URGENT NEED FOR SUPPORT

Poland has a unique countryside - with very rich wild nature, beautiful landscapes and well-preserved cultural traditions. Decisions being made nowadays may however dramatically and seriously degrade the life and appearance of the Polish countryside over the next few years.

On the 13^th and 14^th of June 2000, in the small village of Stryszow, near Cracow, an international conference "Revaluing Life in the Countryside: Conserving and Creating Countryside Values" brought some new light and hope for the Polish countryside. The organisers of the conference were Ashoka Innovators for the Public, from the U.S.A., and ECEAT - Poland (the European Centre for Ecological Agriculture and Tourism-Poland), based in Stryszow. About 60 participants attended - there were Ashoka social innovators, well-known ecological activists and professionals, local authorities, regional representatives and ecofarmers.

Listed below are some of the ideas and proposals that came from the conference. We concluded that protecting the Polish countryside is not only a vital issue for Poland but for individuals and organizations in other countries as well. In order to help realize this goal of protecting the Polish countryside, we propose the creation of an International Coalition to Protect the Polish Countryside (ICPPC), composed of organizations and individuals in Poland and abroad who feel the urgency of this problem and the need for constructive and coordinated activities to help achieve this goal.

We propose to organize within 3-6 months a meeting with representatives of all organizations who want to be members of the Coalition, to set it up officially and sign a common agreement (which will be developed through discussions prior to the meeting). We would like this meeting to take place in the Polish countryside, with accommodations on ecofarms of ECEAT-Poland.

If you or your organization is interested to participate in this Coalition, or to be kept informed about developments related to the Coalition, please send us a reply e-mail, mention your organization if any, and include any ideas and suggestions.

Greetings,

IDEAS EXPRESSED IN THE CONFERENCE

WHAT ARE THE VALUES OF POLISH COUNTRYSIDE?

1. Better quality of life than in the city
2. Big hospitality of farmers
3. Traditional, family farms (very few in Western Europe)
4. Friendly neighbourhood and good family members' connections
5. Attachment to land
6. Life independence of people who cultivate their own piece of land
7. The contacts between people belonging to one social environment
8. Easy, calm life, slower pace of life than in the city
9. Health benefits - natural ways of medical treatment
10. Identification of farmers with the place they live in
11. Ordinary social attitudes - better than in the big cities
12. Biodiversity of the environment
13. Special kind of people living in the villages - more friendly, sociable, hospitable, sensitive

HOW TO PROTECT THE VALUES OF THE COUNTRYSIDE?

1. Choice of technologies not harmful for people and environment
2. Ecological education, showing positive values
3. Organising educational and health centres existing by or on the farms (ex. universities by the farms)
4. Organising a kind of partnership - joining strengths and willingness of farmers together
5. Development of ecological agriculture and organic food production
6. Creating new places of employment - stopping people from migrating to the cities
7. Stopping the process of commercialisation of villages
8. Work on our personality and character - noticing the real values of life
9. Co-operation with local, regional and national authorities
10. Co-ordinating the efforts of different people
11. Show good examples in practice, not just talk about them
12. Public recognition of the value of farmers
13. Be proper and conscious consumers
14. Vegetarianism as a factor for protecting the natural environment
15. Developing ecotourism to farms to protect nature and the health of the people

WHY WE SHOULD PROTECT THESE VALUES?

1. To make Polish village life attractive for the young generation
2. To protect traditional villages and unique nature
3. To protect ourselves from civilisation illnesses caused mainly by unhealthy life style
4. To stop the "leakage" of the "city behaviours" into the village
5. Not to be dependent on money
6. By promoting the values of the countryside we fight against destructive materialistic values

[wersja polska]