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I left secondary teaching because…..

I left secondary teaching because…..

why formal education is not designed to face the ecological crisis

ENG

I left secondary teaching because…..

Feb 19, 2020

To everyone,

I am writing this letter to tell you, if you haven’t heard already, that I am leaving my position as a secondary school teacher. My last day, after ten years, was 10th February and I want to explain why I have taken this decision.

I remember very clearly on the way to school in October 2018 reading the Guardian headline “Humanity has wiped out 60% of animal populations since 1970“. I was stopped in my tracks with this devastating information, and realised that although I was aware of climate breakdown from the 2018 IPCC report, and the massive problems with plastic pollution, this was what was meant by the Sixth Mass extinction. I remember sitting at lunch with two colleagues, the conversation was normal… football and politics, but it all seemed so pointless compared to this revelation. I needed to start a conversation about it, I needed to find a way to bring it to people’s attention, and I decided to redirect the conversation and tell colleagues what I had read. 

I spent about a month in November 2018 walking around in a kind of daze. Greta had already started her Fridays For Future school strikes, Extinction Rebellion had formed and was preparing civil disobedience actions. The science was out there, the reports of climate breakdown and ecological collapse were occasionally hitting the headlines, but there was no reaction among people outside of the activists and journalists I already followed. Business as usual continued everywhere, including in secondary education. It became increasingly strange to me that schools, whose very existence is to educate future generations, were not reacting and sharing information about the most important issue humanity has ever faced. Our future is certain to include millions of climate refugees, devastating effects of climate and ecological breakdown at locations across the globe, it will not be “business as usual”. We need to prepare ourselves, and future generations, to cope with these problems, and ultimately solve them.

“I firmly believe that the multiple crises we are facing are symptoms of our pathological habit of understanding and experiencing ourselves as separate from nature, from each other, and from the community of life.”

I don’t know to what extent I can have a positive impact on reversing the ecological collapse, or delivering environmental education in a way that inspires and promotes behaviour change; I am one person among seven billion. But I know that my time is not usefully spent learning how to train students to get points on exams. I don’t believe that the formal education system has its priorities right, and I genuinely believe that students would learn more from a day in solitude in wild nature. I’m not the only one, these are quotes from Daniel Christian Wahl, PhD in his 2016 book “Designing Regenerative cultures”

“Most university graduates are equipped with outdated knowledge and skills by the time they graduate. Overspecialisation has limited their capacity for integrative, lateral and holistic thinking”

 “Making time for solitude in wild nature helps us to have the largest conversation we are capable of having with the world

As the new decade started I realised that since our future depends on the health of ecosystems everywhere, putting my energy into regeneration and promoting living-systems thinking is what I should be doing. To have any chance of achieving the transformation which will prevent run-away feedback cycles and the loss of most life on Earth, we need to raise everyone’s ecological and social literacy. The formal education system I know is not placing enough emphasis on this. The time limit to make these changes is 10 years. Last year it was eleven years, and nothing close to the scale of necessary action has been taken since we knew that.

As well as joining Extinction Rebellion, the Boodaville Association is where I will be dedicating my time from now on. I founded the association in 2016 with colleagues from sustainability and permaculture backgrounds, after eight years slowly building up an eco-education project on land I own in the Matarranya. We are running projects implementing organic regenerative agriculture, and well-designed holistic forest management, which are practical solutions that have been identified as critically important. But the most important change, as identified in a 2012 UN report entitled “Resilient People, Resilient Planet”, is empowering people to make sustainable choices. This shift can be achieved by the right kind of education, which I now firmly believe needs to include time in forests and natural spaces. 

In the future, or starting now, you all have the chance to be part of these solutions, or part of the social movements demanding action. Boodaville is a project about Permaculture, which is a word for ecological design, and I openly invite you to keep in touch with me and the work we are doing. With help from the EU we offer funded places for young people to learn in nature or to develop their own projects, and it would bring a genuine smile to my face to know that many of you think this is important as well.

At boodaville.org you can sign up to stay in touch with the project, please sign up!

