Comments on: Letters from Chile – Eco Escuela El Manzano, a Nice Place to Learn

By: Øyvind Holmstad

Øyvind Holmstad — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 14:33:32 +0000

Here is an important essay from Nikos A. Salíngaros in Spanish, which I hope to be useful for you: http://www.math.utsa.edu/ftp/salingar.old/Laws-spanish.html

Also I see the site which I referred to in some of my postings, referring to some of the patterns in A Pattern Language, is down. Well, here is a new site I found, presenting all the patterns even with illustrations and pictures included. The patterns are listed in the left marrow: http://vasarhelyi.eu/books/A_pattern_language_book/apl.htm

By: Grifen

Grifen — Thu, 27 May 2010 14:40:48 +0000

Thanks for the comments and thoughts on our work in Chile. You can find more here http://www.ecoescuela.cl. We will keep regular stories coming through the Permaculture Research Institute site.

By: Øyvind Holmstad

Øyvind Holmstad — Mon, 24 May 2010 19:32:36 +0000

I think we see a new kind of American Dream evolve in South America!

Here are some words for inspiration:

“A farmer in a traditional culture “knew” how to make a beautiful house for himself. We envy him, and think that only he was able to do this because his culture made it possible. But this power the primitive farmer had lay in his pattern language.

And if the people of the town now have a pattern language which is whole, they have the same power, exactly. Whatever act of building or repair is contemplated – building a bench, a flower bed, a room, a terrace, a small cottage, a whole house, a group of houses, a remaking of a street shop, a café trellis, a complex of public buildings, even the re-planning of a neighborhood – they have the power to do it for themselves.

A person with a pattern language can design any part of the environment.

He does not need to be an “expert”. The expertise is in the language. He can equally well contribute to the planning of a city, design his own house, or remodel a single room, because in each case he knows the relevant patterns, knows how to combine them, and knows how the particular piece he is working on fits into the larger whole.

And it is essential that the people shape their surroundings for themselves.

Since the patterns are patterns of action, and the action will not happen unless the patterns are felt, and created, and maintained by the people whose action goes into the patterns, there is no way the living town can be built by professionals, for other people to live in. The living town can only be created by a process in which patterns are created and maintained by the people who are part of them.”

The Timeless Way of Building by Christopher Alexander, page 353 – 354.

By: Roxana

Roxana — Sun, 23 May 2010 23:25:58 +0000

These posts were awesome, they took me back to the great moments I had while doing the PDC in El Manzano.

By: Nick Huggins

Nick Huggins — Sun, 23 May 2010 06:40:48 +0000

Hey Craig,

Awsome series mate. Well done, and looking forward to your next travels in the Permaculture world.

By: Marcin Gerwin

Marcin Gerwin — Sat, 22 May 2010 07:12:13 +0000

It was an interesting series to follow, best of luck for the team in Chile! Am looking forward to seeing photos of the completed demonstration building.

By: Craig Mackintosh

Craig Mackintosh — Sat, 22 May 2010 05:54:56 +0000

Postscript: I've also added four more photographs to the end of this post, the last of which (the second last photo on the page) shows the state of construction on the day I left El Manzano. The boys there promise to send me updates so I can keep you aware of progress.