To help transition Japan to a peace promoting post-carbon country while enjoying every step of the process. 僕のビジョンは、祖国日本で、平和文化を育みポストカーボン（Post-Carbon) 社会を促進してゆく事です。 化石燃料や原子力に頼らず、他国の資源を取らない、自給自足な国へのトランジションを実現させてゆきたいです。
Below is a video of life at the Peace and Permaculture Dojo (the Dojo)
道場 (dojo) means a place (場）of/for the path (道）also known to the West as "dao". The Dojo is in the early stages of development as a place of practice, and a place of nonviolent/peace activists to gather near Tokyo, but just far enough to be surrounded by rice paddies and the ocean.
In 2018, we experimented with our first residential internship program for Japanese. We had three spots that were filled up with nine people, including a family of five (and two goats). As everything is quite unstructured and organic at the Dojo, it was quite a challenging experiment for all of us, but the learning and growth was priceless.
Things we explored (a sample)
simple living e.g. building your own dwelling, cooking with fire and sun, washing by hand (including cloth diapers for two), eating almost completely locally, etc
community dynamics and nonviolent communication: how to be authentic, empathetic, and live harmoniously with those who have different perspectives (vegan/non-vegan, toddler/children/20s/30s/40s, single/family, urban/rural, etc)
systems thinking and design: community is a system and operates differently than individuals
permaculture, natural farming, and ecological regeneration: how to heal the land (and ourselves) and live as part of the ecosystem
mindfulness: living in the present moment, engaging with the internal landscape
gift economy: living in service, being in alignment with the ecosystem, and having awareness of when things are not a "gift" (like feeling we are pressured to give). Exploring the difference with capitalism through our head, heart, and hands
social change: our relationship to the larger society and our cultural inheritance, roles, and possible contributions in a time of instability
It was an extremely challenging process, especially in the realm of emotions, but I feel such experiences are invaluable and help us grow in ways that modern society rarely offer. AND extremely rewarding (although its not for the rewards that we do this work).
This year (2019) we are doing a five month internship with four residents.
We also have more and more people moving to the area (Isumi, Chiba) involved in running the Dojo and using the Dojo.
Slowly, we will grow our capacity to support more people in their practice.
If you are curious about what I have been up to, check out my update post here!
Below are some events I will be doing this week in England.
Peace & Permaculture in Japan With Kai Sawyer
7pm Tuesday, June 25th At the Barrel House Sliding scale gift at the door
Please join us for this very special evening with one of Japan’s inspirational peace and permaculture movement leaders.
There’s
so much happening in Japan. Kai will share his experience with
post-Fukushima renewal and acts of compassion, miso-making in the House
of Councillors to spread probiotics in our politics, the Peace and
Permaculture Dojo, and impermaculture.
Kai is founder of Peace
and Permaculture Dojo and Tokyo Urban Permaculture, is a practitioner of
gift economy, and teacher of nonviolence, mindfulness and the Gift
Ecology.
Organised by Totnes REconomy Project and Transition Town Totnes. For more info, email Jay Tompt - jay(a)transitiontowntotnes.org
The Gandhian Iceberg and the Gift Ecology a deep dive workshop for change makers, with Kai Sawyer
Friday, June 28 9:30-4:30pm REconomy Centre and Leachwell Garden
Booking is essential as space is limited. Email jay(a)transitiontowntotnes.org Cost: Kai graciously accepts what you are happy
to gift so that he can continue to share and facilitate for the benefit
of humanity. *One suggestion is a massage therapy session that evening. :-)
The
Gandhian Iceberg is a model for those committed to "being peace" and
co-creating a nonviolent culture where all-life can thrive. in this
workshop we will explore this simple but profound model composed of
three parts: satyagraha (courageous action inspired by love),
constructive program (collective practice of living together), and self
purification (deep inner work). We’ll also explore:
* adventures in the world of giftivism (the practice of gift economy and living in service) * ‘Integral non violence’, permaculture and NVC * how to be "moved by love" rather than fear and anger *
what all of you are moved by, what challenges you are facing in life,
and explore how to be more empowered and joyful on this exciting
journey.
Kai is founder of Peace and Permaculture Dojo and Tokyo
Urban Permaculture, a practitioner of the gift economy, and teacher of
permaculture, NVC, and holistic systems-level social change.
Organised by Totnes REconomy Project and Transition Town Totnes. For more info, email Jay Tompt - jay(a)transitiontowntotnes.org
It's been awhile (as usual) that I've given an update in English about what I've been up to, so here it is! Most of my articles are in Japanese at Tokyo Urban Permaculture.
I focus on Japan because I felt a need, an opportunity, and I had a calling after the Fukushima nuclear meltdown in 2011. While I'd love to spread the awesome happenings of Japan (impermaculture, natural farming, peace activism, simple artful living, etc), I've come to accept that I can't do more than I can do. If you can help on the media front and/or translate, drop me a line at tup.pollinator(a)gmail.com
Let's start with 2018 accomplishments and celebrations!!!