If any of you are feeling overwhelmed by the reality of the “sixth mass extinction” and “climate breakdown”, you are not alone. A starting point to deal with these issues is a Deep Adaptation group and at the Climate Psychology Alliance they offer support and counselling.

Wake up, fear less, love more

Anna Louise Gurney,


CAST 

He abandonado educación de secundaria porque…

Posted on Feb 19, 2020

by boodaville

Carta a mis compañeras educadoras.

Os escribo esta carta para deciros, por si aún no lo habéis oído, que he decidido dejar la educación secundaria. Mi último día en la escuela, después de diez años, fue el 10 de febrero y quiero explicar por qué he tomado esta decisión. 

Me acuerdo con claridad el día de octubre de 2018 que leía por la mañana el titular de The Guardian “La humanidad ha aniquilado al 60% de las poblaciones de animales desde 1970“. 

Me detuve en seco con esta información devastadora, y me di cuenta de que, aunque ya era consciente de la crisis climática a través del informe del IPCC de 2018, y de los enormes problemas con la contaminación plástica, que a esto era lo que se referían con la Sexta Extinción Masiva. Recuerdo estar sentada en la comida con dos compañeros, la conversación era normal… fútbol y política, pero todo parecía tan fútil en comparación con esta revelación. Necesitaba involucrarme en una conversación al respecto, necesitaba encontrar una manera de compartir la gravedad del asunto, y decidí redirigir la conversación y decirles a mis colegas lo que había leído.

Pasé aturdida aproximadamente un mes en noviembre de 2018. Greta ya había comenzado sus huelgas escolares los viernes para el futuro, “Fridays For Future”; ya se había formado Extinction Rebellion, que estaba preparando acciones de desobediencia civil. La ciencia estaba clara, los informes del colapso climático y ecológico ocasionalmente aparecían en los titulares, pero no hubo reacción entre personas ajenas a los activistas y periodistas que ya lo seguíamos. Actuar con normalidad como si nada sucediese “business as usual” era la reacción dominante, incluso en la educación secundaria. Me resultaba cada vez más extraño que las escuelas, cuya labor es educar a las generaciones futuras, no reaccionaran y no compartieran información sobre el problema más importante que la Humanidad haya enfrentado. Nuestro futuro más que probablemente incluirá millones de refugiados climáticos, los efectos devastadores del colapso climático y ecológico en lugares de todo el mundo, no seguirá siendo “lo de siempre” (“business as usual”). Necesitamos prepararnos a nosotros mismos y a las generaciones futuras para hacer frente a estos problemas y, en última instancia, resolverlos.

“Creo firmemente que las múltiples crisis a las que nos enfrentamos son síntomas de nuestro hábito patológico de habernos comprendido y experimentado a nosotros mismos como seres ajenos a  la naturaleza, separados el uno del otro y de la red de la vida.”

No sé en qué medida podré tener un impacto positivo en revertir el colapso ecológico u ofrecer educación ambiental de una manera que inspire y promueva el cambio de comportamiento, tan sólo soy una persona entre siete mil millones. Pero sé que mi tiempo no está bien invertido enseñando a los estudiantes de cara a que obtengan nota en los exámenes. No creo que las prioridades del sistema de educación formal sean correctas, y realmente creo que los estudiantes aprenderían más con un día en soledad en la naturaleza salvaje que estando metidas dia si y dia también dentro de un edificio rectangular. Sé que no soy la única que piensa así. Éstas son citas del dr. Daniel Christian Wahl, en su libro de 2016 “Diseñando culturas regenerativas”. 

“La mayoría de los graduados universitarios están equipados con conocimientos y habilidades obsoletos para cuando se gradúan. La sobreespecialización ha limitado su capacidad de pensamiento integrador, lateral y holístico” 

“Pasar tiempo en soledad en la naturaleza salvaje nos ayuda a tener la mayor conversación que somos capaces de tener con el mundo “

!Cuando comenzó la nueva década, me di cuenta de que, dado que nuestro futuro depende de la salud de los ecosistemas en todas partes, poner mi energía en regeneración y promover el pensamiento de los sistemas vivos es lo que debería hacer!

