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Highlights of the Permaculture Design Process

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2 years ago

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Permaculture Design, also known as Regenerative Design or Ecological Design, encompasses a range of interconnected practices and principles that harmonize with nature’s wisdom. By observing and imitating natural ecosystems, permaculture design strives to create resilient and productive systems that benefit both people and the planet. This blog post will explore some key aspects of permaculture design and how they interrelate.
By Alan Enzo

Permaculture Design, also known as Regenerative Design or Ecological Design, encompasses a range of interconnected practices and principles that harmonize with nature’s wisdom. By observing and imitating natural ecosystems, permaculture design strives to create resilient and productive systems that benefit both people and the planet. This blog post will explore some key aspects of permaculture design and how they interrelate.

1. The Ethics and Principles of Permaculture Design:

ethics and principles permaculture design

The Ethics of Permaculture Design: Earth Care, People Care, and Future Care (or Share the Surplus) promote a life-affirming system and create a sense of reverence for all life on the planet. By embodying and living these principles, we ensure our species’ continued survival and the planet’s health and maintain a healthy respect for life itself.

The Permaculture Principles:

If you’re a designer or simply a person designing their own farm, homestead, business, or local economy, you can use the Permaculture Principles to help you design integrated systems that use less energy, eliminate “waste”, and create natural abundance.  Here is a peek at some of the Permaculture Principles:

OBTAIN A YIELD

You can’t work on an empty stomach (and neither can anyone else).

REDUNDANCY

Have a backup plan. Be prepared!

CATCH AND STORE ENERGY

Make hay while the sun shines.

MULTIPLE FUNCTIONS

Stacking functions. Wearing more than one hat.

PRODUCE NO WASTE – RETHINK, REDUCE, REPAIR, REUSE, RECYCLE, REPURPOSE

Waste not, want not.

A stitch in time saves nine.

OBSERVE AND REPLICATE NATURAL PATTERNS

USE AND VALUE RENEWABLE RESOURCES AND SERVICES

Let Nature take its course.

DESIGN FROM PATTERNS TO DETAILS

Can’t see the forest for the trees.

SECTOR AND ZONE PLANNING

RELATIVE LOCATION

It’s the connections that matter.

USE EDGES AND VALUE THE MARGINAL

The edge is where the action is.

Don’t think you are on the right track just because it’s a well-beaten path.

USE AND VALUE DIVERSITY

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

INTEGRATE RATHER THAN SEGREGATE

Many hands make light work.

APPLY SELF-REGULATION AND ACCEPT FEEDBACK

The sins of the fathers are visited on the children unto the seventh generation.

Make lots of small mistakes.

USE SMALL AND SLOW SOLUTIONS

The bigger they are, the harder they fall.

Slow and steady wins the race.

For further study:

Recommended blog:
Permaculture Principles
Deep Green Permaculture

Recommended video:

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2. Design and Site Analysis:

Site analysis and design in permaculture involve thoroughly assessing the characteristics of a location, such as topography, soil composition, water sources, and microclimates, to inform the strategic placement of elements and maximize the efficient use of resources for creating sustainable and regenerative systems.

For further study,

Recommended blog:
Regenerative Design

Recommended video:

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2.a. What is a Permaculture Sector Analysis?

sector analysis

In a Permaculture Sector Analysis, the term sector refers to any natural energy or uncontrolled influence that moves through your design site. And through sector analysis, you can anticipate and enact design decisions that will mediate, mitigate, and improve how those energies and influences affect your site.

For further study,

Recommended blog:
Barbolian Permaculture Journey

3. Companion Planting and Polycultures:

Companion planting is simply planting at least one plant as a ‘companion’ to another. The central idea in companion planting is that monocultures are a bad thing. A monoculture is a plantation of just one crop (as you would typically often see in large farm fields).

The problem with monocultures is that they are inherently unnatural. They take more resources (water, energy, etc.) to maintain and can damage the soil ecosystem. And since they are more prone to problems with pests and diseases, they are harder (if not impossible) to manage organically.

By carefully choosing which plants to place next to each other, we can find solutions to many of the problems that are commonly found in mono-crop systems. We know surprisingly little about the many different ways that different plants interact. But we do know that plants can help each other in a range of surprising ways.

For further study,

Recommended blog:
RootedRevival.com

4. Soil Building and Regenerative Agriculture:

Maintaining soil health is critical for regenerative agriculture and ecosystem health. Soil degradation, which can result from activities such as overuse of pesticides and fertilizers, erosion, and deforestation, can lead to decreased soil fertility, reduced crop yields, and degraded water quality. Soil conservation practices such as cover cropping, crop rotation, and reduced tillage can help to maintain and improve soil health.

soil building and regeneration

For further study,

Recommended blog: https://www.nrdc.org/stories/regenerative-agriculture-101#what-is

Recommended videos:

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5. Water Management and Conservation:

Permaculture has numerous aspects; however, its way of dealing with water is a standout among the most energizing and sustaining. Permaculture Designers learn how to design water elements that go beyond the protection of water to energize growing systems and sustain groundwater supplies.

