
> are springing up all over the UK. It is vital to embrace local food if 
> we are to cope with the twin challenges of climate change and Peak 
> Oil: if you have seen the excellent "Power of the Community" film 
> based on Cuba"s attempts to feed itself after the Soviet Union 
> collapsed and they lost 90% of their oil supply almost overnight, I am 
> sure you will agree.
> This is impossible unless all planning applications give space for 
> allotments as part of the green spaces allocation. As well as 
> providing low income families with cheap, fresh, healthy food and 
> helping to reduce food miles, gardening can reduce all the 
> physiological symptoms of stress within five minutes!
>
> The URL below links to a petition to parliament for all new 
> development to be obliged to include allotments (hopefully shopping 
> centres too). Could you forward it to everyone, and ask them to sign 
> and forward it on to friends and family.
>
> http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/moreallotments/
>
> Note that you must sign before 2nd August 2008.
>
>
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