November 14th – 16th

At Panta Rei this week, something that Rachel commented to me was that she felt much more consious of how much water and energy she was using, yet it was easy to use less. Some of this is because the fixtures on the faucets are designed to use less water, and walls are thick, keeping in the radiant heat. But something that inversely it made me realize is that our system in the US is in fact designed to be as wasteful as possible. Ever running out of hot water is unacceptable. Or being unable to have a dishwasher in your home, or having limited light or heating. Not to mention gas, which we expect to always be available. And as a whole system, I feel as though we are trained to not think about how many resources we use, because we are taught this idea of bounty being the American Dream. These are the subtle cultural differences that Italy is able to deal with much more easily. They have nation wide memories of a history of poverty, of fascism. Like the generation that dealt with The Depression, this sense of scarcity becomes the norm, and makes the idea of limited resource a more tangible reality.

View from Buona
Terra's "Tall House"

When we visited Buona Terra and saw the whole olive oil process, I realized how immediate this connection to the earth was. They had no olive oil this year, and who knows about next year? How utterly terrifying the prospect of climate change must be to these small farmers. On a global scale, I am afraid. I am afraid for my children, and for the spread of disease and suffering. While I found the transition town workshop really fun, engaging, and a great bonding experience with my fellow classmates – it did not give me hope. If we really have five years, I have no faith in humanity. We go through cyclical destruction as a species over and over. And I have no doubt this will be the same. This will not stop me on a personal level from living the most just life I feel that I can. Doing my little bit to feel psychically in touch with the earth, rooted as a living being, aware of the effects of my actions. But I have no illusions about this changing the whole world. I am terrified for my children and I am not sure if I should even have them. I talked about this with my partner in the transition town workshop. Or rather, I talked and she listened. I wish I could say that it made me feel more hopeful - but really it didn't. Perhaps this works for people who are just being introduced to these subjects, they are more easily convinced that we are not slowly killing the earth. However, I grew up with that knowledge, and I'm not sure if it helped.

Goats, and our class

Something that did give me hope was visiting another local land project called Buona Terra. This is where the founder of Panta Rei, Dino, started out with his first wife about 30 years ago. When they split, he started Panta Rei, which is just down the road. They still work together and are on good terms. Buona Terra is different because it is a business versus a non-profit. This means they cannot have WOOFers or volunteers, the way Panta Rei can. Their focus is more on elementary school education. They have the whole place set up so kids can come stay for a couple days and learn how the farm works. They have tiny tools so kids can plant in the garden, milk the goats, harvest the olives. Depending on the season (of course) they do different activities. The farm is one reliant on the many animals they have, and supports about five people who live there all year round, as well as the classes when they come to visit. This includes a terraced vegetable garden (everything is on a hill) Olive groves, a herd of goats, sheep, a horse (just for the manure, and to carry fire wood), chickens, rabbits (for manure, and occasional food). This trip made me realize how traditionally on farms animals are mostly used for their bodies in ways besides killing them and eating them In fact, while they did eat their animals, it was only when the animal had to be killed - aka a chicken stops laying eggs, too many male rabbits are born. For pigs, which were raised for years and a couple were killed in a year, their preservation techniques could make one pig last a year. I knew this through my readings, but everything they say about experiential learning is true. Being able to poke at things and ask questions made it that much more real for me. And also to actually eat a traditional Italian diet, which does not have much meat in it at all. It really made me think of our obsession with getting enough protein in the United States. How much is really necessary? Much can be supplied by grains, dairy and legumes, but we talk about it as though our only protein source is animal flesh.

Walking through the olive grove at Buona Terra

The compost system, where kids are asked to "think about what
 the animal wants to eat" and dispose of it accordingly.

Overall I have found the hands on aspect much more rewarding than I ever expected. I have friends who have been involved in alternative land projects, I have visited over several days, seen their off the grid and survivalist lives. However, these were always more a matter of circumstance – I went because I wanted to see a friend, they were having an event, it would be fun. I have never taken a personal interest in these sorts of communities. As someone who grew up in the city, and had many sustainable ways of living ingrained in my life, I figured I was doing good enough. But to be honest, much of it seems like a way of ameliorating our consumerists lifestyles so that we believe we are not as bad as everybody else. But how much does recycling do if we do not buy within the seasons? How reliant am I on my immediate community? How much does it matter if we have a terrible winter and the winter vegetables die? Would I even notice?