Comments on: So You Want to be a Permaculture Designer! What’s Stopping You?

By: Craig Mackintosh

Craig Mackintosh — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 09:19:06 +0000

Hi Jeff – this might interest you:

http://permaculture.org.au/2010/06/22/review-of-the-10-week-internship/

By: Jeff Valentine

Jeff Valentine — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 03:03:21 +0000

Hello Nick,

Looks like you are doing some great work. Charles Hamilton mentioned you participated in the PRI internship program which I am considering attending. I was wondering if you would be willing to share what your experience was like as that may help me decide whether the program is a good fit for me.

Thanks,

Jeff

By: Kaya

Kaya — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 11:02:26 +0000

Hi Nick, good idea – it sounds like a great course

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 04:20:54 +0000

Inkscape is a great tool to use in conjuction with the Gimp. It does Vector style drawing (the drawing is made up of objects that can be changed) while the Gimp does bitmap (More like editing a photo). For Example you could import the aerial photo into Inkscape draw contour lines over the top and those lines can be moved and shaped at will.

By: David Davidson

David Davidson — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 04:15:32 +0000

Sounds like a great course,it would be great to get some real world advice from a landscaping perspective once a PDC is completed.The jobs are out there but require this professional approach especially for mainstream installations.Unfortunately I am overseas otherwise I would attend.
Good Luck with this.

By: Tim Auld

Tim Auld — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 01:42:27 +0000

I’m using the software Inkscape (www.inkscape.org), a free Illustrator clone to produce my designs. It’s vector based which suits a cartoon look, but it’s able to use photos for topographical reference, etc.

By: Greg Bell

Greg Bell — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 11:58:17 +0000

Don’t miss GIMP – the free and Open Source version of Photoshop. It lets you import aerial photos and supports layers so you can get all sorts of different views of your design, as well as make measurements between features, etc.

By: Don Hansford

Don Hansford — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 11:00:23 +0000

@ Hamish …
I could possibly help you out re: a speaker. We were involved with the Toowoomba Community Garden for a while, and I’m talking to the Southern Downs Regional Council this week about getting one going here in Warwick. Email me … don at warwickseq.net if you want to discuss further.

By: Fernando Pessoa

Fernando Pessoa — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 03:57:31 +0000

Permaculture is a lateral thinking discipline,it challenges the designer to think outside the box and turn problems into solutions.It’s also about self empowerment which in turn empowers others.On occasions we can fall into,stages of what Holgren describes as “Paralysis by Analysis” and another well known psychological disorder “Learned Helplessness” neither of these are fruitful mindsets for permaculture as it is an action orientated discipline.
It is those that dare who win.
Having followed some of Nicks earlier articles is quite obvious he is a doer and has achieved some great results.As far as PDC courses go they are worth their weight in Gold if undertaken at reputable sites.These are easy to pick they are the sites that are consistently full and also have other successful projects on the ground.Lets look at PRI and it’s price structure 2200 dollars for 14 days which includes food and a place to stay if you bring your own tent.It also includes a copy of the designers manual and world class education,the chance to participate in practical elements of permaculture on a highly functional property.So at about 150 dollars per day it is exceptional value.I know several friends from South America from very humble backgrounds who saved a small amount of money each week over two years and also fully familiarized themselves with the manual and other permaculture literature so as to gain the best possible outcome.I agree to scholarships and woofing in exchange for fee relief but in all honesty I believe they should only be offered to people from developing nations who do not have the capacity to support the cost even by the slow saving method.I am correct in understanding that PRI offers scholarships which are funded by the fees of those who are capable of paying.So to me it would be worth the hard graft to know that you are helping to support others less fortunate than yourself when attending a PDC.
best wishes
Fernando Pessoa

By: pete

pete — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 22:26:08 +0000

Autocad and MSPaint were mentioned as SW for producing those nice final design plans. What else is used? Does anyone know of a set of graphics that can be used for making ones own plans (e.g. representing trees and such).