PermaPuheet

Preface

When COVID-19 hit the world I was in Germany at a funeral burying my step-father. Three months later the spring general assembly (ga) of the Finnish Permaculture Association was held online. Another quarter a year later the restrictions allowed to have an in-person meeting in Helsinki and then 2 months later the autumn general assembly in Koroinen, Turku. Most of the teachers squeezed their lectures into that tiny 3 month time frame of low restrictions. Afterwards the lectures dropped close to zero.

For me COVID-19 was and is no problem. I’m a nerd, an introvert. I actually need time of my own to recharge while many others need to be together. Corona gave me exactly that opportunity – to recharge. I could turn to myself and start a zone 00 design. And finally online lectures and online meetings were accepted by the masses, which has given me freedom of choice – something people that enjoy and participate in face-to-face courses with ease always have. Corona has given me candy land. All that suppression of introvert personality traits and the expectation one must be sociable at all times, that the extrovert world - which is very dominant in the permaculture circles - pushes on people, was gone. I felt free for the first time in decades – like when I discovered the internet for me in 1994.

Scope

Earth care – Bringing the knowledge of permaculture to as many people as possible so that they can take care of the Earth.

People care – Learning the things I’m interested in. Encouraging other to step forward to hold a lecture. Bringing permaculture and permaculture related topics to the members of the Finnish Permaculture Association and beyond.

Fair share – I get the knowledge I want while others get the lecture they want while other get paid for holding a lecture.

I’m using SADIMET as a design process

Survey

In February 2020 I sat in a meeting with some officials from different permaculture associations. I have never in the permaculture world seen more panic than in that meeting. From a Finnish perspective, almost no one’s job is that deeply anchored in permaculture that their whole income base would just crumble away, their whole existence would just vanish if they couldn’t teach for a year. But from the UK association’s perspective it felt different. It was sheer panic. Panic about where the money from all the courses that wouldn’t be held should come from. The panic to make ends meet without the money from teaching. But I do I know what it means to lose an entire income stream within the snip of a finger. I have been there. And as the Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy states it: “Don’t panic”.

Observations

• Membership numbers declined during the years of transition towards Sociocracy (2019 / 2020), since the association was spinning around itself.
• With Covid-19 around the limit of physical meetings is limited in Finland; at times it was 6, 10 or 20 people.
• From multiple seminars, workshops etc. it was clear that 8 hours in an online meeting won’t work – complaints coming mostly from older people
• Finland went back into a harder lock-down in March 2021
• Online meetings became an accepted and widely adapted way of meeting in 2020
• Even total computer illiterates came to permaculture meetings
• Online- lectures and courses became the normal way of learning
• Online panel discussions are no problem anymore
• Even big events like the Mobile World Congress went online
• There are a lot of different online meeting / collaboration tools around to get the job done: Zoom, Skype, Youtube, Twitch, Jitsi - to name just some.
• The willingness of permaculture teachers / knowledge carriers to share knowledge is given at any time
• There are Finnish teachers around that can teach about certain topics
• Private connections to different teachers exist
• Connections to other associations exist
• Members of the association can help
• Due to income streams being dried up the willingness to hold online lectures is high
• The UK permaculture associations recommends to have a list of courses attended as diploma apprentice
• The UK permaculture association is in official diploma papers talking about Zoom calls and not video calls
• The permaculture community is highly inclined to Zoom as their tool-of-choice

Analysis

PMI

Different online formats applicable for teaching

I also run a PMI for possible software used

I also thought about the difference between webinar and interactive lecture:

SWOC

SWOC stands for Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Challenges.

I use SWOC differently here. Instead of writing down what the struggles will be – finding them by asking questions, I put the item from the PMI into relative perspective. I review the items in relation to my and the associations capabilities. The table therefore shows what system plays to my and the associations strengths or weaknesses and what systems will come with opportunities and challenges.

Find below the SWOC from the association’s perspective that is more detailed:

You can see from the more detailed SWOC that it will result in the systems put into the first table. It still misses the SWOC from my perspective – which I will not share here.

SMART goals

SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Trackable (Time-Bound)

From the SWOC and the SMART goals it looks pretty clear to me that the “One lecture” and / or the “Panel discussion” is the way to go forward

Limits and Helps

In Looby’s Design Web I really liked the points for limits and helps. This is why I’m using them here within the analysis:

Within the Finnish permaculture association there is no or nearly no prior knowledge about holding any online lectures. Very few individuals have held an online seminar before.

