Permaculture Design, Local Democracy, and Folk Festival going on in the community this week
Transition KW
Greetings Transitioners,
If you’re not directly involved in Transition, you may not really get what we’re trying to achieve with this Climate Change Adaptation Toolkit (latest update on that here:July update). If you would like to learn more, either out of curiousity, to give your feedback, or to get involved, then check out our drop-in information session: Wednesday, August 14, 7-9pm (that’s how long we’ll be there, not how long you have to be there) at Misty Mountain Cafe in downtown Kitchener. Still have questions but can’t make the meeting? Email us at transiti...@gmail.com
We had our monthly meeting last week, and minutes are up here. Also, check out our blog, where Jon has written about why he chooses to use a reel mower. Below we’ve got some great community notes, events, and green news round-up.
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Sylvie Spraakman
Facilitator, TransitionKW
Facebook | Twitter | Blog | www.transitionkw.ca
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Community Notes
1. Music & Movies in Waterloo Park: Every Thursday in July and August - movie this week is “Escape from Planet Earth”
When: Every Thursday in July and August, movies at dusk, music at 7:30pm
Where: Waterloo Park, West end of the park
More info: parkmovies.ca
2. Neighbourhood Market: Enjoy locally grown fresh fruit and vegetables,honey, bread and more all offered with a friendly smile. The Highland-Stirling Community Group’s Neighbourhood Market is a great way to meet your neighbours, learn about healthy foods and pick up some delicious recipes.
When: Every Wednesday, 2-4 p.m.
Where: Mill-Courtland Community Centre (Corner of Mill and Stirling)
Info: Pauline. Email: hsmcm...@gmail.com
3. Summer in the Garden Workshop Series - Introduction to Permaculture and Design Systems: Learn how to create regenerative systems that are ecologically sound and economically viable. Shavone Doherty will teach you how to work with nature, better understand integrated systems, and how they work harmoniously within the landscape. Come and connect.
Cost: $ Pay-as-you-can
When: Thursday, August 1, 2013 at 6pm-7pm
Where: The Working Centre Greenhouse, 79 Lancaster Street East, Kitchener
Please RSVP to meg...@theworkingcentre.org
4. Mill Race Folk Festival - The Mill Race Folk Society Mission is to bring to Cambridge a cultural event that will increase the awareness of traditional forms of folk music & help to draw the community together. The event is a free folk festival of music, dance & crafts patterned after European models that are held in and around the town core, showcasing Cambridge's heritage architecture & local businesses. It is unique amongst most existing festivals.
When: Friday(7pm-11pm), Saturday and Sunday (1pm - 11pm).
Where: Civic Square and the Mill Race Ampitheate beside the river (Parkhill and Water Streets), Cambridge
5. Diploma in Local Democracy -
The course has been running for six years at the Working Centre and seeks to give people in our region who are involved in serving the community an opportunity to learn about expressions of local democracy. People who participate will be in a cohort of 10-15 people who over the course of twelve weeks will explore together ideas and practices as they relate to democracy in everyday life.
The course will be participatory and democratic in format, drawing not only on abstract theory but each individual’s experience of democracy (or absence of it) in their personal and working lives, in Canada or wherever in the world they may come from. Instead of being lecture-based the Local Democracy gatherings will be a sharing of many ‘wisdoms’ through open conversation, projects, readings and guest speakers. On our end we will be sharing some of the experience, ideas and influences of the Working Centre and how these have helped shaped a democratic culture around our various projects.
The ultimate purpose of the course is to have participants appreciate and contribute to an understanding that democratic relations in everyday life form the roots of civil society. Democracy roots itself not in distant institutions but in the daily interactions, relationships and organizations of ordinary people at a local level. It grows from the bottom up.
Some of the things that will be in the course:
A Jane’s Walk – in order to acquaint ourselves with Queen St South, and how the place and its history shape its present and have uniquely contributed to its democratic traditions
Guest Speakers
Talks – introducing participants to Ivan Illich, E.F. Schumacher, Jane Addams, Wendell Berry and others who have influenced the Working Centre’s approach
Stories + Book Reports – participants tell of their own experiences with Local Democracy, what they have learned and what they can teach all of us
Collaborative Final Project on the meaning of local democracy
We hope to start another class this fall. If you are interested contact Isaiah at mat...@gmail.com or Kara at 519-743-1151 ext. 119 at the Working Centre.
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Green News Roundup
I’m with the Majority: You don’t have to be a scientist or have a crystal ball to know that the effects of global warming won’t be good. Average folk may lack the knowledge to engage in the debate about the timing and scope of the problem we face. But, most of us get that the climate is changing and not for the better. There’s something to be said for common sense:
http://www.motherjones.com/blue-marble/2013/07/arctic-weather-jet-stream-polling
Want a Visual?: If you or people you know are visually-oriented, check this out:
What, me Worry: We elect folks to take care of the big issues so we don’t have to worry about them. We’ve got a Minister responsible for the environment. Heck, her “Inuk heritage and connection to Canada’s Arctic...speaks volumes about our government’s commitment to the environment and sustainability”. Colour me doubtful:
Common Sense From the Sundance Kid: President Obama vowed that the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline won’t be approved unless it “does not significantly exacerbate the problem of carbon pollution”. Robert Redford makes Obama’s decision easy:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-redford/keystone-pipeline-obama_b_3653546.html
How Does Your Garden Grow?: Globalization is taking over the garden and that’s a mistake. The original and best garden designer is Mother Nature. If something was meant to grow in your garden, she would have put it there instead of thousands of kilometers away:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-novick/just-because-itll-grow-in_b_3621351.html