[Lapg] Fwd: Tues Aug 26: permaculturist Gabriel Howearth of Seeds of Change

L. Santoyo santoyo at earthflow.com
Mon Aug 11 09:55:13 PDT 2008


Greetings,

I wanted to pass along this *must see* event in Santa Barbara.

Gabriel Howearth is an old friend of mine. His world-class biodiversity
collection in Baja you have heard me speak of many times... He's a pioneer
species of the seed-saving activists, he's an heirloom of the global
heirloom movement, a botanical super-freak, designer and all around
mad-scientist for humanity...

Budget your carbon footprint, carpool, swim, walk or run -but don't miss
this all important presentation.

For the (r)evolution,

L. Santoyo



---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <LBUZZELL at aol.com>
Date: Mon, Aug 11, 2008 at 8:14 AM
Subject: Tues Aug 26: permaculturist Gabriel Howearth of Seeds of Change
To: sbogc at yahoogroups.com, sbfoodfuture at googlegroups.com,
sbperm2006 at googlegroups.com


  Contact: Margie Bushman
Santa Barbara Permaculture Network
(805) 962-2571, margie at sbpermaculture.org


Santa Barbara Permaculature Network
  In Conjunction with-
  Santa Barbara City College Center for Sustainability

       Presents

  Biodiversity Hotspots: A Conversation with Permaculturist Gabriel Howearth
Noted Botanist and Co-founder of Seeds Of Change Seed Company

                Tuesday August 26, 2008, 7PM, $5 donation
        Santa Barbara Main Library, Faulkner Gallery, 40 East Anapamu Street


        Humans have been more actively changing the earth's
ecosystems in the last 50 years than any time in human history,
resulting in a huge loss of biological diversity. Global hotspots
have been identified as the most biologically vulnerable places on
the planet. Thirty-five of these most biolgically valuable locations
from Peru, to Easter Island, Madagascar, New Zealand, Brazil and the
United States have been highlighted by a team of scientists from the
organization of Conservation International.

        Knowing humans have initiated this crisis, how can we step back from

a destructive path and instead secure and create a sustainable future
for the Earth and it's species?  Can individuals play a part, help
change this course even in Santa Barbara and our own backyards,
become our own protected Biodiversity Hotspot?

        We are pleased to offer an opportunity for an evening of sharing and

conversation with Gabriel Howearth , co-founder of Seeds of Change,
the foremost GMO free organic seed bank company in the world. Joining
him will be Dr. Adam Green, assistant professor of Biology and
Director of the Santa Barbara City College Center for Sustainability
( http://sustainability.sbcc.edu), and Dr. Robert Bruegel, founder of
OlaBrisa Eco-village development
(www.OlaBrisa.com<http://www.olabrisa.com/>) in southern Baja
California.

         Biodiversity is a term that implies more than tallying species. It
also suggests multiplicity. Identifying endangered hotspots and
preserving the environment in its native state are the best-known
aspects of biodiversity. The practice of biodiversity encompasses
critical features in light of humanity's apparent inability to slow
the rapid loss of wilderness, stop global warming, or reverse the
greenhouse effect. It includes heritage seed collection and seed
banking to ensure future diversity, the creation of urban and
suburban ecological zones, establish new and more extensive botanical
gardens, and planting oases of human-made biodiversity.

        Buena Fortuna, the botanical gardens of Gabriel Howearth, are a case

study in the creation of biodiversity. Located in the desert of
Southern Baja California, Howearth tends more than 4,000 different
native and introduced plant species that co-exist on nearly 10
acres.  The entire Baja peninsula has only approximately 2,700 plant
species.  The 4,000-plus species under Howearth's care make an
astounding vision that steadily expands as he adds more species.


        Gabriel Howearth is a Botanist, Landscape Architect and Seedsman.
He
is the founder of Buena Fortuna Botanical Garden, located in Baja
Mexico (3700 plant species of the tropical and dry tropical regions
of the world), and president of Siempre Semillas AC, a Mexican NGO
whose main focus is to preserve seed diversity by teaching and
planting. His center offers educational workshops and apprenticeships
in Botany, Permaculture, Organic Gardening and seed
harvesting.  Currently he is working with several ecological
organizations in Central and South America and travels worldwide to
teach about Organic seeds and ways to preserve our genetic seed
purity locally in order to contribute to the global change in
positive ways.  He provided professional consultation for "Dreaming
New Mexico" a strategy of food & energy self-sustainable for the
state by the year 2020; an ambitious and well supported project, an
initiative of Bioneers, with the participation of a number of NGO's,
Farmers,  Indigenous Groups, Schools as well as Governmental support.

*** Youtube Trailer for the Documentary Feature Film "HOTSPOTS"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KY08NIXvrxc , produced by Conservation
International.


        The evening lecture takes place at the Santa Barbara City Public
Downtown  Library Faulkner Galley 40 E Anapumu St,  Tuesday Aug 26,
12, 7-9pm, for a donation of $5.   No reservations are required.
Santa Barbara Permaculture Network,  Sponsors for the event are The
Santa Barbara City College Center for Sustainability ,  Women's
Environmental Watch (WE Watch), and OlaBrisa Eco Development Company
sponsor the event.  For more information, please call (805) 962-2571,
margie at sbpermaculture.org or www.sbpermaculture.org.


-end-

*RESOURCES:
*One of the main findings of the the *UN's Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
Report *www.millenniumassessment.org/en/Index.aspx 2001-2005 . "Over the
past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly and extensively
than in any comparable period of time in human history, largely to meet
rapidly growing demands for food, fresh water, timber, fiber and fuel. This
has resulted in a substantial and largely irreversible loss in the diversity
of life on Earth".

*Terraforming in Southern Baja California: Arid-Tropical Biodiversity,
Regeneration, and Preservation
**HerbalGram*. 2000;50:58-63 American Botanical Council
http://content.herbalgram.org/wholefoodsmarket/herbalgram/articleview.asp?a=2288


by James E. Williams, OMD

Creating an oasis of biodiversity in the imposing desert of Southern Baja
California, Mexico may well be the ultimate challenge for any gardener. It
may also be the key to survival. Biodiversity, a term that has become a bit
trendy lately, implies more than tallying species. It also suggests
multiplicity. Identifying endangered hotspots1  and preserving the
environment in its native state are the best-known aspects of biodiversity.
However, the practice of biodiversity encompasses other features of equal
or, perhaps, more critical importance in light of humanity's apparent
inability to slow the rapid loss of wilderness, to stop global warming, or
reverse the greenhouse effect. This practice includes heritage seed
collection and seed banking to ensure future diversity, the creation of
urban and suburban ecological zones, establishing new and more extensive
botanical gardens, and planting oases of human-made biodiversity.

Santa Barbara Permaculture Network
*   an educational non-profit since 2000
*(805) 962-2571
*P.O. Box 92156, Santa Barbara, CA 93190
**margie at sbpermaculture.org
**www.sbpermaculture.org

**"We are like trees, we must create new leaves, in new directions, in order
to grow." - Anonymous

*
*First Annual Southern California Permaculture Convergence 2008
**http://socalifornia.permacultureconvergence.org*
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://www.permaculture-guilds.org/pipermail/los-angeles-permaculture/attachments/20080811/e545b531/attachment.html>


More information about the Los-Angeles-Permaculture mailing list