Introduction
In 1996, October, Joe Matimba joined Food & Trees for Africa as Green Trust project coordinator, involved in environmental greening, community development & Training, promoting EduPlant programme in schools, implementing Permaculture projects in schools and communities of South Africa.
In 2002, I attended three-week Eco-Village course in Find horn, Scotland (UK) one week attending the Restoration of the Earth Conference in the UK, which was attended by representatives from 75 Countries.
Joe Matimba worked with several organizations, including Environmental Justice Network Forum (EJNF), Gold Fields Foundation, Wild Life & Environmental Society, Kellogg Foundation, African Self Help Association (ASHA), South Africa Natural Farming Network, South Africa Institute of Permaculture, Hluvukani Development Agency, Christian Children Fund (CCF), Botswana Permaculture Association, Sikhebhe Natural Farming Training Centre, Zimbabwe Institute of Permaculture , Find horn Eco-village Training Center (Scotland), Gauteng Provincial Farmers Union (GPFU), Medicinal Edible garden Association (MEGA) and women for Peace, King Lithuli Transformation Centre (KLTC) and several government departments, including: Department of Water Affairs & Forestry (DWAF), National Department of Agriculture (NDA), Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism (DEAT), Department of Agriculture, Conservation, Environment and Land Affairs (DACEL), Land Care South Africa (LCSA), Department of Education, Department of Health, Department of Housing, Department of Social Welfare & Population Development, Department of Correctional services.
In 1996, October, Joe Matimba joined Food & Trees for Africa as Green Trust project coordinator, involved in environmental greening, community development & Training, promoting EduPlant programme in schools, implementing Permaculture projects in schools and communities of South Africa.
In 2002, I attended three-week Eco-Village course in Find horn, Scotland (UK) one week attending the Restoration of the Earth Conference in the UK, which was attended by representatives from 75 Countries.
Joe Matimba worked with several organizations, including Environmental Justice Network Forum (EJNF), Gold Fields Foundation, Wild Life & Environmental Society, Kellogg Foundation, African Self Help Association (ASHA), South Africa Natural Farming Network, South Africa Institute of Permaculture, Hluvukani Development Agency, Christian Children Fund (CCF), Botswana Permaculture Association, Sikhebhe Natural Farming Training Centre, Zimbabwe Institute of Permaculture , Find horn Eco-village Training Center (Scotland), Gauteng Provincial Farmers Union (GPFU), Medicinal Edible garden Association (MEGA) and women for Peace, King Lithuli Transformation Centre (KLTC) and several government departments, including: Department of Water Affairs & Forestry (DWAF), National Department of Agriculture (NDA), Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism (DEAT), Department of Agriculture, Conservation, Environment and Land Affairs (DACEL), Land Care South Africa (LCSA), Department of Education, Department of Health, Department of Housing, Department of Social Welfare & Population Development, Department of Correctional services.
His efforts on behalf of Food & Trees for Africa a non-profit, non-government organization (NGO), as well as the many disadvantaged communities he serves, are commendable and often invaluable.
My effort could be directly linked to this award winning NGO receiving the SABC PMR emPower Award for Urban Agriculture\ Urban Forestry and Permaculture, contributed in the planting of 1,7million trees,
Established over 2 600 school and community Permaculture food garden projects, Contributed in training/workshoping over 20 000 educators with emphases on sustainable land use management, food security and environmental greening activities throughout the country.
Some of the Permaculture Resource Centres he established are listed below:
Magudu Permaculture Resource Centre
Magudu Permaculture Resource Center is practicing Permaculture holistically; all the available resources at their disposal are being utilized for the benefit of the environment and the school. When entering the school premises you are welcomed by the sound of birds and the sweet fragrance of a variety of herbs and ornamental plants. The environment and entrance of the school is touching and attractive. The foot of the blocks is surrounded by living pharmacies: a variety of herbs and ornamental plants are flourishing and bring life into the school environment. These plants perform multiple functions such as stabilizing the soil, creating microclimates and controlling pests & diseases in the school environment.
Herbs planted are also playing a major role in promoting & maintaining a healthy life for learners, educators and local community members. Herbs are being processed, preserved and used as medicine to cure different diseases. Traditional healers are encouraged to visit the project and teach learners, educators and community how to use the indigenous herbs.
The project leader is mentoring Bushbuckridge Region, consisting of 14 circuits. Magudu Resource Centre is mentoring 100 schools of which 6 schools managed to become National school EduPlant finalists for 2009. The circuit manager refers all the schools in his circuit to visit Magudu to get support, technical advice, Permaculture educational resources and training.
Toronto Permaculture Resource Centre
Allwin Kgopa, a teacher at Toronto Primary in Mankweng (Limpopo Province) is a key example of the programme’s success. In 2001, Kgopa entered Toronto’s Permaculture food garden project into EduPlant and came second in the `Emerging` category.