CHILDREN'S PERMACULTURE BOOK
Last year after about 3 years of creativity and drama, we finally published a children's permaculture book! Based on our first book, Urban Permaculture Guide, and infused with inspiration from the Whole Earth Catalogue, its my usual mix of permaculture, NVC, mindfulness, and giftivism. Beautiful art and I'm just amazed at how it turned out!
If we find the right people, we might be able to put it out in English.
The cover is a compost mandala that my friend Wakana Kawamura drew. A beautiful illustration of how kitchen "waste" is transformed by different microorganisms and worms, finally turning into vegetables.
Another dear friend, Niky Roehreke, created wonderful art pieces for each chapter (right side "Edible"). Left side is by the designer and is about the three permaculture ethics, EARTH CARE, PEOPLE CARE, FAIR SHARE.
Because we want children and adults to take action (not just read the book), we came up with meaningful fun activities that are quite radical for Japanese. This page is guerrilla seed planting titled, "go throw seeds without telling any adults".
Another one of Wakana's illustrations for the page "From Exchange to Gifting" (about the gift economy, aka gift ecology).
We wanted to make a book artistic, fun, while cultivating the foundation for permaculture thinking. This page is about various forms of energy.
It is a 144 page art piece and homage to permaculture!
I'm quite proud of our first permaculture culture book that a different team co-created with over 400 people involved called, The Urban Permaculture Guide.
The Peace and Permaculture Dojo is my first land-based project and is located in Chiba prefecture (two hours by train from Tokyo). It is an old abandoned homestead (Japan is plentiful in this resource) of 0.9 hecters or 2.2 acres. We have been fixing the Japanese timber-framed house that is over 100 years old and slowly regenerating the soil with a method called daichinosaisei which literally means "earth regeneration". Daichinosaisei is spreading like wild-fire in the Japanese permaculture and natural farming circles. Some day when I'm motivated enough, I might write about it! But, basically, it's about creating healthy soil ecosystems by digging vertical and horizontal holes, filling them with interwoven biomass and porous tiles, and spreading lots of bamboo charcoal for microbial habitat. One of the passionate leaders of the movement, Takada, says its based on what farmers and landscape architects knew as common-sense before the US cultural reeducation after world war 2. Daichinosaisei is a lot about seeing the earth as a living system and taking care of air flow and water flow (veins) beneath the surface. I'll stop there for now, it's super deep!
Just a few recent highlights at the DOJO
Transitioning from a dictatorship (by me) to a cooperative model. Finally!
We ran out of money. Finally!
Last year I took on four youth and a family of five (and two goats) for my first batch of interns
This year, I'm hoping to have 2~3 interns for five months of training in permaculture, organic farming, NVC, mindfulness, and social change
We are going to have a monthly Day Of Mindfulness practice, and regular morning meditations
Starting to make a basemap for the site so we can do a proper permaculture design
Going to get more serious about daichinosaisei
In addition to our 6-day NVC trainings, we are going to have more activist trainings like a 2-day community organizing workshop, and a World Shift training
We wil also host a Permaculture Design Course for the second time
Although I am focused on training Japanese, if things work out, I'm happy to have non-Japanese to help out and experience neo-traditional Japanse living. I guess its just timing, matching needs and gifts, and how little extra work it will be for me! I can't even keep up with emails.
This was an experiment to create an urban permaculture garden in the heart of the Tokyo youth fashion district (Harajuku/Omotesando). The building was not intended for anything on the roof, so we started by climbing ladders, carrying wood to make a floor (when we first arrived, we were stepping directly on the foam insulation facing the sky), and lifting bags of soil on our backs. The project started with a worm bin, then I was invited to teach about urban permaculture, then we said let's make a garden! We are also doing monthly permaculture themed community lunches that features the seasonal harvest (little bit).
It's still a longways from the urban oasis I dream of, but despite my sporadic involvement, its still alive! Hoping to revamp the project and get more regular involvement, especially the fashion and tech-driven youth. Transforming consumers to producers.
The space is semi-public, and it's a bit tricky to invite strangers up there, but if you have skills and want to be involved for a few months (commitment makes a big difference), you can try dropping us a line at tup.pollinator(a)gmail.com (we are all super-active volunteers so our communication can be slow and sporadic!).
What does it take to create a world of active peace?
A culture of integral nonviolence?
A country of people who are devoted to caring for each other, and living as a society that works for everyone?
Those are some of the questions that lead me to start the Peace and Permaculture Dojo, and experiment with NVC practice retreats.
A team of NVC trainers and I have been holding 6-day NVC trainings for youth and activists twice a year. Inspired by the NVC Leadership Program (now on hiatus), these have been deep explorations into nonviolence, authenticity, and empathy. We have also been incorporating cooking together, chopping wood, taking out the humanure bucket as a way to root the NVC training with living nonviolently.
This year, we are going to add two more trainings. A seven-day training with an assitant program much like the NVC Leadership Program. And a social justice and diversity themed NVC retreat with the former lead trainer of the NVC Leadership Program, Roxy.
Although the NVC Leadership Program no longer exisits, it was a magical community experiement in nonviolence, and I really felt like I started to taste the essence of nonviolence. These retreats are both to expand our ecosystem of peace activists, and to bring us back to the consciouness of nonviolence.
