[Terrapreta] A thoughtful article on the environment

[lou gold]

Thanks. I really like the sensibilities presented, even the part on cities.
Urban areas are now the driving force because they contain the crtical
mass (and masses). The problem is that the separation from the country
side results in lots of taking and no returning.  But iimagine what might
happen if all urban waste was turned into fuel and char with the char being
returned to the earth.

Right now the city returns nothing, except money to middle people and
suppliers of life's essentials. But cities can be the critical force that
saves
the environment. Case in point -- the Adirondack region of upstate NY has
a lot of protection (not perfect but truly a lot) only because it supplies
clean
drinking water to NY City. Having been in place for quite a time, the
reasons
for protection are now economic -- it would cost a fortune to replace
nature's
filtration system.

It has indeed been been a great problem that urban culture, consciousness
and connectivity has been so separated from the land. But it's equally
problematic
for rural and eco folks too see themselves as somehow separate from, or mere

suppliers to urban areas. This will sound radical, but I believe that
farmers
must save cities as much as urbanites must save farms. The challange is
for each of us to know our place and do our work with awareness and respect
for the other.

The cultural and agricultural magic of Terra Preta is that it brings high
density
populations into a creative and renewing relationship with the land --
offering the
the possibility of an Eldorado created by the earth's empowering brew.

OK folks, I'm  just offering some early morning ruminations from the center
of
São Paulo City, Brazil (South America's largest city) where the robins
outside
my window are singing fiercely and I'm feeling hopeful.

All best to all.

lou



On Nov 8, 2007 2:50 AM, Michael Bailes <michaelangelica at gmail.com> wrote:

> Those on the list may be interested in reading this thoughtful article on
> the environment.
> It 'sort of' touches on some of the issues we have been discussing like
> anthropomorphic climate change, stoves, 'wee beasties' global engineering
> etc.,
>
> The bit about cities is the weakest part of the article I thought.
>  A lot more can be done to green indoor environments,
> green building techniques and rooftop gardens for example.
>
> eg some quotes or go straight to the URL at
> http://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/20/science/earth/20MANA.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5070&en=cf9641d674858773&ex=1194584400
>
>   <http://www.care2.com/news/member/753310143/535056>
> --
> *MANAGING PLANET EARTH*
>
> Forget Nature. Even Eden Is Engineered.*By ANDREW C. REVKIN*
>
>  [image: N]early 70 years ago, a Soviet geochemist, reflecting on his
> world, made a startling observation: through technology and sheer numbers,
> he wrote, people were becoming a geological force, shaping the planet's
> future just as rivers and earthquakes had shaped its past.
>
> . . .
>
> Some scientists say it is anthropocentric hubris to think people
> understand the living planet well enough to know how to manage it. But that
> prospect is attracting more than 100 world leaders and thousands of other
> participants to the United Nations' World Summit on Sustainable Development,
> which starts on Monday in Johannesburg.
>
> . . .
>
> Human activity is such a pervasive influence on the planet's ecological
> framework that it is no longer possible to separate people and nature.
>
> . . .
>
> Although global population appears headed for a 50 percent increase in the
> next 50 years, for example, demand for food will likely double, as
> prosperity raises the per capita consumption of calories.
>
> . . .
>
> Nonetheless, optimists say they see signs of hope. Not the least of them
> is the intensifying dialogue on the problem, which includes parties as
> disparate as multinational companies and tribal bands.
>
> In essence, the human capacity for understanding the world is catching up
> with the human capacity to change it, Dr. Clark at Harvard said. "
>
> . . .
>
> Scientists have concluded that humans not only now dominate the planet,
> but have also become the dominant driver of natural selection, the machinery
> of evolution.
> Together, cooking fires and sputtering lanterns create indoor pollution
> that causes asthma and other ailments and that, in India alone, is estimated
> to kill 600,000 women a year.
>
> Dr. Pachauri's group has experimented with distributing solar-powered
> lanterns to rural communities. Other projects push cleaner ovens that use
> less-polluting fuels.
>
> . . .
>
> f farming does not change drastically in the next few decades, enormous
> ecological damage will result, many scientists say
>
> . . .
>
> The challenge now, he said, will be to double agricultural productivity
> without using substantially more land.
>
> . . .Some environmentalists say the whole notion of sustainable
> development is an oxymoron, that the Western industrial model of endless
> growth, however packaged, cannot possibly persist without grievous
> environmental damage
>
> . . .
>
> It may well end up being the case that local communities, here and abroad,
> lead the way in harmonizing people and the planet, he said.
>
> . . .
>
> "Most growth now comes from increased knowledge, not from the mining of
> nature," Professor Sachs said. "And knowledge isn't limited in the way that,
> say, soil fertility is.", , ,
>
> "That ferment," Dr. Kates said, "is the most encouraging sign."
>
> http://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/20/science/earth/20MANA.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5070&en=cf9641d674858773&ex=1194584400
>
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> Michael the Archangel
>
> "You can fix all the world's problems in a garden. . . .
> Most people don't know that"
> FROM
> http://www.blog.thesietch.org/wp-content/permaculture.swf
> _______________________________________________
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>



-- 
http://lougold.blogspot.com/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/visionshare/sets/
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