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Event
Digging Into the Roots of Our Culture
*sales have ended online, but there are limited tickets at the door*
Humanity is a work in progress. We are a young species, far from our potential - and we are currently in deep trouble. The explosive development of the past 150 years cannot be sustained. Our vital systems are on a breakdown course, but not because we can't learn. It's because we're very good at learning but mostly in narrowly focused, short-term, self-serving ways. When scaled up to global industrial levels the impact is like a run-away cancer, degrading and destroying the natural systems on which all life depends.
There is a way forward. During the last half of the 20th century there has been a growing interest in understanding complex systems, largely in reaction to the need to reduce unintended consequences and limitations of existing practices and increase capabilities for diagnostics and design, innovation, sustainability and adaptive control. A wide range of systems thinking disciplines emerged with applications in any field that was too complex to be managed with narrower approaches. Ecology became a foundational discipline for understanding natural systems, and branched out into many sub-disciplines such as agroecology, organic farming, soil ecology, permaculture and adaptive land management.
These are not simply counter cultural approaches to conventional industrialized agriculture. It is not just about food production, it's a way of learning, of reaching for our species' potential. These are, or could be, pioneering efforts on humanity's pathway to wisdom.
Soil is the ground from which life grows and culture is the ground from which humanity grows. Humanity has discovered some of the processes of regeneration, but we need to learn about and apply best practices to those pockets of soil and of culture that have become degraded and are in need of protection. We are all stewards of our culture and our land for generations to come, but our current practices do not sustain, respect and nurture life.
How can we build our capacity to understand the challenges and navigate them effectively, including deeply exploring our current operating systems, world views, how we establish our priorities and what we care about in order to rebuild and move forward? Although caring and having a deep connection with the land is important, it isn't enough alone. We need to be life-long learners, exploring how to become wise and responsible human beings, caretakers and regenerators.
Leadership Calgary is pleased to connect five special guests who have invested their time and effort in this exploration, as a starting point for learning. Come and explore how improving the food system and our relationship with our culture and the environment can help us meet our 21st century challenges!
Our facilitators:
Rob Avis is a petroleum engineer turned permaculture teacher, designer and public speaker. He graduated from the University of Alberta and also has international training and certifications in renewable energy and regenerative design. He and his wife Michelle have been running Verge Permaculture in Calgary for the past 5 years. When he's not nerding out on permaculture, he spends his free time with his kids, Rowan and Naomi, playing guitar and meditating.
Kris Vester is a self-described philosopher, activist, visionary and peasant farmer by choice. Also the current President of Slow Food Calgary, Kris is actively participating in the creation of a sustainable food system, connecting producers, suppliers, chefs, and consumers with sustainable agricultural products.
Blue Mountain Farm is the Vester family farm, and the home that Kris grew up in. A vibrant polyculture, Blue Mountain is 160 acres of grains, vegetable gardens, barns and hen houses. The farm family includes pigs, goats, turkeys, and chickens, who feast on the organically-grown feed produced on-farm. Kris, his partner Tamara, son Niko, and his parents Henry and Erika not only sow and harvest farm bounty, they also grow their own feed, save their own seed, build their soil with a fertile compost pile, and hand-mill their grain for Farm Box and their other CSA members.
Kathleen Charpentier ranches near Castor, AB with her son, daughter and their partners. Their farm is committed to producing nutrient-dense grass-finished meat that will nourish families. Their lives revolve around their deeply held belief in the sanctity of soil, and the honour in treating animals with grace and dignity. Holistic Management has played a significant role on the farm. Her personal passions include the development of local food economies, food sovereignty and food security. Kathleen has been involved in the National Farmer's Union Women's Advisory for eight years.
Dana Penrice is passionate about building landscapes and cultures that support regenerative communities and life systems. By thinking broadly and deeply about the systems upon which our society depends, she sees us better positioning the industry and our communities for the future. Dana's work with the University of Alberta's There's a Heifer in Your Tank and with the Human Venture Institute has been foundational in developing her interest in creating resourceful, resilient, responsible and adaptive people. Dana is educated in Animal Science, earning a B. Sc. from the U of A but her much-valued informal learning came from hanging out in chicken barns, working with horses and teaching kids (and teachers, parents, etc.) about agriculture. Dana works at Organic Alberta. She and her partner run C & E Meats at Lacombe, Alberta. They believe that grazing livestock and poultry can heal our planet.