Eight years later Kgopa has consistently won numerous awards for the school’s Permaculture food garden project, including government recognition for their work. More significantly Kgopa has formed a cluster of 15 other local schools to encourage them to develop Permaculture food gardens to supplement the feeding scheme in those schools and generate income to sustain the projects. Toronto Primary serves as an environmental centre for these schools and their community spirit was recently acknowledged when they won the Woolworths Trust EduPlant Mentoring Award. This category was added last year to the annual competition and recognises schools that extend Permaculture and gardening to other schools and their immediate community. The Toronto Permaculture Resource Centre is mentoring 55 schools and these schools managed to establish Permaculture food gardens and environmental related projects.
Pula Madibogo Permaculture Resource Centre
The Pula Madibogo Permaculture Resource Centre is situated in Sovenga, Limpopo Province. The area is characterized by a high rate of unemployment, HIV/AIDS related diseases and early teenage pregnancy. The majority of people lives below the breadline and rely mainly on government pensions and child care grants. The school initiated the Permaculture food garden in February 2002. The project leaders have been actively involved in mentoring 38 schools in environmental and Permaculture activities as part of an outreach programmes.
The vegetables produced from the Permaculture food garden are making a significant contribution towards supplementing the feeding scheme at the school. The surplus vegetables, herbs, fruits and eggs are sold to generate income for the project. These products are also improving the diet of orphans, vulnerable and HIV infected children at the school. The project leader has won several awards in Climate Change, environmental and EduPlant competitions. Given the success rate of the school, impact created within the school, community and the success of mentoring other schools in the area, the neighboring schools are also benefiting from the resource centers.
Ratanag Permaculture Resource Centre
The Ratanang food garden project is situated in Sovenga which is 35km from Polokwane in Limpopo province. The project has 54 community members mainly unemployed and pensioners. The food garden project has created a great impact in poverty alleviation, job creation for 54 previously unemployed community members through selling of vegetables and it also created a health environment and a health community in the black township. The project members are able to harvest fresh vegetables to feed their families and supplement the pension grants they receive from the government.
Resource Centers: They provide a national forum for exchanging ideas, centre for learning, sharing skills, knowledge & information, experiences, research results, advocacy, underpinning the Future of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, provision of an Environmental awareness, educational resources, training, technical support & advice and inspiration for schools and community to take charge of their own development.
Permaculture – An Ethical and practical solution
Permaculture is much more than organic food gardening. It is a response to the environmental crisis we face on our planet. The way we live and work now is eating into the natural capital of the planet and more and more people are becoming aware of the impact of our practices; global warming being but one of these. Permaculture and sustainable living are synonymous. Permaculture is about designing a system to provide that which we need by integrating it into the local ecology. Thus we become ‘part of’ rather than ‘separate from’ nature, natural systems and cycles.
Permaculture draws its philosophy from three ethics:
Care of the earth – we evaluate what we do against the impact that it has on the natural environment. This includes water, soil, plants, animals, insects, air and the relationships between them.
Care of people – meeting our needs sustainably; food, shelter, water, energy to heat water and cook food, earn an income, have fun and also how to deal with human waste. Take Individual responsibility – making choices that set limits to production and consumption and ensure the redistribution of surplus.
Permaculture in action is the application of principles that enable us to live sustainably. We begin by thinking about things in a different way, by thinking ‘out of the box’. We see solutions rather than problems and consider everything as a gift; be it a pile of tyres or what someone else would think is rubbish. We look at our places – where we live and work - from a systemic point of view.
We think about:
Working with nature so that we work smart rather than hard by working with natural cycles. Every weed growing on a lawn is the process of plant succession in action. Every bit of dust in the air is part of the mineral cycle. We find ways to put these cycles to work for the benefit of the system.
Working with nature so that we work smart rather than hard by working with natural cycles. Every weed growing on a lawn is the process of plant succession in action. Every bit of dust in the air is part of the mineral cycle. We find ways to put these cycles to work for the benefit of the system.
Diversity which provides strength. A range of species that work together will make things work better, stronger. We look at building interdependent clusters of activities and organisms; a harmonious cluster of living things – plants, animals, and insects – is more stable than one species of plant struggling on its own.
Function and scale by considering how big something needs to be (a field, a dam, and a house) and what it does for the whole system. We plan properly to ensure that there is enough of what is needed (water, harvested food, energy sources) and that things are supported in the right way to make them work effectively and reliably (e.g. enough water is harvested to meet the needs of the people and animals on the land, or that enough produce is grown to meet dietary or market needs). Everything is a ‘worker’ in the system, adding value to it, and helping it work efficiently.
Use of space and time so that we put things in the right place, at the right time, in the right way, to enhance the relationship between them, and we end up working less. We use as little space as we can and plan an intensive, efficient system.
Resources – the things we need in order to do and achieve what we set out to. We find out how to use renewable resources (grass, sun, trees) as well as make sure that things are used efficiently and without waste.
Energy to cook food, heat water, and provide light. We consider ways to conserve our own individual energy by using energy-efficient placements.
