SAVING Turtle Island Preserve's natural buildings via change.org petition. PLEASE SIGN AND FORWARD.

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We are all on the frontlines of changing hearts and minds. Transforming the world a few structures at a time, this is part of our dreams.

Turtle Island Preserve is experiencing challenges about the natural buildings which they have built on their preserve over the years. You can read about the preserve at their website. AND you can read and sign the petition on change.org to help them. More than 10,600 folks have already signed. If many of the members and lurkers of permies.com sign this, we can more than fulfill the desired amount of signatures.

http://www.turtleislandpreserve.com/home

https://www.change.org/petitions/north-carolina-building-codes-council-alter-nc-building-codes-to-exempt-structures-at-turtle-island-preserve

PLEASE take a few minutes to go to the above link and sign the petition to exempt the structures at Turtle Island Preserve from the present North Carolina building codes. You can read the full details of this on the change.org link.

Please forward this to anyone else, any other groups, or your social media network to help collect the goal of 1,800 + more signatures.

MANY BLESSINGS TO ALL!
Gail

Good Day Folks,

I have been having a dialogue with a wonderful permaculturalist from Vancouver, Island, BC, at (http://www.small-scale.net/yearofmud/2012/11/21/turtle-island-preserve-raided/#.UM32o-TAeSo). Dirk and I, both came at the subject of TI from two different directions, truly hashing out many details, that finally lead to a phone conversation. We both agree that TI needs to be saved, but there is much more to this than is often being portrayed on the web, and I know for one, I want all the facts before signing my name to anything. Does government get out of hand, of course; I have been in the same situation as Mr. Conway, but read the conversation between Dirk and I, you be the judge of weather or not signing the petition, at this time, is the thing to do. I may sign, but not until this becomes about TI, a self-sustaining and stand alone institution, separate from any one individual.

Regards,

Jay

THank you for adding this comment and link. I appreciate that there are always so many facets to an issue. Yes, due diligence is needed and I will do the same.

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It does appear that Mr. Conway has come to a fork in his road and this requires choice on his part.

I am glad to have posted about the petition and understand that the petition may be a hindrance in what needs to transpire for Turtle Island's best future plans. Thank you Jay C. White Cloud for shedding some light on this matter. Often we do not see but the one side presented to us first. I am glad you are assisting in bringing forth information to help TUrtle Island become the best nature preserve possible.

BLessings,
gail

Good Day Gail,

Thank you for your response, I hope I did not offend or seem to judge your intent in any way, for I only mean to see TI be what it was intended to be 26 years ago when Mr. Conway started it, with the help of friends. I know at times I have been accused of being critical of Mr. Conway, I do not mean to be, but I have extensive experience in both vernacular folk architecture, indigenous experiential education and live animal presentation; what I have personally seen and experienced through others, has lead me to question Mr. Conway's true motivations at times.

The following is a good synopsis of my motivations, quoted from the "Year in the Mud," blog I referenced earlier:

Jay C. White Cloud December 13, 2012 at 9:08 pm

Good Day Folks,

Thank you Paul for providing those links and reminding me of something I noted and made comments on when I lived in North Carolina many years ago. Everyone that I know that has acquired land in some fashion, and they want to preserve it, they do not ever keep it for very long in their name or in many different little parcels like Mr. Conway has.

I was the Chairman for Strawberry Hill Nature Education Center in Orrtanna Pa. The wonderful woman that founded the center lived on a little parcel of land, in an old cabin until her passing. She grew a meager 6 acres into over 1000 acres, and endowed a sizable amount of money as well to further care for the center, it's holdings and mission of experiential natural/historical education. This is my "touchstone," for TI, and the more I have learn and seen over the years, the more I realized that Mr. Conway maybe saying one thing, but doing another.

If you truly are trying to create what he claims he wants to create, then you do as she did with Strawberry Hill. You break off a little piece of land that you keep until your passing, while you pool all the resources you can to continue the philanthropic work you started. I know others have ask Mr. Conway why he needs to personally own so many lots, unless he intends to become a developer someday. I've seen this happen before. An individual creates something like TI, and then when the conditions are ripe, liquidates and cashes out. Is this Mr. Conway's intent, I don't know, but he is not doing TI any good with his current mindset and presence there. Own it and claim it as yours or give TI the life you say you want it to have, that is the only real way to protect it from developers, including yourself.

Respectfully submitted,

Jay