Chimanimani man in India for permaculture indaba

CHIMANIMANI-BASED permaculturist Mr Julious Piti is in India where he joined more than 1 200 other delegates from across the globe for the 13th International Permaculture Convergence (IPC) that got underway yesterday.

Mr Piti is representing Chikukwa Ecological Land Use Community Trust (CELUCT), TSURO Trust, PORET and Participatory Ecological Land Use Management (PELUM) and the entirety of Zimbabwe.

CELUCT, TSURO and PORET are Chimanimani community-based permaculture organisations that promote food securities among rural communities.

Permaculture is a system of agricultural and social design principles centred on simulating or directly utilising the patterns and features observed in natural ecosystems.

It is the maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems, which have the diversity, stability and resilience of natural ecosystems.

Usually it increases yields, reduces pollution, reduces waste and brings about the sense of self-reliance, among others.

This year’s IPC is being organised by Hyderabad-based environmental and developmental Aranya Agricultural Alternatives (AAA), the International Permaculture Convergence Council (IPCC) and Friends of IPC (FIPC).

The programme is expected to run until to December 7 under the theme “Towards healthy societies”.

The primary objective of IPC 2017 is to provide farmers with an opportunity to get inspired and learn how their current challenges can be solved using permaculture principles.

South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania and Malawi are among the African countries that have sent representatives of their permaculture communities to attend this year’s IPC.

In an interview with The Herald, Mr Piti said he attended the first IPC hosted in Australia in 1984.

“This is now the fourth time I have been attending IPCs and the knowledge that I have been getting has been very helpful to smallholder farmers in Chimanimani and Zimbabwe at large. They have been serving as platforms to discuss strategies, education standards, research, and regional and global permaculture development,” said Mr Piti.

“This year’s IPC also aims to discuss horticultural strategies and solutions to climate change. We also want to link smallholder farmers in rural communities as they are being helpful in the restoration and provision of traditional seeds to the entire nation,” he said.