What is Permaculture? - Part 1

Whilst we hear the word permaculture bandied about a lot more these days, though not many people can actually explain what permaculture actually is, so here is a link to a Wikipedia explanation of permaculture  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permaculture.

But I think Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, the founders of permaculture should do the explanation, here is a short video

David Holmgren describes permaculture as a:

"More precisely permaculture is a “design system based on ecological principles” which provides the organising framework for implementing the vision. In this more limited, but important sense it draws together the diverse skills and ways of living which need to be rediscovered and developed to empower us to move from being dependent consumers to becoming responsible producers."

Geoff Lawton who was trained by Bill Mollison and who has gone on to become a global name, describes  "what is permaculture?" https://www.geofflawtononline.com/

However in my permaculture journey to date, I have seen permaculture grow and evolve, expanding out of agriculture, into gardening and latterly into business,  education and health and wellness.

Permaculture in education and teaching

Permaculture in business , small business, sustainable organisations

Permaculture has definitely entered the mainstream and become more acceptable to the wider audience.

For me permaculture is a journey, it is a way of life, a way of thinking.  It helps to organise or design my life, to be more resilient and sustainable, it identifies where I want to go and how I am going to get there. I did my Permaculture Design Course (PDC) with Geoff Lawton back in 2013 with his inaugural Online course, which has gone on to become a huge success.

I did not realise at the time the profound affect it would have on my life and the way I now think.  My permaculture journey continues to grow in ways I would never have imagined and this site will explore some of those stories in my blog posts.

For each person who decide to undertake this journey, it affects them in different ways and sends them of down different paths. My PDC Online Cohort (2013) have gone on to do some amazing things and I am sure this is the same story for all the students over the last 7 years that this popular online course has been running.

There are a multitude of courses now available, supplied by various providers, so it is not difficult to choose one that would suit your situation and learning style.  I decided to do mine online as I am in rural Queensland, and there were no permaculture teachers near me, also I worked full time and could not get the time off work to attend a face to face class.

I will explore over the next few posts various principles, ethics and design tools that I have used to guide my life and help me think in a different way.  I will also explore what that means for the reluctant spouse too, as they travel with you on your journey of change and evolution.