An email from Tim Winton - (reposted here with Tim's permission)

Hi Dan, Cat and Adrian,

I have been developing a rural permaculture project for the last 10 years (still am) (www.permaforesttrust.org.au) but have recently moved to the suburbs near Byron Bay. This is my first real foray into sub urban life since I was a child, and it has made me very aware that this is how the vast majority of Australians live. It has also brought home to me that during the impending/already started transition back down the resource availability curve here on planet earth, suburbs are going to be where the action is, at least in the rich world. With that said, I think you guys are doing some great work and in a sense you are pioneering a very important, and as you mentioned sometimes neglected field of permaculture. In fact I now think that the bulk of the work to be done in the transition, in terms of permaculture design and education in the rich industrialised countries, will be done in suburbs. David Holmgren has pointed out to those who have a less hopeful view of the future of suburban existence that suburbs actually contain a lot of embodied energy and infrastructure that often only needs minor retrofitting and redesign to function as liveable permaculture communities.

In that light the challenges you are facing with your landlord are challenges that others are going to face in time and in growing numbers, so it is worth putting some time into what you have rightfully assessed as and opportunity.

You may have assess the best opportunity already which is to use the event for awareness raising.

I'd suggest asking for a meeting with the landlord to inform them of the benefits of your work and the fact that it may make his place more rentable in the future. If it doesn't then you could always undertake to put it back to its original condition.

A good resource for others thinking of trying the same thing would be a positive outcome from this challenge. Another would be a legal statement that could be inserted in house rental leases giving the tenants the right to grow food gardens. This could be negotiated before signing a lease and future problems could be avoided. Tenants have quite strong rights in Australia, so it may even be that a section of your lease could be interpreted as giving you this right.

Best of luck with your campaign and commendations on growing that much of your total food in the 'burbs'.

Cheers

Tim

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Tim Winton
Permaforest Trust
Lot 3 Hidden Valley Rd
Barkers Vale, NSW
Australia 2474
phone +61 02 6689 7579
fax +61 02 9225 9536
www.permaforesttrust.org.au