Para tener alguna posibilidad de lograr la transformación que evitará los ciclos de retroalimentación y la pérdida de la mayor parte de la vida en la Tierra, necesitamos elevar la alfabetización ecológica y social de todos. El sistema de educación formal que conozco no está poniendo suficiente énfasis en esto. El límite de tiempo para hacer estos cambios es de 10 años. El año pasado quedaban once años, y aún no se han tomado medidas cercanas a la escala de acción necesaria desde que los científicos nos lo han comunicado!

Además de unirme a Extinction Rebellion, la Asociación Boodaville es donde dedicaré mi tiempo de ahora en adelante.

Fundé la asociación en 2016 con colegas de los ámbitos de de sostenibilidad y permacultura, y llevo ocho años construyendo lentamente un proyecto de educación ecológica en la tierra que poseo en Matarranya. Estamos ejecutando proyectos que implementen agricultura regenerativa orgánica y una gestión forestal holística bien diseñada, que son soluciones prácticas que se han identificado como de importancia crítica.

Pero el cambio más importante, como se identifica en un informe de la ONU de 2012 titulado “Gente resiliente, planeta resiliente”, es empoderar a las personas para que tomen decisiones sostenibles.

Este cambio se puede lograr mediante el tipo correcto de educación, que ahora creo firmemente que se debe impulsar con la inclusión de estancias en los bosques y espacios naturales.

En el futuro, o comenzando ahora, todos vosotros tenéis la oportunidad de ser parte de estas soluciones, o parte de los movimientos sociales que reclaman acción. Boodaville es un proyecto sobre Permacultura, que es una palabra para diseño ecológico, y os invito directamente a manteneros en contacto conmigo y con el trabajo que estamos haciendo. Con ayudas de la UE, podemos ofrecer plazas financiadas para que los jóvenes aprendan en la naturaleza o desarrollen sus propios proyectos, y sería una verdadera alegría para mí saber que muchos de vosotros pensáis que esto también es importante.

En boodaville.org o aquí podeis suscribiros para manteneros en contacto.

Si alguno de vosotros se siente abrumado por la realidad de la “sexta extinción masiva” y el “colapso climático”, no estás solo/a. Un punto de partida para abordar estos problemas es un grupo de Adaptación Profunda y en la Alianza de Psicología Climática ofrecen apoyo y asesoramiento.

Despierta, teme menos y ama más

Anna Louise Gurney,



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Reflection from the city : 13 Dec 2019

Reflection from the city : 13 Dec 2019

reflections on the state of the world

by boodaville

I’m sitting in the park crying.

Every day I think about what I can do to make the world better, every lesson I teach, every article I read and share, the path for Boodaville. The world is facing insurmountable problems.

Is it now ok to lie, ok to be racist, ok to be sexist?Arrogance and buffonary are what people want in a leader as the living systems all life relies on are destroyed, rates of deforestation are not slowing, carbon emissions are not being cut fast enough. For every article you share with examples of moving in the right direction I can find several going the opposite way, whale hunting, increased use of plastic, environmental activists being harassed and attacked. Even with the good news articles about tree planting I am concerned that it is not being done “well” (planting monocultre trees is not the same as planting a forest) Right now if we are going to implement solutions can we at least do them properly? it’s an important moment.

George Monbiots book Rewilding is one of the most inspiring books I’ve read recently. and I share here two examples of wonderfulness. But we can see from the rise of authoritarianism that this is not a time to sit and think “oh good” someone shared an article that makes me feel better. This is not to be ignored. Act. Even if it IS just riding your bike, planting some seeds, or just go and sit in a forest for hours and watch and feel what is going on. Take some time out to enjoy the real world, give up on Facebook and the BBC. Watch the Great Hack, let Deep Adaptation help you.

