Permaculture is an integrated set of principles and methods for designing, setting up and running sustainable human systems. But that rather technical definition doesn’t quite describe the soul of permaculture, which could be said to be the art of respecting nature and working with it, rather than against it, to cultivate land, plants, animals and people by fostering mutually beneficial relationships between them.

In this sense it’s also the art of achieving the most by doing the least, and you can see this at permaculture farms, where weeds might be allowed to flourish because they’re healing the soil, or where chickens scratch around in the vegetable garden, eating bugs and fertilizing the soil.

Permaculture is about harmony between people and nature. There’s no rocket science to it; it’s grounded in in-depth observation of the natural systems already present on the land. Only when you know how the wind and the sun flow over the land, how the animals move, how the soil is composed and what plants naturally flourish there, can you begin to design a system that truly fits there. On top of observation, permaculture designers use knowledge of traditional farming methods, knowledge of local flora and fauna, and knowledge of cutting edge ‘appropriate technology’, to create human settlements that sit lightly on the earth.

Permaculture is anything but airy-fairy. It’s about trying things out and experimenting. It’s about doing what you can do now and seeing what changes result. For example, saving energy by ride sharing or taking the bus, or joining a CSA to support local organic farmers, or taking a composting class (many cities offer these for free) and recycling your yard waste into rich soil for your garden. The way we live now in the US is unsustainable, but we can take lots of small steps to make a difference, and we can get together in communities and help each other to make wider changes. Permaculture encourages us to see solutions, rather than problems – and as such it can be balm to the soul of exhausted activists.

The ethics of permaculture are centred on care: for the earth and for all the living beings upon it, including people. This is a deep ecological viewpoint in which every living being has intrinsic value, because every living being is contributing to the earth’s ecosystem in its own unique way. For a permaculturist, cooperation with other beings, rather than competition, is the key to success. Success is measured in diversity of life, and the wellbeing of all. A curious thing happens when you study permaculture: you begin to have a sense of optimism about how we really can save the earth. Permaculture experts are involved in projects worldwide that involve such vital issues as rainwater capture, desert regreening and soil regeneration. Projects that really work, demonstrating that we can reverse the damage that has been done, restore the health of the earth, and establish sustainable systems that will ensure us a better future.

Permaculture was developed by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, in Australia. It has now become a world-wide movement.

Are you interested in taking a permaculture design course?