Sustainability, Permaculture & Blue Zones
Posted by Nathaniel H Thomas on
By Nathaniel Thomas, founder of Terra Haven
(5 minute read)
What do Sustainability, Permaculture, and Blue Zones all have in common?
The United Nations defines sustainability as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” The US EPA National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 committed “to create and maintain conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony, that permit fulfilling the social, economic and other requirements of present and future generations.”
What I like about these definitions is that we're called to look beyond our immediate needs and consider not just ourselves, but our family, neighbors, and beyond, for unknown generations to come.
What I don’t like is that these definitions don’t give us an instruction manual on how to achieve sustainability. The UN created a framework of 15 goals called the Sustainable Development Goals to help give more direction, such as gender equality, protecting oceans, planting trees, peace, no poverty, justice, and strong Institutions. Wonderful, but... overwhelming, maybe? This good work is going to take many hearts and hands.
Maybe permaculture can play a role in creating sustainability? The Permaculture Research Institute says “permaculture integrates land, resources, people and the environment through mutually beneficial synergies – imitating the no waste, closed loop systems seen in diverse natural systems.” The word itself comes from the combination of “permanent agriculture” and “permanent culture” and the Institute says permaculture “is the harmonious integration of landscape and people – providing their food, energy, shelter, and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way.”
It sounds like permaculture checks off a lot of basic criteria for sustainability as defined by the UN and the EPA! So what do we do? Where do we go from here? Should we all become permaculture experts? Has anyone ever seen an ecovillage, home, or farm that was designed with permaculture?
Something I envision is sort of like a reverse engineered Blue Zone, if you’re familiar with the work of one National Geographic journalist. Dan Buettner explores several regions in the world with unusually high population densities of centenarians, who are people that have celebrated their 100th birthday and beyond. Buettner proposes nine common characteristics, such as eating mostly plant-based food, regular stress relief, having a strong community, and a sense of purpose.
There’s some criticism that the Blue Zone diets are too low in protein, which can cause muscle loss in these older, wiser folks, but I think the bigger idea is that the Blue Zone populations are eating simply and seasonally. There is a framework here, and it parallels the foundation of permaculture. Their food comes from their own region, if not from their own land, which is traditional or even considered indigenous.
As a society, Blue Zones are fairly closed-loop systems because they don’t require much input or output. Consumerism isn't a constant influx, nor are these communities sending out masses of trash into landfills. The introduction of fast or processed food into an indigenous diet is known to be a surefire recipe for obesity and diabetes, which is happening now in the former Blue Zone, Okinawa.
It is claimed that Socrates said “the secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.”
What does sustainability mean to you? What will that look like in order to create a sustainable world for us to live and work in? What would you like it to be? How do we bridge the gap between our current state and a sustainable future state? What are you willing to sacrifice to make it happen? What seeds need to be sown in our communities? What strengths or gifts do you have that could be nurtured for the work ahead? If there is only one thing you could change, what would it be?
Let’s go deeper into these ideas in future blogs. In the meantime, I’d love to read your answers in the comment section below, or email me any time at info@shopterrahaven.com.
PS - The next newsletter will be out on Friday, January 27. Next up will be a series on Three Laundry Hacks.
Shop Earth Breeze Eco Laundry Sheets at www.shopterrahaven.com today.
Sources:
https://www.un.org/en/academic-impact/sustainability
https://www.epa.gov/sustainability/learn-about-sustainability