ECONOMICS OF HAPPINESS MOVEMENT: from a global economic system to localization
This is a whole can of worms so I won't go into much detail, but I'm working with director of Local Futures, Helena Norberg-Hodge, and long-time Japanese activist, Ooiwa Keibo, to build a solid vbirant localization movement that can transcend the tsunami of the global economic system. This has been an evolution of my activism in Japan which started with the Fukushima nuclear meltdown, climate change, then issues of war and US bases, and now the whole global economic system! My role in the activist scene in Japan has been organizing and training youth (there are very few of us out there!), and creating a more holistic social change culture.
The pieces that I'm integrating into this is
post-Fukushima nuclear meltdown Japan
US occupation in Japan (US-bases, post-war treaties undermining the Japanese constitution, and heavy US influence in Japanese politics)
efforts to change our pacifist constitution, specifically Article 9
the recent shift to actively develop and sell weapons
political apathy and one-party rule (Liberal Democratic Party)
hyper-consumerism
privitization of public services (most recently our water system)
widespread abuse of youth and women, particularly what we call "power harassment"
BYRON BAY GATHERING (Feb 2019)
I was part of an awesome team that discussed the future of the global localization movement (sounds like an oxymoron!). We discussed what we mean by "localization", sticky issues such as terminology and modern technology (specifically block-chain and cryptocurrencies, AI, Google/Facebook), and how we can foster a vibrant movement that is relevant to everyone. We also explored the possibility of creating a Schumacher College inspired education center that engages with the global economic system and politics.
The people who gathered were very inspiring, and challenged my preconceptions and understandings in many ways. Particularly Camila from Brazil and Manish from India. Its sometimes hard to remember that the Western worldview is not a universal worldview, and many of the challenges of our times have grown out of the Western cultural experiment (like Cartisianism). Anyways, check out the profiles of the characters that gathered. Really awesome stuff!
This year, we are having monthly Day Of Mindfulness practices in the tradition of Plum Village. Many of us are also vipassana meditators so there is talk of having regular morning sits.
Mindfulness is the foundation of all of what I do, so I'm trying to create a regular community practice to cultivate that energy in me and in our community. It's so easy to get busy, frustrated, depressed, and unhappy when diving deep into the tragedies of violence and oppression. So, its essential to have an oasis of peace in our hearts, and in our community where we can take refuge.
TOURS (aka activist trainings)
As a way to refresh my mind, reconnect with fellow activists, and train Japanese activists (at least that's what I secretly call them), I organize two overseas trips.
One is to Schumacher College in the UK, to spend time with Satish Kumar and experience holistic education.
The other, my favorite project, is a permacultture-themed tour to the Pacific North West of the US. We go to the Bullocks Permaculture Homestead, where I was an intern for two years, then to Portland and Seattle. In Portland, we experience the City Repair movement and all the amazing permaculture themed social change projects like an ecovillage by homeless people (Dignity Village). We also go to Seattle to see some of the large-scale permaculture projects like the Beacon Hill Food Forest.
Some of the tour participants continue to work closely with me.
IN CLOSING
There are lots of other things, like raising a beautiful child, but I'll end here for now.
Here are a few online resources in English for more information on what I want to spread in the world
Wow, I haven't posted anything in English for so long!!!!
I'm in the midst of making an update but its been a several weeks project.
Anyways, I'm going to Australia tomorrow to participate in a retreat with some amazing people. There will be a public event in Byron Bay so if any of you are in that area, or know of anyone who might be interested, let them know.
Join us for a unique, interactive evening in the company of activists
from 5 continents who are working towards system change. Learn about
what’s underway in India, Brazil, the USA, Japan, Denmark, Mexico and
other parts of the world, and why people from such different cultures
and geographies view localisation as a promising strategy for meeting
the greatest social and ecological challenges of our time.
The main organizer
Helena Norberg-Hodge – Australia/UK
A pioneer of the local
economy movement, a respected analyst of the global economy, and a
leading proponent of ‘localization’, for which she was awarded the
prestigious Goi Peace prize in 2012 and the Arthur Morgan award in 2017.
Helena also earned the Right Livelihood Award, or ‘Alternative Nobel
Prize’, for her groundbreaking work with the people of Ladakh, which
aimed at finding ways to meet the modern world without sacrificing
Ladakhi cultural practices and social and ecological values.
Helena has authored and co-authored numerous articles, essays, book chapters and books, including: Bringing the Food Economy Home; From the Ground Up: Rethinking Industrial Agriculture; and her seminal book Ancient Futures
– which has been described as “an inspirational classic.” This book,
together with a film of the same name, has been translated into over 40
languages, and has sold half a million copies.
She is also the producer and co-director of the multi-award-winning film The Economics of Happiness. She lectures extensively across the world, teaches regularly at Schumacher College in the UK, and appears in media worldwide.
Helena is the founder and director of Local Futures and the International Alliance for Localization.
She is also a founding member of the International Commission on the
Future of Food and Agriculture, the International Forum on
Globalization, and the Global Ecovillage Network.