I feel terrible that Kira is going to witness and be affected by great human suffering and a less alive world, and almost certainly conflict and societal breakdown. We want to travel the world in 2023 but I honestly don’t know if the journey will be possible. Living in a world where people increasingly either accept the extinction of our species, or present solutions based on unethical solutions such as letting poor people suffer and die (The tories are already good at that with 1 in 3 children in the uk in poverty) is not healthy. I hope you don’t miss the NHS too much.

Nature is amazing. Permaculture is amazing. Love more, fear less. Hold your own.

I want to do more, I think it might be time to stop teaching posh kids. Not because of the kids, which I think are a target group for changing attitudes of the rich, but because the institution doesn’t as a whole promote ethics or eco values, and everyone is too busy with “bullshit job” style tasks to bring global issues/empathy into the classroom, either that or they don’t know/understand/care enough to do it. I haven’t got the capacity to educate on how the world is any more because resources and time are sucked away from me towards exam grades.

So anyway, if there’s anything else I could do that would be effective, it might be time. It might be way past time actually. What shall we do?

Can Permaculture Reverse Climate Chaos?

The story of a recoverable Earth




Quit my job




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Plans for Boodaville

Plans for Boodaville

Update on the current situation and on the future projects

ENG

Oct 25 2019

 

What actually happened in 2018 with the legal issues?

The police first came by during the fiesta in May 2018 and they told us to stop any camping on site. But then they came back, and kept coming back every few weeks to ask questions and make us feel uncomfortable. This was a big wake up call to re-activate the process of permission for the buildings, but we ran into problems and had a rather distressing realisation: that the eco-village plan is not a legal possibility. In September we started thinking about a new path for the project, and then in October 2018 we received a fine for 400 euros and decided to close up for winter.

What is the grand plan you have now? 

We have a new proposal for a project that is BIG, I shared it at Maranya Festival and now it’s time to take the first steps… 

We want to change education, change farming, and regenerate the ecosystem in the Vall Rovira. (doesn’t everyone? I mean the world isn’t going great right now)

We are looking for a small dedicated team of people to create a substantial long-term project. This includes funding, permaculture design, education, bioconstruction, farming, management, organisation and motivated hardworking people.

If you think this sounds amazing, it is! READ MORE HERE

 

What activities are you doing this year 2019?

This year we ran a youth exchange with participants staying in the local village, but it was very difficult logistically and we are not in a rush to repeat it. We also have 4 long term volunteers who live in the village and go by bike to Boodaville every morning. Part of their job is to share and educate about permaculture via social media, since no-one actually comes to visit!

We upscaled the festival and moved to a new and brilliant location, it is now the Maranya Festival, and it took place in May 2019.

In the end it has been outstandingly positive to collaborate with the local village Caseres. We are sharing our permaculture designs with the locals and working together with the mayor and the local government there. The idea of “community” has shifted from being an “eco-village” of a few people in the valley, to being a collaboration with a wider network of people. In the end, if there are empty houses in the village, and it’s only 15 mins by bike to the site… do we really need to build houses in the valley? Is the whole project richer for being more open and collaborative, and impacting local people?

What is the future of the Boodaville site?

The long-term vision of what will happen at Boodaville has changed, and we are now looking towards a future as an educational demonstration site offering 2 or 3 courses a year, and undergoing the rest of the activities as day visits only. The process to do this legally is underway, but will take months or longer. We are developing a “Social Interest Report” to demonstrate to the local council why our activities should continue, and we will then work with Rafa, a man who knows about planning permission, and the local mayor, to agree on what measures need to be taken for health and safety to do this.

Next year, 2020 we are planning a quiet year on site, with no volunteers and no activities while we go through this process.

 

CAST

 

Oct 25 2019

¿Qué sucedió en 2018 con los problemas legales?

La policía vino por primera vez durante la fiesta en mayo de 2018 y nos dijeron que detuviéramos cualquier campamento en el sitio. Pero luego regresaron, y seguían regresando cada pocas semanas para hacer preguntas y hacernos sentir incómodos. Esta fue una gran llamada de atención para reactivar el proceso de autorización de los edificios, pero tuvimos problemas y nos dimos cuenta de que el plan de ecoaldea no era una posibilidad legal. En septiembre comenzamos a pensar en un nuevo camino para el proyecto, y luego en octubre 2018 recibimos una multa por 400 euros y decidimos cerrar por el invierno.

