Permaculture is based on three ethics (earth care, people care, fair share) and uses principles to help us design systems which respect the ethics. It was founded by two Australians, Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, in the 1970s and has since spread around the world.
To me, permaculture is about building respectful relationships, being thoughtful and responsible, and getting re-rooted in our environments. These relationships are between animals and plants, between land and people, between human beings, etc.
Permaculture is amazing for food production and that’s what many people think it means. But we don’t want to stop at the garden gate and you don’t actually have to garden at all! Permaculture is a mindset and a system for problem solving in any situation.
On this website we mostly do focus on the food production and homesteading aspects, but permaculture applies to much more than that!
Here are some of my favorite quotes about permaculture to further give you a feel of it:
“Permaculture is revolution disguised as gardening.” -Mike Feingold, a Permaculture Teacher at Findhorn
“Though the problems of the world are increasingly complex, the solutions remain embarrassingly simple.” -Bill Mollison
“One of the most important things about permaculture is that it is founded on a series of principles that can be applied to any circumstance—agriculture,urban design, or the art of living. The core of the principles is the working relationships and connections between all things.” -Juliana Birnbaum Fox, in Sustainable Revolution: Permaculture in Ecovillages, Urban Farms, and Communities Worldwide
