Islah: Returning to Fitrah via Permaculture

excerpts taken from:
http://www.suhaibwebb.com/society/domestic-affairs/solving-problems-with-gardens/

1)Do we ever hold ourselves accountable? Are we willing to make the changes, the real sacrifices, that are required to rid ourselves of our guilt in destroying trees, animals and other people? We ARE guilty.

2) We think we are peaceful but we outsource our violence to corporate military entities in exchange for an illusion of security.

3)We think we do not steal or cheat, but we outsource our thievery to banks and financial systems that give us an advantage over people who live worse than slaves and make the things we hold in our hands

4) We think our food is delicious, because of artificial sugars, but it lacks nutrition and conceals toxins that accumulate slowly in our bodies and our children’s bodies.

5)Permaculture is a combination of the words permanent and agriculture. Permaculture seems to be and has been primarily concerned with food production, but its design principles can be and are applied to all areas that people are concerned about including water, energy, industry, transportation, architecture and more. But since we need to eat healthy and wholesome food before we can do other things, it makes sense to focus on food first.

6) Much of the food today is grown in dead or dying soil and must be fed with petroleum-based fertilizers and kept alive with pesticides. This food is not nutritious and much of it is probably toxic. This is what we eat. How did this happen?

7)Food wasn’t always grown this way.  Traditionally, food was grown locally and was mostly nutritious and of course it was pesticide and chemical-free. But traditional agriculture is very labor intensive. Due to capacity constraints of traditional agriculture and advances in technology, agriculture moved in a different direction in what is called the “green revolution.”

8) If one goes into a natural jungle or forest, no one is watering, giving fertilizers or spraying pesticides and yet the system is teeming with vibrant and diverse life and energy. Permaculturalists work with nature, not against it, and observe nature in order to develop designs. Permaculture, then, is a science and art of designing man-made systems by using  nature  as a guide

9) I will make the following two assertions:

1. The current systems are unsustainable, meaning that at some point they will no longer be able to satisfy human needs and wants effectively. (For many people on Earth they are already failing.)
2. The current systems are unethical, destructive, wasteful, and rife with injustice.

10) Permaculture is not the only alternative solution that has been proposed, and the wide range of problems occurring require a wide range of solutions. Permaculture, in my opinion, is one of the many solutions proposed and it is one of the most comprehensive and effective means that exists.
Permaculture is not about destroying or completely replacing the current systems but about humbling them. This is accomplished by empowering dedicated individuals and groups to become independent of the system to satisfy their basic needs and wants.

Giovanni Galluzzo blogs at www.murujan.com