¿Cuál es el gran plan que tienes ahora?

Tenemos una nueva propuesta para un proyecto GRANDE, la compartí en el Festival de Maranya y ahora es el momento de dar los primeros pasos …

 

Queremos cambiar la educación, cambiar la agricultura y regenerar el ecosistema en la Vall Rovira. (¿No es la visión de todxs? Que el mundo no está yendo genial en este momento)

Estamos buscando un pequeño equipo de personas para crear un proyecto sustancial a largo plazo. Esto incluye financiación, diseño de permacultura, educación, bioconstrucción, agricultura, gestión, organización y personas trabajadoras motivadas.

Si crees que esto suena increíble, ¡lo es! LEER MÁS AQUÍ

¿Qué actividades está haciendo este año 2019? 

Este año realizamos un intercambio de jóvenes con participantes que se quedaron en el pueblo local, pero fue muy difícil logísticamente y no tenemos prisa por repetirlo. También tenemos 4 voluntarios a largo plazo que viven en el pueblo y van en bicicleta a Boodaville todas las mañanas. Parte de su trabajo es compartir y educar sobre la permacultura a través de las redes sociales, ¡ya que nadie viene a visitarnos!

Mejoramos el festival y nos mudamos a una nueva y brillante ubicación, ahora es el Maranya Festival, y tuvo lugar en mayo de 2019.

Al final, ha sido muy positivo colaborar con el pueblo local de Caseres. Estamos compartiendo nuestros diseños de permacultura con gente local y trabajando juntos con el alcalde y el ayuntamiento allí. La idea de “comunidad” ha pasado de ser una “ecoaldea” de unas pocas personas en el valle, a ser una colaboración con una red más amplia de personas. Al final, si hay casas vacías en el pueblo, y son solo 15 minutos en bicicleta hasta el sitio … ¿realmente necesitamos construir casas en el valle? ¿Es todo el proyecto más rico por ser más abierto y colaborativo e impactar a la gente local?

¿Cuál es el futuro del sitio de Boodaville?

La visión a largo plazo de lo que sucederá en Boodaville ha cambiado, y ahora estamos mirando hacia el futuro como un sitio de demostración educativa que ofrece 2 o 3 cursos al año, y se somete al resto del actividades como visitas de un día solamente. El proceso para hacer esto legalmente está en marcha, pero tomará meses o más. Estamos desarrollando un “Informe de Interés Social” para demostrar al consejo local por qué nuestras actividades deberían continuar, y luego trabajaremos con Rafa, un hombre que sabe sobre permisos de planificación, y el alcalde local, para acordar qué medidas deben ser tomado por salud y seguridad para hacer esto. El próximo año, 2020, estamos planeando un año tranquilo en el sitio, sin voluntarios y sin actividades mientras pasamos por este proceso.

 

 

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¡¡Boodaville Random Prize Raffle!!

¡¡Boodaville Random Prize Raffle!!

Boodaville is fundraising this month with a prize raffle

Posted on Feb 4, 2019

by boodaville

(en castellano abajo)

…..Fundraising – Campaign deadline 17 March….

We are fundraising this month with a prize raffle – offering you the chance to win a selection of random and wonderfully creative prizes.

As you know we are a registered not-for-profit environmental association, and this fundraiser is to cover the costs of the next step in the development of our permaculture demonstration site and education centre. Our long term goal is the development of a working example of an eco-community that live regeneratively – leaving the world better than they find it.

We will be drawing the raffle in Poble Sec, Barcelona on the 17th March. You are all welcome to join us at this celebration of the project where you can learn more about our future!

Raffle tickets are only 1 euro each, so maximise your chances and grab a few!! We have members of the Boodaville team selling tickets all over the place, or contact Anna Boodaville via facebook. We will happily accept online payments direct to the Association if you want to support us that way!