Principles

The principles in this stage will guide me through the design.

• Multiple elements for important functions → One lecture feels not enough, also a panel discussion doesn’t feel enough. It also needs more than one person in the beginning to accept my idea. I’m bound to run my ideas by a peer in the association.
• Each element performs multiple functions → If we think of an event as an element then each event should accomplish more than one function. → Educate, get new members, connect, etc.
• Diversity → If I’m going to look for teachers, I’m not going to look for the same teachers that are always present in Finland. I also have to keep in mind to not just look for men but also women.
• Edge effect → It is not just about permaculture but also what is associated with it. Just because someone is growing good food organically doesn’t mean he could tell a lot about permaculture (Sepp Holzer didn’t know that he is into permaculture until someone told him that what he is doing is called permaculture). It is also about the edge of the association, the social edge, the connections between different associations / individuals.
• The yield of the system is theoretically unlimited → It might be not just about one lecture, but about the recording of it, the remix of it, conversion to podcast, etc.
• Obtain a yield → kind of the same as “the yield of a system is theoretically unlimited”
• Apply self regulation & accept feedback → Create a feedback from and evaluate the outcome with the communications team of the association. Give feedback to the teachers and receive from them.
• Design from pattern to details → Reminder to start at the bigger picture before diving into details
• Use & value renewable resources & services → no idea. I’d like to amend the principle a little → use & value OpenSource resources & services
• Integrate rather than segregate → An event should be rather inclusive – perhaps not just for members
• Use slow & small solutions → this one points away from the conference
• Use & value diversity → different teachers, different services, different topics
• Use edges & value the marginal → for edges see “Edge effect” for the marginal I’m a little puzzled. I guess I have to see during the design what kind of marginal presents itself
• Creatively use & respond to change → I guess whole the design could be put under this category. I didn’t rush anything in those changing times. I waited very long and observed long before I started designing.

I think I have so far analyzed the known aspects. Like in every design I probably have to improvise during the design phase. You can’t design for the unknown. But I can keep it in mind that there are more things that I don’t know than things I know.

I can’t do an online conference. I have enough knowledge to do it but the communications team of the association has not. I can’t do it alone, so a conference is out of the questions. The different analysis points showed it also. With a panel discussion I would have needed to find a panel that will discuss a topic and additional to that a host who knows the topic. Neither of those three will be simple. One lecture alone feels pretty awkward. I can’t really just design one lecture, or: I can design one lecture and then multiple it into a series.

Design

Start designing for me is usually a little ritual. I go to a Café and start. And while I’m stirring my coffee and having a pulla (Finnish cardamon bread) I go through my survey and analysis.

Ideas

Conference and panel discussion is out of the question and just one lecture won’t work. And while I take a big bite out of my pulla an idea is forming in my head:

• A series of several lectures always on the same day and the same time of the day of a week. Giving people something constant in their lives, an anchor.

From my first initial thought I looked back to the principles:

• Every lecture is about permaculture or permaculture related topics
• Equality of female & male teachers
• Trying out different technologies – since the permaculture community is Zoom addicted it is a good point to show and try some alternatives
• Record lectures if possible and make them available to members → might come with a price attached
• If material used during the lecture is available → make it available to members
• The marginal → time → Maximum 1,5 h / lecture
• The marginal → teachers
• Design from pattern to details → first the concept then the lectures

From the observation, analysis and the ideas I formulated a concept

Concept

• PermaTalks (hey, I already got a name) is a series of 6-8 1-2 hour lectures
• Proposed starting date is End of February
• The lectures are held online using Jitsi & Youtube / Zoom
• Lectures get recorded
• Lectures get published at Youtube half a year later
• Access to the live lecture only for members
• Tickets for non-members at Holvi webshop
• Lectures in Finnish
• Lecture from foreigners in English
• Host introduced lecturer before lecture
• Host collects questions from chat
• Feedback form at our website

Teachers & Lectures

To diversify the mix of teachers & lectures I used zones.

• Zone 00 = for me
• Zone 0 = for my wife
• Zone 1 = for friends
• Zone 2 = for colleagues and acquaintances
• Zone 3 = for the members of the Suomen Permakulttuuriyhdistys RY
• Zone 4 = for the Finns
• Zone 5 = for people interested

Find below the result:

Budget

The Finance department of the Suomen Permakultuuriyhdistys allowed a budget of 50,- € / lecture. Which is then a total of 350,- €.