Get Paid to Share Your Permaculture Passion With the World
Aid Projects, Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Developments, Education Centres, Networking Sites, News, People Systems, Project Positions, Urban Projects, Village Development — by Craig Mackintosh August 18, 2010
How to Help Us Educate the World and Save Our Futures
Tongue-in-cheek instructional video
Note: This is an update on PRI’s position and direction, and an opportunity for you to get paid to help!
The short version: We’re now paying you to write for us! Click here to get started.
The background/long version follows:
Over the last two years since I took over the running of this site, I’ve been pleased to see significant growth in traffic. I’m not so narrow-minded as to believe this is just due to my efforts or Geoff and Nadia Lawton’s or the rest of the PRI team, however. Aside from the tremendous support and input from the wider permaculture community, I also note that current events and the spread of information through the internet is threatening to actually wake the world up – and this ‘awakening’ is seeing an unprecedented growth in interest in sustainability, transition and the creation of resilient people systems. This interest certainly isn’t coming too soon, but better late than never.
Comments (20)Letters from Jordan – On Consultation at Jordan’s Largest Farm, and Contemplating Transition
Commercial Farm Projects, Conservation, Dams, Food Forests, Food Plants - Annual, Food Plants - Perennial, Irrigation, Land, Plant Systems, Rehabilitation, Swales, Trees — by Craig Mackintosh August 6, 2010
Preamble: From my recent trip to Jordan, I shared with you all the news, with loads of pictures, about the International Permaculture Conference (IPC) that will be held there in September 2011. I also slipped over the border to take a quick peek at Murad Alkufash’s work in the West Bank, and took video of the Jawaseri school garden project. In my bid to multitask, I also had opportunity to accompany Geoff Lawton on a consultation in the Wadi Rum district in the south of the country, where we combined the consultation with our investigations for a campsite for the IPC (photos of the latter can be seen via the first link above).
The consultation on its own, however, is deserving of a post. It was highly interesting for many reasons that I shall outline here.
Permaculture designer/teacher, Geoff Lawton, looks at water pumped from
an aquifer under Jordan’s famous Wadi Rum desert region.
All photographs © copyright Craig Mackintosh
Background
The Wadi Rum desert in the south of Jordan happens to be the site of Jordan’s largest mixed farm – Rum Farm. It might, for good reason, seem odd that this beautiful but largely abiotic location would host a large scale farm, let alone Jordan’s largest, but it begins to make sense when you learn that under the Wadi Rum desert (and stretching under the border mountains and well into Saudi Arabia) is a large aquifer. In fact, much of this desert nation’s water supply is dependent on this single water source.
Comments (15)Municipal Waste Compost Agreement Signed with Local Council in Far North Queensland
Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Compost, News, Rehabilitation, Urban Projects — by Kym Kruse July 16, 2010
Close to nine months ago, a group of passionate young Far North locals decided to approach their local council with the idea of making high quality compost for agriculture from municipal waste. A few days ago we marked a moment in time when, after a steep learning curve or two and 1000’s of hours of work, we signed the contract under the shade of a eucalypt on the bonnet of a Holden Commodore. The Tablelands Regional Council had voted and now signed to support Trust Nature FNQ in its “Vital Soils Initiative”.
Comments (8)Confessions of a Permaculture Aid Worker, Episode 6 – David Spicer in Morocco
Aid Projects, Commercial Farm Projects, Education Centres, Podcasts — by Patrick Blampied June 17, 2010
‘Confessions of a Permaculture Aid Worker’ is a weekly podcast show from PRI Australia aimed at documenting the experiences of people out in the field and making more information available about what’s happening in the Permaculture world.
In Episode 6 I’m speaking to David Spicer who has been working on in Morocco, teaching a course as well as consulting for a farm there.
Click play to hear the talk:
Confessions of a Permaculture Aid Worker, Episode 6 - David Spicer, Morocco
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Flying Blind with Four Photos and an Outdated Google Map
Commercial Farm Projects, Demonstration Sites, Land, Nurseries & Propogation, Plant Systems, Podcasts, Rehabilitation, Trees — by Nick Huggins May 19, 2010
It can be hard making the leap from studying Permaculture to actually working it so I thought I’d share my first experience on making that leap.
Flying Blind with Four Photos and an Outdated Google MapHop in my shoes – I was asked to consult and work on a property in inland New South Wales, with some of the worst drought conditions in Australia, after some of the world’s leading consultants on land hydration and rehabilitation had been there.
