The rise in Extinction Rebellion has been fast and impactful.
Beginning in 2018, the non-violent civil disobedience marches have brought people from across the world together in a bid to make global governments wake up to climate crisis and take immediate action to reverse it.
Permaculture has been around since the 1970s, and due to Bill Mollison's indepth research with Indigenous people, it is an approach that has really been around much longer as, for traditional people, its teaching about Earth Care is a way of life.
Extinction Rebellion and the global permaculture movement, working towards climate solutions, have a lot they can share with each other to reach their common goal.
Extinction Rebellion are calling for a healthy and resilient planet and culture, reversing ecological breakdown.
"This is no small task, and knowing where to start when creating these thriving communities can be a real challenge.
"This is where permaculture design can help, offering a framework through which a vision can be articulated and a roadmap defined for how to get from where we are to where we want to be. Additionally, the solutions-based design framework of permaculture can create an environment for long-term change and extend XR’s work beyond the ‘revolutionary moment’ far into a post-carbon future,” says the Permaculture Association
And what can the permaculture movement learn from Extinction Rebellion?
"The movement is inherently non-hierarchical, and the support given within and across the XR affinity groups during the protests demonstrated real people care in action. This quality has also been manifest in the use of participatory democracy processes such as people’s assemblies to make sure all voices are heard and valued equally in meetings. It could add significant value to decision-making processes in permaculture design.
"They have very clear aims articulated in their three demands, which has facilitated communication of their purpose in order to gain support. A diversity of communication channels have also helped this - effectively using social media in conjunction with face-to-face local meetings to spread their message." Permaculture Association
For more on exploring the edges between Permaculture and Extinction Rebellion, see Permaculture Association's post: https://blog.permaculture.org.uk/articles/exploring-edges-between-permaculture-and-extinction-rebellion
Useful links
Gentle living to Extinction Rebellion: In PM99. Available to all subscribers with their FREE digital access to back issues
Pollinating protest: Being active, being activist
Watch: How Earth Protectors can stop Ecocide