Ken Low is the founder and president of Action Studies and The Human Venture Institute. He facilitates the longest running community leadership programs in Canada - Leadership Calgary and Leadership Edmonton. Ken is dedicated to mapping out the dynamics of adaptive intelligence in human systems and pioneering the development of a new discipline human learning ecology. His research draws on successes and failures of human learning and activity across cultures, sectors, disciplines and periods of history. The patterns of adaptive intelligence found in the human story provide a structure for understanding progress, folly and resistance, including the systemic challenges facing humanity at our time and place in history, and what it will take to meet them.
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LocationC.N.I.B. (View)
15 Colonel Baker Place NE
Calgary, AB T2E 4Z3
Canada
Categories
| Kid Friendly: Yes! |
| Non-Smoking: Yes! |
| Wheelchair Accessible: Yes! |
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Contact
Attendees
Gemma E.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 05, 2015 7:08 PM |
D S.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 04, 2015 1:46 PM |
D S.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 04, 2015 1:46 PM |
Marcia M.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 04, 2015 12:06 PM |
Shelley C.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 04, 2015 7:43 AM |
Shelley C.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 04, 2015 7:43 AM |
Martin C.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 04, 2015 3:07 AM |
Gunther B.
calgary, AB Canada
May 01, 2015 6:03 PM |
Gunther B.
calgary, AB Canada
May 01, 2015 6:03 PM |
Sead T.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 01, 2015 12:31 PM |
Sead T.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 01, 2015 12:31 PM |
Clea R.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 01, 2015 10:13 AM |
Clea R.
Calgary, AB Canada
May 01, 2015 10:13 AM |
Trevor D.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 30, 2015 12:07 PM |
Jen S.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 28, 2015 5:23 PM |
Katie Jo M.
Sundre, AB Canada
Apr 28, 2015 4:04 PM |
Katie Jo M.
Sundre, AB Canada
Apr 28, 2015 4:04 PM |
Ryan L.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 27, 2015 1:41 PM |
Kate J.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 27, 2015 12:51 PM |
Zoe F.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 27, 2015 9:34 AM |
Richard N.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 27, 2015 9:34 AM |
Mya F.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 27, 2015 9:34 AM |
Kim R.
Cochrane, AB Canada
Apr 23, 2015 11:27 AM |
Kim R.
Cochrane, AB Canada
Apr 23, 2015 11:27 AM |
Jp F.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 23, 2015 8:34 AM |
Jp F.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 23, 2015 8:34 AM |
Jill S.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 23, 2015 5:45 AM |
Mike S.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 22, 2015 3:49 PM |
Sarah K.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 21, 2015 11:05 PM |
Meghan V.
Sundre, AB Canada
Apr 21, 2015 4:09 PM |
Golnaz A.
Edmonton, AB Canada
Apr 21, 2015 1:54 PM |
Sheida A.
Edmonton, AB Canada
Apr 21, 2015 1:54 PM |
Kirsten W.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 15, 2015 6:01 AM |
Jill F.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 14, 2015 5:14 PM |
Stephanie P.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 14, 2015 11:56 AM |
Sarah K.
calgary, AB Canada
Apr 13, 2015 11:52 AM |
Sarah K.
calgary, AB Canada
Apr 13, 2015 11:52 AM |
Eleanor F.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 11, 2015 2:52 PM |
Eleanor F.
Calgary, AB Canada
Apr 11, 2015 2:52 PM |
Anita H.
Calgary, AB Canada
Mar 22, 2015 6:53 PM |
Kelli S.
Calgary, AB Canada
Mar 05, 2015 5:12 PM |
Mark H.
Calgary, AB Canada
Mar 03, 2015 9:06 PM |
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