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A little story about this year..

A little story about this year..

visit of Can Masdeu and life in Boodaville

Posted on Nov 14, 2017

One Sunday in September I went up towards the eco-community at Can Masdeu on a mission. It was before the open days had started for this season, and even after my best attempts at persuasion, Kira and Bernat weren’t that keen to come with me, so they got off the metro early and went to the Labyrinth park. I carried on, went quickly and sweatily up the track to Can Masdeu to collect cuttings and seeds from the Italian Buckthorn trees up there in the food forest. I didn’t see anyone, did the job, then went to find the family in the park. I can’t say it was a bad day.

At home the next day I put some lentils on wet kitchen paper in a tupperware and left them to germinate.

A few days later I arrived at Boodaville with happy tree cuttings in water, sprouting lentils, and a link to the youtube video that shows you exactly how to mix them together so those lentil sprouting enzymes can help the cuttings grow into new trees.

Sadly the volunteers on site weren’t so happy. There had been arguments, expressed and unexpressed differences of opinion, and everyone seemed tired. I couldn’t offer them more than material they needed to work, youtube videos, a list of how to run the site, and to be on the end of the phone. That was just a few days before all the volunteers left, leaving site empty for the last two weeks of the season. Those cuttings are now dead in their pot and the story of this year is that although many amazing jobs did get done, there is so much left on the list…

BUT

Even with care and lentil enzymes would those cuttings have survived anyway? Who knows! And that is the pattern of a project like this, up and down, but with passion and soul behind it to keep trying, keep learning and know that permaculture is the right path.

Today I’m going back to Boodaville, with family, Maja and other friends, and we will stay in a warm and welcoming house rented from a local in Calaceite. We will harvest the olives, keep going with the unfinished planting jobs, enjoy the richness and complexity of nature and of this ongoing, incredible, soul-filling, rollercoaster of a project.

I’m not sure of the exact date, but it is almost a year to the day that I saw OJ for the last time. I miss him.

I am filled with gratitude to all the people who have stepped in when things got tough this year, especially in recent months Kate, Rob, Kerry, Bernat, Maja and Oriol. And we are looking for people who have passion and love Boodaville to join us for more adventures next year and into the future!

18th December 2018

I wrote an email to Women’s Permaculture Guild and this came out :

 

Hi Heather,

 

Thanks for all your amazing work on this. You are doing an excellent job of creating engagement.

I honestly have a little problem with the “women only” aspect. While i recognise completely that this is a “reformative” measure based on the current imbalance, I look forward to the time in the future where we can create a “revolutionary” platform representing the equal situation we are ultimately aiming for.

 

What do I want from your free online course?

 

I would like to offer the resources from the course to volunteers who come through Boodaville so they have access to your amazing network and resources

 

I would like to learn a good base in permaculture myself, and I don’t have much time for reading books. I did my PDC in my second language when my daughter Kira was 3 months old so I’d like some more info and to fill in the gaps.

 

I also want to produce a book, or several books, about what has happened at Boodaville over the years, one with photos of the project, and the designs, one with a kind of connections map about how far and wide Boodaville has had an impact, and thirdly a written book which describes in a clearer way the objectives, particularly with regards to non-formal education and the pedagogical theory behind the methods we use, (especially in the context of our current global situation with climate change, echo chambers and young rich people suffering incredibly high rates of mental illness) and the holistic design of the whole project (which includes a LOT of people care, and a big chunk of Fair Share). I’m inspired by the recently published “Children in Permaculture” book I’m reading written by Lusi, Didi and a third person i’ve not met, and who’s name escapes me. (sorry!)

 

A deeper reflection on Boodaville leaves me wondering how to fit “design” into the story of Boodaville, because although it is built entirely on the the three ethics, with decisions always taken on this basis, at the beginning certainly, we didn’t have a long-term design. Maybe the future of the project is to see how much better we can do after the last few years working beyond the ethics with “Permaculture DESIGN”.

