The Permaculture Association: In harmony with nature
11/15/2022
From its beginnings in the early 1980s, the Permaculture Association has always had a core message of positive action on sustainable ways of living at its core.
Originating in Australia, the concept of permaculture brings together a long history of practices from indigenous cultures around the world and combines them with the science of ecology, design approaches and appropriate technology. The word permaculture is in fact originally from ‘permanent agriculture’, then ‘permanent culture’.
Using understandings of how nature works, permaculture is a unique toolkit used to design regenerative systems at all scales – from homes and gardens, to communities, farms and bioregions across the world. It provides a comprehensive framework for thinking holistically about how we live, in harmony with nature, and has a set of principles based on observations of how nature works: fundamentally, no waste.
“Ecosystems work because of the relationships between all the different parts. The output of one system becomes the input of another. There's no waste in nature.” explains CEO Andy Goldring, “We are part of nature and part of living systems. That's how nature works but not how our society works. As a nation we haven't geared ourselves up to thinking in systems.”
The Permaculture Association is not a protest or lobbying organisation however. Andy: “You’ve got campaign groups saying we should stop coal mines, stop using palm oil, stop deforestation. Yes we should, but very few organisations actually say what we should and could be doing. Very few offer clear pathways towards a positive future.”
The Permaculture Association works as an enabler. Its aim is to enable people to improve their lives, their environments, their communities and their futures. Andy: “The membership is active, not passive. They lead on the learning, on educating, and on developing projects. We just try to provide what they need to be successful.”
The membership
The membership is made up of people who want to make a difference and do things differently: in their garden and in their communities, as well as those who want to actively participate in wider positive change.
“Many people come to Permaculture because they want to have a different life, a different livelihood, make a different kind of contribution to society, and share what can be achieved.”
That member interest and contribution could be simply to improve the soil in their own garden and compost effectively to create a virtuous circle of converting food waste into compost, then using the compost as mulch on their vegetable garden, which in turn grows quality food for them to eat, and create a ‘circular economy’.
Alternatively, at a scale up, the member contribution could be someone who wants to set up a community composting system so everyone in their block, street or housing estate collectively composts for the good of all. Or it could be someone who is passionate about composting and has their own system they want to show people and educate people about, and use as an example for others.
“Members vary in age, profession and ambition”, explains Andy. “They may want to become an educator or want to upgrade their skills, so they might be a landscape architect or farmer, or a community development worker, or someone who works in mental health. It’s a really broad range of people.”
For example, a carpenter may want to learn how to source wood more sustainably, how to use wood shavings, how to recycle old wood and off cuts to create planters for the community. Not everyone is a gardener, and permaculture principles are applied in many different contexts.
The Permaculture Association welcomes all levels of interest and offers over 100 physical examples of what members have achieved for members to visit, as part of the LAND (Learning Action Network Demonstration) and Projects Network. These are testaments to the changes in living and livelihoods using the permaculture principles and framework. Examples range from community composting to organic smallholdings, forest schools, therapeutic horticulture and apprenticeship training. Permaculture Association members also offer outlets for social prescribing.
Consumerism
“Fundamentally we are a network of change makers shifting ideas away from consumerism to sustainability,” explains CEO Andy Goldring. “Every part of ecology is a consumer; we all need sunlight, food and water. But there’s a lot we don’t need, and our consumption is damaging. Ethical consuming is an important part of what we do - which is why we go to Zurich for insurance.”
Permaculture principles don’t just apply to the natural world and natural products. They apply to people, their lives, and their physical and mental health. The ethical consumerism, no-waste ethos can apply to the more mundane aspects of everyday life too.
Andy described one successful community co-housing project, where a group of 15 neighbours got together and bought two large industrial washing machines for general use. Not only did they cut down on the cost of buying and running individual machines, which much of the time stood idle, but when they took their washing to be done they met one another, their children played together and they kept warm in one location. It saved on energy bills and the production and purchase of multiple domestic washing machines, as well as providing community enrichment.
Taking a fresh look at consumerism is part of the permaculture process, but more than not pursuing a consumerist path, Andy explains it’s about putting something back too. “Permaculture helps us think about being more than active, thoughtful consumers, it makes us realise we can actually be producers. That could be producing energy on our roofs, or growing food, or producing designs with our communities to think about some of the bigger issues facing us.”
Making a difference
Andy emphasises that small acts by individuals can make a real difference. This could range from planting a tree in a private garden, to helping create a community orchard, to lobbying for better local green spaces. The Permaculture Association facilitates action through education and demonstration. A Diploma in Applied Permaculture is part of the offering, alongside online learning resources, plus networking and skill sharing.
The Permaculture Association has been quietly promoting another vision of what society could be like for over forty years, influencing on forest schools, the development of organic farming and circular economies. Andy comments: “15,000 graduates of permaculture have had a slow but steady effect to change the way people think about the way they interact with the world.”
The Association has inspired many young people, as well as equipping adults with skills and knowledge. “We must help educate young people, but we can’t wait for all the current five-year-olds to change the world. It needs to be done now. Adults need to step up.”
The Permaculture Association is quietly ambitious but realises its aspirations for a better future needs wider support and adoption to bring about the scale of change needed. “It can be a platform for radical action” says Andy. “Everything we have done and are doing is scalable with sufficient support. We can activate a community climate change coach in every town in just two or three years with funding. We can provide strategic frameworks to design water saving systems, soil improvement systems, woodland management and new food production systems.”
The urgency and ambition for change for good is evident in Andy’s passion for permaculture principles and the frameworks they provide.
Andy: “Permaculture speaks to the ethics of Earth Care, People Care and Fair Shares. Permaculture can be part of a wider movement for change. It’s about putting something back and putting something extra in and leaving a legacy. That’s the long-term view of sustainable living.”
To find out more about the Permaculture Association’s work and sustainable impact, visit their website: https://www.permaculture.org.uk/
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