Peace Is Here with Avis Kalfsbeek

Peacewarts: Living Roots 101 - Local Food Networks as Anti-Propaganda (Class 9)

We explore how centralized food systems act as an "invisible leash" that makes populations vulnerable to war-time propaganda. By examining the 1941 Great Famine of Greece and the Black Panther Free Breakfast Program, we discuss how local food autonomy serves as a decentralized defense system and a psychological break from state dependency.

Learning Topics: Food Centralization as a tool of control; The 1941 Great Famine of Greece: Urban vs. Rural resilience; The Black Panther Free Breakfast Program and Hoover’s response; The 1963 Russian Wheat Deal and the fragility of imports; Food literacy as a "vaccine against propaganda;” The shift from Rationing to Sharing in CSA models.

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough

• Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com
• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “I am late, madame Curie” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

Peacewarts: Living Roots 101 - Water Rights & Watersheds (Class 8)

We explore the "Functional Peace" of the Indus Waters Treaty. Despite three wars, India and Pakistan have maintained this water agreement for over 60 years. This class examines how shared water management creates a "biological floor" that can survive even the most intense political hostilities, and asks: if we can cooperate to share water, why can't we cooperate to share the world?

Homework:

1. Look up the specific terms of the"Indus Waters Treaty (1960)" or research the watershed you currently live in.
2. Write down one questionabout any of this episode’s topics. If you don’t have a question, write “no question.”
3. Optional:Journal for five minutes. If you had to share your primary water source with someone you didn't trust, what rules would you want in place to make sure you both survived?

Learning Topics: The Definition of the Indus Waters Treaty (1960); Functional Peace: Cooperation amidst conflict; Upstream Extraction vs. Downstream Debt; Aquifer Depletion and the "Scarcity Script;” Local Hydrological Autonomy as a defense against siege.

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough

• Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com
• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “I am late, madame Curie” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

Peacewarts: Dept. of Living Roots - The Time It Takes (Class 7)

We explore Slowness as a foundational strategy for peace. By contrasting the 500-year cycle of topsoil creation with the frantic pace of modern markets, we discuss how "Ecological Time" prevents extractive panic. We highlight the Iroquois Seventh Generation Principle as a masterclass in deliberate deceleration and long-term security.

Homework:

1. Look up the"Great Law of the Haudenosaunee" and find one other example of how they prioritized the long-term health of the community over short-term gain.
2. Write down one questionabout any of this episode’s topics. If you don’t have a question, write “no question.”
3. Optional:Journal for five minutes about a time you made a "fast" decision that caused harm, and a "slow" decision that created peace. What was the difference in your physical feeling during those two moments?

Learning Topics: Ecological Time vs. Market Time (The 500-year topsoil rule); The Seventh Generation Principle of the Haudenosaunee; "Extractive Panic" as a driver of conflict; The psychology of speed and the amygdala’s role in escalation; Deceleration as a restoration of empathy.

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough

• Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com
• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “I am late, madame Curie” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

Peacewarts: Living Roots 101 - Repair as Resistance (Class 6)

We examine the act of repair as a strategic tool of nonviolent resistance. From the 1953 legal battle against the Phoebus Cartel to the logistical sabotage of Gandhi’s spinning wheel and Cuba’s ingenious "Rikimbili" inventors, this class teaches how maintenance reduces the global pressure for extraction.

Homework

1. Look up"The Phoebus Cartel" and read about the 1953 court case that finally challenged their practices.
2. Write down one questionabout any of this episode’s topics. If you don’t have a question, write “no question.”
3. Optional:Journal for five minutes about an object you own that has been repaired. Does it feel more valuable to you than something brand new? Why or why not?

Learning Topics: The 1953 US District Court ruling against the Phoebus Cartel; Gandhi’s Khadi movement: Reclaiming the textile supply chain; Cuba’s ANIR: The National Association of Innovators and Rationalizers; The "Rikimbili" and adaptive repair during the Special Period; Maintenance vs. Extraction Pressure.

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough

• Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com
• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “I am late, madame Curie” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

 

Peacewarts: Living Roots 101 - The Victory Garden Myth (Class 5)

We reframe the "Victory Garden" as a blueprint for community independence rather than a tool of war. We look at the staggering 40% production levels of 1943 and the Russian Dacha system—where 3% of the land produces over 80% of the vegetables. We discuss how nutritional sovereignty is a fundamental requirement for a peaceful society and a direct form of disarmament.

Homework:

1. Look up the"Russian Dacha movement" and find one statistic on how much food these small plots produce compared to industrial farms.
2. Write down one question you have about home gardens or any topic in this episode. If you don’t have a question, just write “no question.”
3. Optional:Journal for five minutes about what "Victory" looks like in your own neighborhood. If your street was 40 percent independent from the grocery store, how would your sense of security change?

Learning Topics:

The 1943 Victory Garden Production Stats; The Russian Dacha System: Small-scale resilience; The 2020 Pandemic Seed Surge (Burpee and Johnny’s Seeds); Supply Chain Disconnection as a Form of Disarmament; Nutritional Independence vs. Traditional National Security.