I’m not sure that’s the answer you were looking for,

I wish I had more time to write more and read more!!

Abrazo

 

Anna

25th October 2019

La idea de “comunidad” ha pasado de ser una “ecoaldea” de unas pocas personas en el valle, a ser una colaboración con una red más amplia de personas. Al final, si hay casas vacías en el pueblo, y son solo 15 minutos en bicicleta hasta el sitio … ¿realmente necesitamos construir casas en el valle? ¿Es todo el proyecto más rico por ser más abierto y colaborativo e impactar a la gente local?




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Boodaville Fete of Fun – Party in Barcelona

Boodaville Fete of Fun – Party in Barcelona

we organised an event to raise money !

Posted on Feb 27, 2017

So many people gave their time to help organise and run this event – huge thanks to Marina, Sara, Guim, Laura, Mike, Duncan, Edgar, Alice, Prithika, Orla, Aoife, Polly, Frank, Alessandro, Helen, Gilard, Roger, Aroa, Ricki  and to everyone who came along and got involved to make it so much fun and to run so smoothly. Thank you to each and every one of you who contributed at the event.. we feel blessed to have so many supporters to make awesome things happen here in Barcelona and from April at the Boodaville site during 2017. A special mention to Barbara who let us use her local for the party and a very special mention to my family – Bernat who is always working really hard to support the project as well as providing photos and videos, and Kira who is just happy and joins in with us all. (as we saw from her dancing on the table….)

What does Anna think about it all?

I shouldn’t spend too much time writing a long article about this.. we still have a crowdfunding campaign and a Youth in Permaculture project to work on! But I can’t stop myself from sharing a few reflections, and thinking about the impact of the event.

Overall that was a pretty intense way to raise 500 euros, a lot of work preparing and organising as best I could (not perfectly by any means) but what really strikes me about the event is that it was the permaculture way to raise money! The event was so much more than euros – we are building and strengthening a beautiful Boodaville community, we had loads of fun, people are making real and strong connections by getting together at events like this.

I hope you noticed the lack of disposable cups at the fete! The negative ecological impact of doing this was absolutely minimal – we didn’t break a single glass and I spent forty minutes on Sunday washing them up, which was a pleasure because of the plastic I knew was being saved. I also believe that designing tasks like washing up into your day makes life more balanced (tip – design to have time to do it as well!).

We generated about 2 plastic bags full of cans and about 12 glass bottles, which went for recycling obviously, and maybe some people had napkins with their focaccia! Very few people travelled by car to arrive. We printed 20 sheets of paper and burst a few balloons. All the prizes were donated, the dough the kids played with was organic material only, and all the left over stuff has been donated to charity or recycled. There were a few bags of ice. All the bread was organic from the local bakery and the apple juice organic too! (although bought from Lidl..)

On a positive note many of us peed in the park – that helps the plants, honest!! People came to a park and enjoyed the view and a sort of natural setting for the afternoon.

The thing that has really stuck with me from the event is a reflection about stuff, consumption and economics. To see all the perfectly good stuff that people don’t want, yet don’t know what to do with, highlights a huge fault in the economic system. Forget money, the real subject of economics is to share the resources we have so that people can cover their needs and wants. It is insane that there is not a more obvious standard way to shift all this stuff around in a way that doesn’t waste it. There are people who want kids shoes, and a funky dress, or a costume for a day, or toys.. but how are you supposed to get all this stuff to them?? You want to create employment? there’s a chance right there! Even in our ridiculous age of consuming cheap low quality crap, there is an insane amount of perfectly good stuff which is being wasted. Well luckily Oxfam accepted the clothes, and they are a genuinely good organisation, and Polly accepted the costume stuff for her awesome cabaret event next week.

Go enjoy yourselves people.. if it’s not fun it’s not sustainable!

