Tomas Remiarz
Where I am
Based in Britain, migrating between Cornwall and Northern Scotland
Contact: tomasremiarz[at]cooptel.net
How it all began
Born and raised in a now extinct country, East Germany, I have been living in Britain since 1993. Before entering the world of permaculture, I went to school, served in the East German army and worked in a couple of factories. By the time I was 21, the Berlin wall fell and 17 Million of us were released into capitalism, a decidedly mixed blessing. I went on to study engineering without much interest and eventually decided to see the world instead. I got as far as Liverpool, which made my childhood hometown suddenly look prosperous. A friend of mine took me along to a permaculture course with Patrick Whitefield (the pilot for the successful 3-month Sustainable Landuse course), and I never looked back. A year later, I attended a teacher training course with Mike Feingold, Chris Evans and Bryn Thomas, each one of them inspiring me in different ways. Another year later, I gave my diploma presentation in front of Nancy Woodhead and Graham Bell in Scotland.
Nowadays I lead a nomadic life, visiting projects, teaching and designing with my partner, artist Jed Picksley. Since spring 2006, we have developed a niche for ourselves in cross-pollinating permaculture projects, environmental activists and other pioneers of a saner world. Our journey takes place primarily in Britain, though we periodically visit Germany and other places in central Europe, and are curious about the increasing number of projects in that part of the world.
What I do
Permaculture practice, teaching and design, since April 2006
You can see pictures of some of the things we have been up to over the last 3 years on www.flickr.com/photos/jedtomas
ATCoop, since 2008
The purpose of this project is to gather and distribte resources and skills related to setting up and runing sustainable outdoor events. We have produced a set of "recipes" for aspects of site infrastructure, such as renewable power, sanitation, grey water and plumbing.
www.atcoop.org.uk
Permaculture Association Britain: 1997 - today
Volunteer since 2007
Highlights of my time as volunteer were organising a Sustainable Woodland Conference in 2004, and being a scribe at IPC7 in Croatia.
Trustee since September 2007, Chair since November 2007
Our team of trustees represents the interest of the association's members and strategically guides the work of the association's staff
I am a member of the International Working group, and see this as possibly the most important role of our organisation. I am also involved in the process of developing a research network for UK permaculture.
www.permaculture.org.uk
Treesponsibility, 2000-2006
Bioregional afforestation group in West Yorkshire, Britain
We work with anyone in our community - school children and funeral parties, football fans and religious group, political activists and corporate staff. The long-term plan is to create a mosaic of woodland as the spine of a resilient, sustainable bioregion. We also successfully resisted the opening of a new opencast coal mine in our wateshed. Other offshoot projects included a coppice group, community tree nursery, experimental agroforestry plantings, carbon footprinting for local companies, an eco-tourism scheme and a research programme into the past, present and future of land use in the British uplands. Although I no longer work for Treesponsibility, I still help with the occasional tree planting and give advice on technical matters.
www.treesponsibility.com
1999 – 2007 GreenLand Services, Independent Ecological Designer
Permaculture Design facilitation for urban and rural communities
Permaculture Design, Practice and Training in a variety of situations
Courses - Introductions, designs and specialist courses, largely in urban areas.
Woodland creation and management plans
Ecological restoration plans
What I can offer
Project management and development skills
Participative Design events for rural and urban communities
Interest in linking people and projects
Technical and design skills - woodland creation and management, ecological restoration, sanitation, grey water
Teaching - permaculture, Introductions and Design courses, wodland creation, sanitation
Languages - German & English (bilingual), some Russian & French & bits of other European languages
Contacts in British and European permaculture
What I'm looking for
Case studies of bioregional projects,
Case studies and technical knowledge of land restoration
Cooperation with others on permaculture projects
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