Comments (10)Letters from Chile – a Little Historical Context
Aid Projects, Alternatives to Political Systems, Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Eco-Villages, Economics, Education Centres, Ethical Investment, Financial Management, Food Shortages, Networking Sites, People Systems, Society, Urban Projects, Village Development — by Craig Mackintosh May 16, 2010
Editor’s Note: This is Part VIII of a series. If you haven’t already, be sure to catch Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI and Part VII.
Contemplating the past, present and future – and land redistribution – in the middle of nowhere somewhere in Chile.
All photos © copyright Craig Mackintosh
He stares back at us from the t-shirts of millions of youths worldwide. Che Guevara’s face has become one of the most recognisable counter-cultural and political symbols ever known. The history books tell us the man was famously sympathetic to the lot of the poor, and that his overriding passion was to fight against inequality, oppression, control. Che comes to my mind as I write this article from South America, because, in his rise to power, one of his driving ambitions, and which became one of his key responsibilities under Castro, was land redistribution – where he sought to break the stranglehold that was keeping the masses impoverished and robbing them of their potential. I bring this topic up, as, when I look at what’s happening in the world, and the radical changes needed to put us onto a sustainable path, the issue keeps coming back to my mind. These two words – land redistribution – strike fear into the hearts of the rich, and feelings of ambition and even violent revolution in those of the poor, yet, if we’re to stake a claim on the future, I feel we must, both rich and poor, come to terms with them.
Comments (14)Australian Permaculture Tour – Part I
Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Urban Projects — by Michelle Avis May 12, 2010
This is part one of a four part series about Rob & Michelle’s three month journey exploring, visiting and learning about the what’s going on in the permaculture scene in Australia.
The idea to do a tour de Australia permaculture emerged when my partner Rob and I seriously started talking about me leaving my full time corporate job to join him in his permaculture consulting business. I have to admit that although exciting, the idea of officially crossing the line was also terrifying. We agreed that a trip to Australia to seek out similar businesses, do some research, gain some experience and make connections would be a great launching point. Although we would have needed a year to visit and see all the great things going on here. (Australia is really, really big!) I can’t hardly express how valuable an experience this three month journey alone has been.
Comments (9)Thinking Outside the Square In Wagga Wagga: Thoughts on Contour
Commercial Farm Projects, Conservation, Dams, Demonstration Sites, Developments, Earth Banks, Gabions, Irrigation, Land, News, Regional Water Cycle, Rehabilitation, Soil Conservation, Swales, Water Harvesting — by P. David Stockhausen May 10, 2010
Permaculture solutions have come to life at a Wagga Wagga farm in the midst of a heated debate over water. What Kevin Rudd Claim’s will help the Murray Darling River system and the Lower Lakes region has some farmers in the area fuming. Farmers and residents throughout the Murray Darling region have larger concerns over the Australian government’s 3.1 Billion Dollar irrigation buyback scheme. The Rudd government is reacting to reduced productivity in the area and increasing demand for irrigated water downstream. Yet, some local farmers are curious as to how the proposed plan will affect production in the area, and reports show that many aren’t feeling optimistic.
Comments (9)Holistic Management: Herbivores, Hats, and Hope
Commercial Farm Projects, Livestock, Plant Systems, Rehabilitation, Soil Conservation — by Milkwood Permaculture May 7, 2010
Image by Granny Buttons
Grazing animals bad, undisturbed grass good. That’s how we personally thought regeneration worked, five years ago. And we were not alone. You could be forgiven for thinking that any and all grazing animals (particularly of the introduced kind) have no role whatsoever to play in regenerating pastures, soils and land, simply because we know how much damage badly-managed grazing and animal management can do. And we as a society do love a good bit of polarity, especially when it comes to nature. Perhaps it’s our quest for simplicity. At the same time, we inherently know that an ecosystem cannot be simplified down to a set of polar opposites.
Comments (7)Shedding Some Light on Food Prices
Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Consumerism, Economics, Food Shortages, Markets & Outlets — by Doron Francis April 9, 2010
by Doron Francis, CERES Food Connect
Food prices have been going up for some time now. According to OECD data Australia has the highest food price inflation in the western world, and, for the first time, Australia is now importing more fruit and veg than it exports. The reasons for this are many: global demand has pushed up prices as populations increase, severe and prolonged drought locally has lead to shortages, demand for oil is increasing whilst production is decreasing and the loss of biodiversity as our land becomes infertile due to unsustainable farming has caused widespread soil erosion, salinity and depletion of water resources.