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough

• Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com
• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “I am late, madame Curie” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

Peacewarts: Living Roots 101 - Hunger as a Weapon (Class 4)

We examine the brutal history of manufactured famine as a tactical instrument of war. From the Holodomor to the "soft power" of the 1960s Food for Peace program, this class teaches scholars how to recognize when hunger is being used as a logistical weapon of control and why local agricultural sovereignty is a vital peace strategy.

Homework:

1. Look up "The Holodomor" and read the "Causes" section to understand how government policy, not weather, created the famine.
2. Write down one question about any of this episode’s topics. If you don’t have a question, write “no question.”
3. Optional:Journal for five minutes about the concept of "Calorie Leverage." How does it feel to realize that your own food security might be tied to a global logistical "valve"?

Learning Topics:

The Holodomor (Logistical Famine); Scorched Earth Tactics vs. Soil Health; Food for Peace (PL 480) and Calorie Leverage; Modern Supply Chain Blockades; Agricultural Sovereignty as a Peace Strategy

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough
• Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com
• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “I am late, madame Curie” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

Peacewarts: Living Roots 101 - The Scarcity Script (Class 3)

Episode Summary: We explore how the concept of "shortage" is used as a psychological and political tool to justify war. This class examines the history of the Enclosure Acts, the chemical dependency of modern agriculture, and the "Food as a Weapon" strategy to reveal how scarcity is often a manufactured policy rather than a biological reality.

Homework:

1. Look up "The Enclosure Acts" and read a summary of how they changed the "Common Land" system in England.
2. Write down one question about any of this episode’s topics. If you don’t have a question, write “no question.”
3. Optional:Journal for five minutes about a "shortage" you see in the news today (gas, food, or water). Is it a biological shortage of the earth, or a logistical shortage of the "fence"?

Learning Topics: The Scarcity Script vs. Biological Abundance; The Enclosure Acts and the End of the Commons; Haber-Bosch: The Fertilizer-Weapon Link; Strategic Food Reserves and Political Leverage; The Yield Gap and Distribution Waste

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough

• Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com
• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “I am late, madame Curie” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

Peacewarts:  Living Roots 101 - Seed Sovereignty (Class 2)

We move from the soil to the seed. This class explores why the right to save and exchange seeds is a foundational act of a peaceful society. We examine the transition from "Common" to "Commodity," the hidden costs of the 1960s Green Revolution, and the heroic sacrifice of the Vavilov Institute scientists who guarded the world's genetic heritage during the Siege of Leningrad.

Homework:

1. Look up "Vandana Shiva" and read one paragraph about her work with Navdanya and seed freedom.
2. Write down one question you have after this episode or your research. If no question comes to mind, write "no question."
3. Optional:Journal for five minutes about the difference between an "heirloom" seed and a "patented" seed.

Learning Topics: Seed Sovereignty vs. Patent Extraction; Open-Pollinated vs. Hybrid Systems; The Green Revolution's Dependency Loop; The Vavilov Martyrs (Stchukin and Ivanov); Seed Saving as an Act of Disarmament

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com

• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “I am late, madame Curie” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

Peacewarts: Living Roots 101 - Orientation & Soil as a Peace Treaty (Class 1)

We descend into the Greenhouse to introduce the Law of Return. This class focuses on the historical cause-and-effect chain between soil health and social stability, examining Mesopotamian salinization, the American Dust Bowl, colonial monocultures, and modern fertilizer dependency. 

Homework:

1. Interrupt your routine – wait, maybe this has non become your routine… Look up the "Dust Bowl" and  "Human Displacement."
2. Write down one question you have about how food scarcity impacts local peace, or anything about this episode. If no question comes to mind, write: "no question."
3. Optional: Journal for five minutes about where your calories come from. Do they come from a local "Law of Return" system, or an extractive "Monoculture" system?

Learning Topics:

1. The Law of Return (Anti-Extraction)
2. Mesopotamian Salinization & Systemic Collapse
3. The Dust Bowl as a Displacement Driver
4. Colonial Monocultures vs. Soil Health
5. Synthetic Fertilizer Dependency

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough
• Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com
• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “I am late, madame Curie” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW

In this episode, Avis pauses the Peacewarts series to explore a long tradition of walks for peace. Across history, people have chosen to walk slowly and publicly as a form of nonviolent witness, reclaiming roads and landscapes through presence rather than force.

From Gandhi’s Salt March and Vinoba Bhave’s land gift walks to Peace Pilgrim, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Cesar Chavez, and monastic peace walkers, this episode traces how walking has been used to make injustice visible and invite participation without violence.

The episode closes by situating today’s walk for peace within this wider historical lineage, reminding us that walking remains one of humanity’s most durable tools for peace — slow, visible, and human.

• Get the book Peace Stuff Enough: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com/peace-stuff-enough
• Join the Community / Get the Books: www.AvisKalfsbeek.com
• Podcast Music: Javier Peke Rodriguez “Dalai Lama Riding a Bike” https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QuyqfXEKzrpUl6b12I3KW