Love

Anna

2 weeks ago…

Mar 14, 2017

It’s exactly two weeks since OJ passed away. Just two weeks since he was partying and dancing. I can think back to the horror of the phone call when I found out. Yesterday I walked past the exact spot I was standing when I heard the words “he’s dead”. I can think of the conversation I had with Maja about how it felt the moment when they switched off the machines in the hospital while she was holding his hand. His ashes will be taken back to his home city of Brno and scattered next to the grave of his father. Who died at 30 years old. I can think about his mother, but I cannot imagine what she is going through. With my own daughter, just three years, I already share so much love and so many memories, multiply that by nine then imagine having it ripped away from you. I only knew OJ (Ondra) for 20 months.

But I am also starting to look forward. I’ve been through shock, disbelief, asking why, and now I am deeply sad that when I look to the future I won’t be sharing it with him at Boodaville. I really loved him. I’m thinking about how much I looked forward to seeing him pick me up from the station, and how connected I felt to him. I would like to create a suitable to memorial to him.




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Earthworks and paths

Earthworks and paths

applying for a long term permaculture design

In September 2016 17  we worked with Oriol Fernandez with a very small group to apply more of the long term permaculture design. The work was landscaping and creating gardens in front of the kitchen and dome, and earthworks – planning a swale to bring water off the road.

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EU funded Youth Exchange – Build Your Future – Construction of  geodesic dome

EU funded Youth Exchange – Build Your Future – Construction of  geodesic dome

the proposal "Build Your Future" youth exchange as been approved !

August 2016

The forces of Spanish bureaucracy came together meaning that the delay in approving our status as an Association equalled the delay at INJUVE in reading and approving the “Build Your Future” youth exchange proposal. The proposal was submitted the 24th April, the registration papers for the association should have arrived by the 10th May. On the 17th June I got the paperwork for the association and the very same day an angry email from INJUVE saying I must have those papers uploaded within 24 hours to qualify for funding. The dome was meant to be!

I am extremely happy to have managed to constitute the association and get €13,350 funding in 2016, and obviously I couldn’t have done this without the support of an amazing team of people, especially Alessandro and Carlos who are the other two members of the association.

The course involved 25 participants from Spain, Portugal, Italy and Bulgaria plus our expert dome builder and designer Jordi Cavaller. We did sessions on design, building, permaculture and ecology while working each day on the construction of this huge structure which will be a dining area and workshop space in 2017.




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Yoopeeee!!!

Yoopeeee!!!

Investment for Boodaville

Apr 6, 2016

An investor just put 2500 pounds into Boodaville Bonds! It’s great that people who have money want to put it to good use instead of in investment funds.. (the “ethical” ones still invest in environmentally damaging projects like large-scale hydro, not to mention fossil fuels, banks, nestle “we want to privatise water”)

I’ve already spent it a few times over in my head, but realistically will put it towards

the larger infrastructure projects, the roof structure / water tank is budgeted at 5000 euros, but I can try to cut that and get it done.  This is a loan, so will go towards capital investments rather than activities.




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Boodaville Association

Boodaville Association

Boodaville is officially an association !

Mar 27, 2016

by boodaville

In celebration of the fact that I’ve finally learned how to spell the word association, we have officially formed one!

The Boodaville Association objectives are;

permaculture education via courses and the development of demonstration sites; sharing and promoting ways of living which are sustainable, resilient and respectful of the environment; and promoting fair and supportive socio-economic development. There are currently three members of Boodaville: myself, Carlos and Alessandro. We have our registration number (CIF) and are ready to start raising funds through donations, merchandising and government grants – just as soon as we organise that 

Spanish La Asociación de Boodaville tiene como objetivos:

proyectar un cambio de paradigma hacia una sociedad resiliente, solidaria y respetuosa con el medio ambiente, organizar actividades de sensibilización y educación sobre temáticas de Permacultura y medio-ambiente y crear espacios demostrativos, promover un desarrollo socioeconómico más sostenible, solidario y justo. De momento somos 3 miembros de Boodaville: Carlos, Alessandro y yo. Tenemos nuestro CIF y estamos preparados para conseguir donaciones, vender merchandising, y buscar subvenciones – en cuanto encontramos tiempo para organizarlo.




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