No Compromise in Defence of Mother Earth!
Earth First
A group of people dedicated to making real changes in their
own lives towards sustainability.
and
Earth First Conservation Projects Inc.
An Association formed to:
Create sustainable employment opportunities in ethical
enterprises,
and
Fund ecological conservation projects.
Organic Co-op Sustainable Township
Project
Premise
That
people can live and prosper in harmony with the Earth indefinitely by living as
symbiots instead of as parasites.
To
provide the necessary infrastructure to test the premise on a large scale.
Method
It is
past time for those people who sincerely wish to change their lives and
lifestyle toward something that resembles sustainability to group together and
do exactly that. Not by dropping out, but by starting to set up structures and
industries that do not consume and pollute as a matter of course, as is the
case now.
The
project will be based on at least 100,000 hectares, with a target human
utilisation of 10%. The remainder will be preserved, restored and protected.
This is not a Luddite style project, on the contrary we believe we should be using
our technical ability and knowledge to reduce our pressure on the environment.
Our aim is at all times toward zero impact.
The
initial town plan is to cater for 100 families. A variety of living styles is
to be provided for; bush, rural, urban, dense and communal. Power, water,
sanitation etc must be sustainable and non-polluting.
We
intend to site the project on community owned land. Several options are
available such as existing pastoral lease properties which have been misused or
vacant land in need of conservation.
Recently
we began to look at the Southern Coast of
You can contact us at:
Or by email at: efoz@earthfirst.org.au (and put the word organic
in the subject box somewhere)
Home Learners Group
The group was formed in response to a need in the home
education community for a weekly event. The syllabus is coordinated by Fiona
MacKenzie and Sarah Maclean. The current programme includes a children’s book
club and a drama/cooperative games session. There is an increasing focus on
natural learning within the group and our future vision involves the formation
of a Learning Resource Centre.
Organic Co-op
From an organic buying group established 8 years ago
we have grown into a co-op for members, stocking only 100% certified organic or
wild harvest natural produce. Where we can. we buy certified wholefoods in bulk (preferably directly
from the farmer or processor) and repack into cellophane bags or glass bottles
and jars. We operate entirely by volunteers, however we
will be opening a shop and cafe early next year which will provide wages for
staff as well as allowing for the continued use of volunteer labour.
Rules
(these rules were developed by negotiation with the consensus
of the group over time, are subject to constant review and discussion, and
apply mostly to our housing and farm projects)
No Dogs or Cats. This rule is for the benefit of the
native animals, and to encourage the native animals into community space. We
have some members who wish to start a native animal domestication project, and
this has the consensus of the group in principle. There are several small
omnivorous marsupials which might be suitable as house pets to deter vermin and
provide companionship, and these are the target group for this project.
No Drugs. What people do in their own home or
space is their own business, what they do in community space affects others.
All EFOz projects are smoke and alcohol free with no exceptions. Projects which
allow for private dwellings or living spaces as part of the project are
included in this rule, but the rule does not apply to those private dwellings
or living spaces.
No raising of animals to kill
for food. There is a corollary to this, no dead animal products
to be cooked or consumed in community spaces or sold in shops in community
spaces. There is a possibility that the consensus will change over time toward
a vegan lifestyle, however at this stage we will have dairy cattle, egg laying
fowl, and grazing animals to provide wool.
Consensus. There has been a recent tendency to
define consensus as a larger than 50% majority, but this is not how we regard
consensus. We define consensus as the total approval of all involved in a
decision. There is no voting, those empowered to make a decision have the power
to block consensus. This effectively stalls any further actions by the group on
this issue until a conflict or disagreement is resolved.
At present we have a model which involves a functional
hierarchy. We have trustees who have the power of full consensus on all issues.
Basically, these people are the founders of EFOz. New trustees are appointed
with the full consensus of existing trustees, and any trustee can be dismissed
with the full consensus of all other trustees. (This rider exists to forestall
the possibility of any one individual misusing the trust placed in them by the
group.)
All processes are transparent and open, and members may attend any meeting on any topic or view any records of the group. It is the task of existing trustees to train and assist members wishing to become trustees. In practice trustees should obtain group consensus on any issue before proceeding.