Minutes from SPUDS membership meeting, Friday, Oct. 16, 09

-originally recorded by Veronica Timmons-

7:00 pm -9:30 pm

3906 Wren Road, Denman Island

Members in attendance:

Brian Miles, Peter Bickel-Janes, Maxine Matilpi, Ron Dobie, Mike Nestor, Fireweed, Riane daSilva, Sheila Nopper, Rae Eckel, Velda Parsons, Bob Parsons, Margaret Fraser, Fox, Ron Sakolsky, Veronica Timmons, Karl Goodwin, Bob Vosburg, Herb Jones, Susan-Marie Yoshihara, Barbara Heywood-Jones, Charlie Johnston

Absent:

Corinne Bjorge, Andrew Fyson, Laura Busheikin, Marjo von Tooren, Shaun Woods, Bill Engelson, deNeen Baldwin

Co-facilitators:

Ron Sakolsky and Charlie Johnston

1. Agenda

1. The Agenda
2. Basis of Unity
3. Agreement – Basis for Decision-making
4. Field Decisions

2. Basis of Unity

Ron and Sheila shared some of SPUDS background by referencing our start-up grant from Freedonia, including some of the initial goals of the project as presented in our application for financial aid from the anarchist funding body (2007). [visit Freedonia online by clicking on the LINKS column, right hand side of blog]

"Our goal is to shift our food consumption away from its increasing dependence on imported produce and to shift our economic emphasis back to self-sustainability with small, local food production." [excerpted from our grant application to Freedonia; for further details see the whole application by clicking on the Funding Background link, also on the right hand side of this page]

The group used consensus process to begin building a Basis of Unity, brainstorming as follows:

• Community building
• Production for others
• Providing opportunities to grow food
• Increasingly sustainable
• Building caring relationships through sharing the harvest and activity
• Building empowerment through skill building
• Non-commercial
• Moving towards Denman food sustainability
• Experimentation of planting methods
• Enjoyable, fun
• Minimal harm
• Organic
• Not monoculture, crop rotation
• Strive for inclusivity
• Harvest celebration ritual
• Local sourcing
• Organic where possible
• Non gmo
• Prioritizing for the health of the soil
• Love and revere the soil
• Variety of vegetables
• Feed soil not the plants
• Be an educational model
• Educate ourselves
• Accessibility (sharing harvest)
• Encouraging youth
• Egalitarian
• Planting peace

Clarifications were requested of those who contributed the following ideas...

Planting peace: Sharing food, producing security/comfort. Sense of
cooperation/good-will

Non-commercial: Not selling food we grow. Not for profit

Minimal harm: Minimal harm to people, animals and the soil

Inclusivity: Including different ability levels of people. Including vegans in the cooperative, being able to afford memberships

Sustainability: Lack of fuel in the future. Move towards getting off fossil fuels

Not monoculture: Healthier for the soil and plants if crop is varied and changed

Production for others: Sharing the harvest with others if we do not need all the harvest

Egalitarian: Power sharing

The ideas brainstormed were then grouped by commonality into categories:

1. Community Building
• produce food for others (outside the membership)
• hold a harvest celebration
• encourage youth
• increase the opportunities to grow
• strive for inclusivity
• accessibility (share the harvest)
• build a caring and sharing community
• share in growing activities
• plant for peace
• encourage fun and enjoyment

2. Sustainability
• move towards Denman sustainability
• source products/supplies locally (where possible)
• move towards increasing sustainability
  

3. Soil/Growing Issues

• use organic (where possible)
• prioritize for the health of the soil
• love and revere the soil
• use a variety of vegetables/not a monoculture
• encourage experimentation
• use a diversity of planting methods
• feed the soil not the plants
• encourage experimentation
• encourage fun and enjoyment

4. Education

• educate ourselves
• empowerment through skills building
• be an educational model

5. Group Process

• be egalitarian – power sharing
• use the 3-Gates in communication

6. Ethics

• minimal harm to people, animals, plants
• be non-commercial (non-profit)
• encourage fun and enjoyment

The following members agreed to write up a category into statements. These will be presented to the membership at the next meeting for additional discussion and honing. They will also be posted on the Blog for members to access and think about prior to providing further input.

1. Community Building- Sheila

2. Sustainability - Veronica

3. Soil/Growing Issues- Bob and Velda

4. Education- Veronica

5. Group Process- Fireweed

6. Ethics- Mike

3. Agreement- Basis for Decision-making

A very brief followup discussion ensued about consensus, as the meeting's focus on forming a basis of unity had been previously determined as necessary to engagement in consensus building. However, there was insufficient time before the end of the meeting to determine how decision-making would proceed until the group has more time to deliberate on the consensus group process option.

One person suggested that we "work towards building consensus" [over time] as a group. Another suggested that we practise using it in the interim. Members were encouraged to look at the blog for information and to learn more about using consensus process.

4. Field Decisions

No formal discussion took place during the meeting about next steps in the field. However, as the membership was disbanding Margaret, Fox, Ron and Maxine volunteered to contribute to the digging left to do in the field. Veronica offered to call Derek to request his assistance in spreading the remaining peas.

NEXT MEETING: A date for SPUDS next meeting of the membership was set for : Tuesday, October 27, 2009, 7pm at Susan-Marie’s house. Co-facilitation of the meeting will be shared by Sheila Nopper and Mike Nestor. Please bring a folding chair if you have one, and carpool! Thanks for heping keep SPUDS meetings 'scent-free for inclusivity'.

The meeting ended at 9:30pm