David and Goliath

How a network of Thai citizens saved a beloved oceanside learning center from being bought out by yet another mcluxury resort..

Over the past week, our family has been slowly traveling south towards the Andaman Sea to escape the polluted air of Northern Thailand (the AQI marks above 300 regularly now in some areas). Although we would prefer to stay at home, with our friends, plants and familiar routines, this annual escape from Chiang Mai has become an oddly welcomed part of our annual cycles. Forced elsewhere, we are able to learn many new things, meet new friends, reunite with old ones and, as these seasonal migrations offer space away from the demands of community life together, we enjoy reconnecting as a family.

Yesterday we arrived to Chumphon, a lovely fishing village on the eastern coast of Thailand where Pun Pun Living Learning Center’s (the eco village where we live) founder, Jon Jondai, aka P’ Jo, joined forces with former Thailand deputy agriculture minister, Wiwat Salyakamthorn, better known as Arjan Yak, to help save a Thai run resort and diving center, Chumphon Cabana, that also doubles as a training center for learning sustainable agriculture methods/testing grounds for the so-called “sufficiency economy” practices initiated by the late King Bhumibal. The beloved resort/knowledge sharing hub hit some financial hard times a few years ago and was under threat of being destroyed and ultimately replaced by a foreign run luxury hotel. To save the resort Arjan Yak and P’ Jo’s initiative, Thamturakit Social Enterprise, rallied small scale farmers across the country, as well as many other individual supporters of sufficiency based living practices to buy shares of the resort in the hopes that, should the debt be paid off and the resort saved, it would be owned and operated collectively. It worked. 130 million Thai Bhat was needed to pay off the debt (about US$4 million) and much more than this was ultimately raised to help get the new iteration of the project running smoothly, with the help of over 10,000 individual doners.

It’s an incredible story. The efforts of the Thamturakit (which means “a fair business” in Thai) serve as a reminder that when working together, humans have a tremendous amount of power. The social enterprise offers a model for agriculture that challenges the top-down view that has resulted in major transnational companies (such as CP group in Thailand, Monsanto, etc.) who utilize ecologically destructive practices to produce only a few genetically modified crops that offer little opportunity for small scale farmers to earn a decent income much less keep their traditional living practices alive. Whereas the now dominant practice of a few major companies controlling all food and seed and having all the worlds farmers grow for them, Thamturiket removes the middle man and, in forming a co-op of small scale organic farmers, establishes a shared workforce where from beginning to end, from seed to the table, everyone involved is equally valued and equally compensated for, and in the process community is built and properly tended to, healthy farming practices are maintained and farmers’ bellies remain full. (Please read A Growing Cultures article about Thamturakit to learn more:

Thamturakit: Reimagining agriculture in Thailand

for more information on this amazing initiative that could be a model for similar initiatives globally in combating the global agricultural industrial complex.

My family and I, along with some dear old friends and fellow worldschooler kids have been enjoying exploring this amazing place the past few days. How different it is to be amongst people with shared purpose, who have equal say in the vision and carry shared responsibility of the implementation of said vision. Prior to arriving here, we were staying with some friends in a fancy apartment complex in Hua Hin, an oceanside town where Bangkok’s elite often escape to. It was the typical kind of gated community vibe where low paid employees salute you as you show them the appropriate credentials necessary for entry. You can feel the mix of fear and shame as they go through the ridiculous required motions of kowtowing rich people as they transport themselves through the palace doors. Those who live at the top of the complex get extra perks, like those who fly business class, shown utmost respect merely because they have money. It’s awkward. It’s inhumane. It’s reminiscent of the imperial days of old when servants were forced to prostrate their entire bodies on the ground whenever royalty walked by. I hate it. I always try to salute them before they salute me, to smile and try to start up a real conversation with them, but in the end, it rarely goes anywhere because their lot has been predetermined by the formalities of business. Yuk.

But here at Chumpon Cabana, it’s different. It’s a beautiful oceanside resort but it feels like a village. Everyone working here possesses a dignity seldom seen in similar places. And the reason is clear, because everyone is equally invested, no one is any better than anyone else, everyone is the owner. The pride and care is evident and the result is a much welcomed feeling of being welcomed into someone’s community, not because that is the image they are trying to make, like is the case at places like Disneyland, etc. but because it actually is a community. The gardens growing here aren’t “ornamental”. They are gardens, filled with organic foods lovingly grown by a network of simple people who aren’t striving to become millionaires but happy, healthy humans living lives of purpose.

            The family we are visiting here is also exploring how best to raise their child. It has been lovely to catch up with them in such a healthy, inspiring environment. We pass the hours slowly, listening to the waves crash as our kids play together freely. We share our hopes and fears in recognizing the curious challenges facing children today. The public school system in Thailand is about as silly as those in America where the main goal seems to be a mass production of obedient consumers. Yet homeschooling is even more challenging in Thailand than it is in most areas of the States, as most Thai nowadays have drank modernity’s funky kool-aide and as such agree that learning in the traditional way is outdated and will do more harm than good. Our friends are trying to find a middle way, to not be too extreme in either way, to expose their child to not one way or one view but many. I think this is wise. As is the case with Chumphon Cabana, the goal isn’t to oversimplify and suggest capitalism itself is evil and radically abandon its systems entirely, but to wisely collaborate with an eclectic group of diverse thinkers around a simple, shared goal; to live well and not hurt others or the land. A wise aspiration.

            Last night, while enjoying a peaceful evening alongside the oceans edge with our friends, we could see the waxing crescent moon overhead. Adjacent our consistently inspiring lunar neighbor was Venus, shining brightly. We stared in awe, imagining what impact such a sight must have had on our ancestors. In this increasingly monopolized, severely distracted world, where everyone seems to be rushing to get ahead, dominate the narrative, and merge all efforts into one for the benefit of merely a few, when I come across an effort as brilliant, shared and life-affirming as what is happening here at Chumphon Cabana and with the Thamturiket Social Enterprise I am met with similar awe. Amid all the sadness and overwhelm these strange times of post-truth induce, there still is inspiration to be found everywhere. I wasn’t able to stay at the cabana long enough to speak with everyone and learn of everything going on there. I’m sure they, like we in our ecovillage back home, face all kinds of struggles as they experiment with another way of living. Increasingly, I’m not so interested in finding a perfect solution. What impresses me most are people who know full well their efforts will likely fail, but try their best to live into a better way nonetheless. That’s real courage. Here’s hoping we can step away from modernity’s incessant noise long enough to notice all the beautiful heroism among us, be inspired, and act accordingly.