EDN Issue 129 - Now Available
Published
2015-10-28
In This Issue:
- Permaculture In Development: An introduction to permaculture and its application in agriculture development
- From ECHO's Seed Bank: Inca nut (Plukenetia volubilis)
- Books, Websites and Other Resources (See PDF Version)
Excerpt: Permaculture In Development: An introduction to permaculture and its application in agriculture development
The word permaculture is mentioned with increasing frequency in speeches, books and magazine articles on sustainability and food security. What is permaculture? Is it a movement? A philosophy? Simply a set of design tools?
In this article, I answer the above questions by looking at permaculture from a variety of angles. First, I briefly describe permaculture’s history, underlying ethics, and key principles and common practices. Then I discuss common criticisms of permaculture and explain the underlying perspective that shapes its use in addressing a community’s food, water and shelter needs (i.e., the lens through which a permaculturalist views development). Finally, I share how permaculture has influenced my own life and work, both as a Christian and as an agriculture development worker.
For the full article on Permaculture and how it considers the ecosystem and social system as a whole, facilitating good stewardship, and providing a pathway to true sustainability, resilience and abundance read the full article.