Permaculture is the intentional design of perennial agriculture. Developed by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, the word permaculture is a contraction of permanent, agriculture and culture.  It is a design philosophy based on three foundational ethics and a set of twelve principals that is focused on whole-systems thinking to create regenerative systems.

By “working with, rather than against, nature,” farmers observe and utilize patterns of nature and natural ecosystems. This minimizes external inputs by creating closed-loop systems and prioritizing perennial crops. Another pillar of permaculture is that every component of a landscape or structure must fulfill multiple functions, therefore creating resiliency and self-sufficiency. “Zones” are used to organize design elements based on their frequency of use and proximity to one another. Because this system can be scaled up or down, it can be utilized for a range of sizes, from a small home garden to a full-scale farm.

Ethics

There are three foundational ethics that permaculture bases itself around.

“The Prime Directive of Permaculture: The only ethical decision is to take responsibility for our own existence and that of our children’s.”
-Bill Mollison

1. Care of the Earth: Provision for all life systems to continue and multiply

2. Care of people: Provision for people to access those resources necessary for their existence

3. Fair Share: Setting limits to population and consumption. By governing our own needs, we can set resources aside to further the above principles

Twelve Design Principles

“Principle of Cooperation: Cooperation, not competition, is the very basis of future survival and of existing life systems.” -Bill Mollison

There are twelve design principles that permaculture uses to aid in decision making:

Observe and interact, Catch and store energy, Obtain a yield, Apply self-regulation and accept feedback, Use and value renewable resources and services, Produce no waste, Design from patterns to details, Integrate rather than segregate, Use small and slow solutions, Use and value diversity, Use edges and value the marginal, Creatively use and respond to change.

Zones

The zones system is a design structure organized around concentric zones labeled 0 to 5, based on the frequency with which humans, plants, and animals interact on them, with high human frequency in zone 0. Zone 0 is typically a house or a place where the most time is spent. Each zone that fans out from there is an area that is visited less and less. For example, zone 3 is an area that is occasionally visited, while zone 5 is wilderness. A home and greenhouse would perhaps be in zone 0, a pasture in zone 3, and wild food gathering in zone 5. 

Certification

The Permaculture Design Certification (PDC) was developed by Bill Mollison to teach the foundations and principals of Permaculture. All PDC courses across the world must follow the same curriculum to assure the integrity of the certification. An instructor who is already certified and has undergone additional training administers and leads the course. To earn a PDC, one must have a minimum of 72 hours of in-course training, plus additional time (generally around 12 days in total) spent on hands-on projects, visits to demonstration sites, group work, and more. A design project is required as well.

To learn more visit:
Permaculture Institute
Permaculture Principles
NC State Extension-Permaculture

(Not Affiliated; For Education Purposes Only)

Click here for a downloadable list of references used.