Jordan is a relatively small country, bordered on the north by Syria, to the east by Iraq, and by Saudi Arabia on the east and south. To the west is Israel and the West Bank, while Jordan’s only outlet to the sea at the Gulf of Aqaba is to the south.

Jordan occupies an area of approximately 96,188 square kilometers or 37,138 square miles, including the Dead Sea, making it similar in size to Austria or Portugal.

As I mentioned in my first blog posting, I live in northern California in a Mediterranean climate. I landed at the Queen Alia Airport in Zizya, Jordan which is 32 km/20 miles south of Amman the capital and largest city of Jordan. One of the passengers on the shuttle to the hotel told me that Western Jordan where Amman is located has a Mediterranean climate with a semi-arid influence, having a hot dry summer, a cool wet winter and two short transitional seasons, right now being the beginning of the short autumn season. Amman, where the conference that is open to all is being held, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It receives about 270 mm or 32 inches of rain a year, in the winter. Amman spans 19 hills or little mountains that range in elevation from 740 to 1400 m (2035–3610 feet) .

¾ of Jordan has a desert climate with less than 200 mm or 8” of rain annually.

On the drive to the capital, we could see many olive groves along the highway, typical to many parts of the Mediterranean climate worldwide. Typically Mediterranean climates lie near 30° and 40° latitudes in the world’s north and south. Jordan lies at 32°.

A group of permaculturists from around the world spontaneously gathered for dinner tonight at the Toledo Hotel Restaurant in the Jabal Al Hussein area of Amman for what was affectionately called the Pre-Pre-Conference Dinner. Margarethe Holzer was there from Innsbruck, Austria where she works with PIA Permaculture-Academy in the Alpine Regions. She said she gets letters from people who mistakenly think she is Sepp Holzer’s wife. Narsanna Koppula from Hyderbad India, CEO of RANYA works with tribal women farmers in Andhra Pradesh. Eston Pembamoyo from Zomba, Malawi where he is Administrative Secretary of the Permaculture Network in Malawi. E-mail Eston at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Wesley Roe and Tres Wallower were there from Santa Barbara, California. Wes is co-founder of Santa Barbara Permaculture Network with Margie Bushman. Tres works with Slow Money, Santa Barbara Chapter. Long time permaculture instructor Steve Hart was there from Raglan, New Zealand. Steve is working as the Permaculture Program Manager with ACTED French Aid Agency in Islamabad, Pakistan, where floods have left huge damage. Owen Hablutzel from Los Angeles joined us too. Owen is one of the directors of PRI USA. And Magali Veillon from Lausanne, Switzerland is traveling the world visiting permaculture farms.

If you are in Amman   for the IPC10, find me to give me your thoughts about the Conference or Convergence for this blog.