Ecological Design equals Solutions for Our Future
Lisa Taranto in the garden.
by Lisa Taranto, co-founder of Tricycle Gardens, researcher, lecturer & instructor of Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden‘s class: Permaculture: How the World Works
An ecological crisis. An environmental crisis. A jobs crisis. A climate crisis. A financial crisis. An education crisis. An obesity crisis. A population crisis. Nature deficit disorder………What the hell is going on? Somehow we humans got here. We know that much. And we all have different theories about our collective journey. Now, how do we move out of the situation? The problems are complex, and the solutions are simple. It starts with delving into the complex and wondrous world of ecology, and our place within the system. Beneficial, regenerative, abundant, productive. Think about ecosystems that have been only lightly, or not at all, impacted by human systems. They work. They are productive, in balance, and a spectacular system of life-production-death-rebirth, with no waste products.
For the past 25 years I have been exploring, learning, and working to build healthy urban communities. Trained as an architect in the mid 80’s (not a particularly robust era for ecological design — but I managed to temporarily escape university to spend 1.5 years at Arcosanti, the experimental city of architecture and ecology in the high desert of Arizona), I jumped into urban agriculture about 12 years ago. After founding Tricycle Gardens, and then taking some time off to continue my permaculture and ecological design studies and practice, I am excited to share with you all of the amazing solutions based work that is going on in our world-and how it applies to our own lives and communities.
Join me this summer for Permaculture: How the World Works. Over 5 Thursdays, (July 12, 19, 26, August 2, 9, 6 – 8 pm), we will delve into the topics of global and urban hydrological systems, edible forest gardening (building our own food producing eco-systems), guiding patterns and bio-mimicry, soil building, organic gardening, and all sorts of beneficial relationships. Where does culture, technology, history and our individual experiences come in to the story?
Ecology as a science is relatively young — some say born in the 60’s, the same decade I arrived. I believe we are transitioning out of the age of technology into the age of ecology. So, what does it mean to be eco-literate? And how do we engage in the language of nature? We will look at the guiding principles behind permaculture/ecological design, and follow the journeys of several visionaries. Through this exploration, we will form our own visions of a verdant future, with a diverse set of solutions in the toolbox of life.
Fibonacci series begonia at the Longhouse Sculpture Garden on Long Island. If you have never been there, it is worth the trek! (We also have this begonia in the Conservatory at Lewis Ginter).