Permaculture Protes Kampuchea (pt 4/4)

Fourth and final part of documentary following itinerant permaculture designer Rico Zook and local Khmer permaculturist Hoeuy Han on a journey across Cambodia.

In Siem Reap province, Rico and Han visit Harmony Farm in Beng Mealea, aswell as Krabie Riel village school where staff and students are learning about permaculture for the first time.
Filmed across Cambodia between December 2010 and February 2011, this is permaculture education and regenerative design in action.

There is a multi-functional design element to this video : The film is presented here on PermaScience channel in 4 parts, with each part also serving as educational/promotional tool for the featured NGOs.
The full 31 minute version of Permaculture Protes Kampuchea can be seen on AstralJester's channel here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKcQurZU3HY

You can find out more about the work of the NGOs featured in this part by visiting their websites :
Camp Cambodia : http://www.campsinternational.com/projectblog/category/ca...
This Life Cambodia : http://www.thislifecambodia.org

For more information about the work of Rico Zook and Hoeuy Han, please visit Rico's website : http://www.ricoclime.com

For more information about the permaculture movement around the world please visit : http://www.permacultureplanet.com/

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• permaculture
• Cambodia
• Kampuchea
• Khmer
• Rico Zook
• Hoeuy Han
• Harmony Farm
• Siem Reap
• Beng Mealea
• Krabie Riel
• school
• garden
• education
• grey water
• exit strategy
• apprentice
• cycle
• money
• 2011
• design
• management
• sustainability
• soil
• Camp Cambodia
• This Life Cambodia

[Axbent]

The example he gave on how the money stays in the system is a bad one. The Café keeper must import his coffee from Columbia, so only a small part of the cash stays in the community. The only way to "make money" is th dig it up of the soil or harvest the suns energy; minerals, electricity, or food! This requires right of ownership.

[permascience]

@Axbent

why should the cafe keeper import coffee from Colombia when he can (and does) serve locally grown Cambodian coffee?

It's not an example of 'making money', but rather an example of keeping a resource (in this case some money) within the local system.

[Axbent]

@permascience That cahs will allways trickle out of the local system cos we cant live without contact and some dependency of other systems. If we could do that barter would suffice as "currency". Lets say the man wants a Cocal Cola next time, that requires import! (one ingridient comes only from Madagaskar infact)

[permascience]

@Axbent

Yes much depends on the responsibility of the consumer (in this case the foreigner entering the village) in choosing (and creating demand) for local product. The choices that each individual makes are very important in this sense. Also that the retailer/cafe keeper only stocks from locally abundant resources (coffee, seasonal fruit juices, etc).

[Axbent]

@permascience Coffee being laxative hopefully encourages the visitor to use your local composting toilet, and thus leaving some "digested sunshine" behind.

[permascience]

@Axbent

Yes!!! :-D

[Backpacker0909]

@permascience , hello i worked at harmony farm in 2010 for a few weeks and it was amazing im hoping to go back there soon and maybe stay longer if volunteer positions are still avalibel , i contacted the local NGO which originaly put me in contact with Mr han and vannak but the NGO office informed me that they no longer have contact with them , i was wondering if you had any information of how everyone is and how the project is going ?

[StonewoodFoodForest]

It's an example of sharing the surplus. Eventually, that cash note will leave that village, ideally only to buy in more resources like coffee or cloth or iron, from the surplus of another village. Another traveler will come in and buy coffee, and so on. As the money flows slowly through the village, the prosperity of each 'player' increases, so they each have a surplus to share. Provided there is no usury (rigorously applied stupidity), abundance will increase. 

[StonewoodFoodForest]

@Axbent You're not thinking clearly. Money, like water, has to flow in order to do real work. the trick is to slow it down and make the best possible use of it as it makes its way through the system. The Columbian farmer in your model also brings money into his community, and like the Cambodian, has more coming in than going out. No doubt the tailor has bought in materials, tools and equipment to build his prosperity, which benefits the village, too. Debt is the enemy, not foreign exchange.

[Aimrehtopyh]

@Axbent I think his example works just fine. You just take the idea of Money Velocity from economics and apply it to ALL your material resources.  Water, nutrients, money, etc. can all be tightly recirculated to add vitality to your system/economy.

Total independence for any country-sized land base is a virtually unattainable goal (especially if you want modern amenities). We should still strive for it though, because reducing imports and waste stream will mean more wealth and sustainability.