Australians are spending nearly 20 percent of their weekly household budget on food and the promise of cheap abundant food is diminishing rapidly. Most of us are well aware of the problems, however this isn’t the whole story. Unfortunately food prices are hugely inflated by retailers and middle men. According to the The National Farmers Federation, “producers receive as little as 5 per cent of the price paid by consumers”. The duopoly of Coles and Woolworths enjoy a 87% share of the grocery market allowing them to dictate pricing to producers and inflate retail prices at will.
Comments (1)The Edible Urban
Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Consumerism, Economics, Society, Urban Projects, Village Development, peak oil — by Milkwood Permaculture April 1, 2010
When I lived in the city, I always loved the idea of a microfarm. In my head, a microfarm was a plot of land with a footprint the size of a city terrace which was simultaneously blooming with flowers and vegetables, honking with geese, clucking with chickens and covered in trailing greenery and mulch, with someone driving a wheelbarrow through the plot, delivering hay to some minature cows while a small but sturdy windmill creaks overhead.
Comments (2)Introducing the Southern Oregon Permaculture Institute (SOPI)
Commercial Farm Projects, Demonstration Sites, Developments, Education Centres, News — by Chuck Burr March 23, 2010
Southern Oregon now has its own permaculture institute, demonstration farm and more. After two years in development, the Southern Oregon Permaculture Institute (SOPI) nonprofit is now open for business. “Our first courses will be held this spring.”
SOPI provides a unique blend of permaculture education, new model demonstration and what we call Culturequake education. Our book, Culturequake: The Restoration Revolution and future courses describe how we got to where we are now, what the obvious impacts are and then how to design new community and economic models that blend what has worked well in the past with what we have today.
Comments (1)Esalen Farm and Garden – Growing Through the Seasons
Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Society — by Benjamin Fahrer February 27, 2010
 Benjamin Fahrer |
It is so important in these times to work in collaboration and inspire each other. I have been so blessed to work with many of you through the Permaculture, Bioneers and Slow Food networks.
Over the last few years I have been able to dive deeply into the relationship connection from the field to table and table to field by participating in some amazing gatherings and courses. Terra Madre in 2006 and 2008, presenting at conferences and institutes, travelling to Africa for the International Permaculture Convergence and teaching design courses and workshops in Permaculture and healthy food systems.
In 2009 as Farm Supervisor at The Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California, I was able to teach and farm in a way that was incredibly fun, demanding and rewarding. Throughout the year I took up a camera and tried to capture some of the magic. The result is this three part film that I recently uploaded to YouTube. If you get some moments and let it download in HD, it is fun to see what you have helped me accomplish, I really could not do all this without the invaluable support of my family, cohorts and friends like you. I truly am grateful and honoured to be supported and connected with so many revolutionaries.
Feel free to forward this film on to any you might think would enjoy.
Part I
Comments (3)Permaculture Master Plan: Planting up the Global Garden
Aid Projects, Bio-regional Organisations, Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Development & Property Trusts, Eco-Villages, Economics, Education Centres, Ethical Investment, Networking Sites, People Systems, Project Positions, Society, Urban Projects, Village Development — by Andy Homer January 20, 2010
You’re trying to say that you can live in the modern way and continue to think in the traditional way. That’s not true. The way you live affects the way you think. – Danny Billie, Traditional Seminole
I’d like to recount here my impressions of the PRI, and how different it is from many other organizations. We (Tribal Networks) first came across them when looking for solutions to problems we found in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco, where we were starting a project to bring in a school and an internet / community centre. Searching for "dry land permaculture" soon found Geoff’s "Greening the Desert" clip, and things progressed from there.
An Urban Gardener Feeds a Community
Bird Life, Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Consumerism, Eco-Villages, Food Shortages, Markets & Outlets, People Systems, Society, Urban Projects, Village Development — by Sarah Gorman December 10, 2009
Bronwyn’s urban backyard is teeming with diversity. It is providing local families with nutritious food through her Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), but she doesn’t think she is doing anything exceptional. Students from Mulloon Creek Natural Farm’s Permaculture Design Certificate course recently visited Bronwyn Richards’ home in Braidwood, NSW, Australia. They learnt how an urban gardener manages to provide a constant supply of organic vegetables not only for her own family, but five others.
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