Under construction - Oct 27
There have been various permaculture convergences in the Northwest over the past 30 or so years. Some have been local, others regional. Lost Valley Educational Center, located 20 miles southeast of Eugene in the Cascade foothills, hosted several convergences in the mid 1990s attracting participants from the area. One year, they were not able to put on the convergence so several of us in Eugene decided to organize a convergence here in River Road at nearby Dharmalaya.
We had a great time. The bike area was packed. The straw bale structure was great for plenary sessions. We had workshops and presentations scattered around the 3/4 acre suburban property. Our big outdoor circles were irregular in shape to fit the back yard space. Over the next several years, we had two more convergences at Dharmalaya, another two at Maitreya Eco Village, another permaculture site in Eugene and we had two convergences at a friends farm outside Eugene in a magical filbert grove. These events attracted maybe 100 people.
During this time, another group was starting to organize larger scale convergences that were more regional. These gatherings became known as the Northwest Permaculture Convergences and a legal non profit by the same name came into being to organize the yearly events. The first one I went to was at South Seattle Community College. This was the beginning a yearly series of convergences that alternated between Oregon and Washington State. There was a committee with members from both states that maintained yearly convergences over the next 7 or 8 years leading up to covid.
I became active with this group and familiar enough with putting on these larger events that I volunteered to lead putting together a convergence in 2015 here in our River Road Neighborhood. There was support and help from the regional group but most of the on the ground organizing was done with people here in the neighborhood.
During this time, Dharmalya was in its permaculture and culture change hay day. Ravi and Michele had developed their 3/4 acre property for the purpose of small events totally companion to paradigm shift and permaculture. Their approach included am explicit element of spirituality by way of a teacher in India. Social change and permaculture fit into this activism perfectly.
For several years, Dharmalya hosted a sort of summer camp for college age young people with the name Community Transformations. When Ravi first described the idea of CT, I was completely impressed. CT would be a residential program for 10 or 12 participants. They would live at Dharmalaya in the very comfortable re modeled attic. There was a kitchen added on to the house. The 1000 square foot straw bale structure was made for such teaching events.
CT went on for several years. The program included class room type in struction about spirituality, permaculture, social change. Students learned yoga. There were field trips to area permaculture sites, including my place, a ten minute walk. There were day trips to Hobbit Beach. There were guest speakers and hands on natural building projects at another property a block away that came to be known as Vistara, a one acre property an ally of Ravi and Michele had bought purposefully to be part of the spiritual community that was taking shape.
Community Transformation participants were enthusiastic, motivated and skilled in organzing. It was during that that several years of CT that I initiated the idea of hosting the regional peraculture convergence here in River Road. We had a number of assets to work with. The regional permaculture group was helpful and even had finances. Several organizing positions for the convergence were paid although the amount was modest. The regional group also had outreach capacity.
Here in River Road, we had a number of permacuture activests and at least a couple dozen permaculture sites to show and tell as by this time, 2015, we had been having site tours around the neighborhood for over 10 years. A lot to see in the neighborhood. We had the enthusiasm of the Community Transformation young people and we had our neighborhood recreation center. A cinder block building with large meeting space, classrooms, commercial grade kitchen, outdoor park with open sided pavillions and a staff and management very cordial and open to hosting the convergence.
There have been various permaculture convergences in the Northwest over the past 30 or so years. Some have been local, others regional. Lost Valley Educational Center, located 20 miles southeast of Eugene in the Cascade foothills, hosted several convergences in the mid 1990s attracting participants from the area. One year, they were not able to put on the convergence so several of us in Eugene decided to organize a convergence here in River Road at nearby Dharmalaya.
We had a great time. The bike area was packed. The straw bale structure was great for plenary sessions. We had workshops and presentations scattered around the 3/4 acre suburban property. Our big outdoor circles were irregular in shape to fit the back yard space. Over the next several years, we had two more convergences at Dharmalaya, another two at Maitreya Eco Village, another permaculture site in Eugene and we had two convergences at a friends farm outside Eugene in a magical filbert grove. These events attracted maybe 100 people.
During this time, another group was starting to organize larger scale convergences that were more regional. These gatherings became known as the Northwest Permaculture Convergences and a legal non profit by the same name came into being to organize the yearly events. The first one I went to was at South Seattle Community College. This was the beginning a yearly series of convergences that alternated between Oregon and Washington State. There was a committee with members from both states that maintained yearly convergences over the next 7 or 8 years leading up to covid.
I became active with this group and familiar enough with putting on these larger events that I volunteered to lead putting together a convergence in 2015 here in our River Road Neighborhood. There was support and help from the regional group but most of the on the ground organizing was done with people here in the neighborhood.
During this time, Dharmalya was in its permaculture and culture change hay day. Ravi and Michele had developed their 3/4 acre property for the purpose of small events totally companion to paradigm shift and permaculture. Their approach included am explicit element of spirituality by way of a teacher in India. Social change and permaculture fit into this activism perfectly.
For several years, Dharmalya hosted a sort of summer camp for college age young people with the name Community Transformations. When Ravi first described the idea of CT, I was completely impressed. CT would be a residential program for 10 or 12 participants. They would live at Dharmalaya in the very comfortable re modeled attic. There was a kitchen added on to the house. The 1000 square foot straw bale structure was made for such teaching events.
CT went on for several years. The program included class room type in struction about spirituality, permaculture, social change. Students learned yoga. There were field trips to area permaculture sites, including my place, a ten minute walk. There were day trips to Hobbit Beach. There were guest speakers and hands on natural building projects at another property a block away that came to be known as Vistara, a one acre property an ally of Ravi and Michele had bought purposefully to be part of the spiritual community that was taking shape.
Community Transformation participants were enthusiastic, motivated and skilled in organzing. It was during that that several years of CT that I initiated the idea of hosting the regional peraculture convergence here in River Road. We had a number of assets to work with. The regional permaculture group was helpful and even had finances. Several organizing positions for the convergence were paid although the amount was modest. The regional group also had outreach capacity.
Here in River Road, we had a number of permacuture activests and at least a couple dozen permaculture sites to show and tell as by this time, 2015, we had been having site tours around the neighborhood for over 10 years. A lot to see in the neighborhood. We had the enthusiasm of the Community Transformation young people and we had our neighborhood recreation center. A cinder block building with large meeting space, classrooms, commercial grade kitchen, outdoor park with open sided pavillions and a staff and management very cordial and open to hosting the convergence.