In some ways, Permaculture Design has a “post-present day” sensibility in that it acquires from indigenous methods while additionally drawing from the most modern comprehension and information from a range of applied sciences.

For further study,

Recommended blog: https://www.treehugger.com/permaculture-water-features-inspiration-and-ideas-5189614

Recommended video:

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6. Perennial Plants and Food Forests:

A Food Forest is an assembly of edible plants and useful species that mimics the relationships in natural, mature forests. If you can imagine the vertical layers of a forest, with tall trees, small trees, shrubs, vines, herbs, ground covers, and fungi, you can create a food forest of your own. Although the term “food forest” conjures visions of a wild area magically producing all the fruits, nuts, herbs, and veggies you could possibly need, it is not magical. It requires a lot of planning and work to set it up. It does not occur naturally but mimics the beneficial relationships found in nature. You will manage diverse and productive ecosystems once you design your food forest.

Learn the why and the how of Food Forests right here.

food forest

For further study,

Recommended video:

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If you’d like to read more about Permaculture Design and the topics discussed, please see these resources: https://permacultureeducation.org/video-resources/

Permaculture is a lifelong journey of learning and implementation, so let these insights inspire you to take practical steps toward creating regenerative systems and embracing a harmonious relationship with nature.

Growing with nature is a wonderful approach to a permaculture lifestyle and we hope we can inspire you to do so! If you want to learn more about Permaculture Design and how to offer your services more regeneratively, become a certified Permaculture Designer with us!

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Activism

How Ethical Community Leaders Are Driving Systemic Change Around the World

Published

3 months ago

on

May 15, 2025

By

 

Mobilized News Editorial Feature

At a time when cynicism toward politics is high and global systems appear rigged against the most vulnerable, a new kind of leadership is taking root—not in the corridors of power, but in the streets, villages, neighborhoods, and digital commons.

These leaders don’t wear suits or sit on high stages. They are midwives, farmers, youth mentors, solar tech trainers, community organizers, and elders. They listen more than they speak. They build with others, not for others. And they are rewriting the very definition of what it means to lead in the 21st century.

This is the story of ethical community leadership—a global groundswell of people committed to systemic change, rooted in justice, accountability, care, and regeneration. And it’s working.

Mobilized News Editorial Feature

 A Shift from Top-Down to Bottom-Up

In India’s Maharashtra state, a women-led collective called Swayam Shikshan Prayog has empowered over 100,000 rural women to lead in climate-resilient farming, health, and education. Their model? Train women farmers as decision-makers—not beneficiaries—while restoring ecological health.

In Colombia, the Guardians of the Atrato River, a court-recognized legal entity composed of Indigenous and Afro-descendant community leaders, have been granted rights to represent the river in court—a historic case of environmental personhood anchored in ancestral leadership and ecological stewardship.

In Jackson, Mississippi, Cooperation Jackson is building a community-controlled network of cooperatives, housing, and alternative education, rooted in Black liberation and economic democracy. Their People’s Assembly is a living example of participatory governance done right.

In Nairobi’s Mukuru informal settlement, Muungano wa Wanavijiji—a grassroots federation of the urban poor—is redefining slum upgrading by organizing communities to map their own infrastructure, negotiate land rights, and plan their own future.

 What Makes Ethical Community Leadership Different?

Ethical leadership isn’t just about transparency or good intentions. It’s a practice rooted in core values and systems literacy. These leaders:

  • Lead by listening: They don’t impose solutions—they co-create them.
  • Center the most affected: They trust the wisdom of the marginalized.
  • Build institutions of care: From food sovereignty networks to mutual aid funds, they organize safety nets from the ground up.
  • Disrupt extractive systems: Whether confronting colonized land systems, corrupt governance, or ecological destruction, they take aim at root causes—not just symptoms.
  • Regenerate, not replicate: They don’t scale at the cost of soul. They grow like a forest—locally resilient, globally connected.

This is not nonprofit reformism or political branding. It’s a radical act of public trust-building.

 Real Systems Change in Action

Health: Community First

In Rwanda, community health workers—trained by and from their own villages—have helped reduce child mortality by more than 60% in just over a decade. These leaders don’t wait for the state to catch up; they move with their people.

Food Systems: Sovereignty Over Charity

In Hawai’i, the Hoʻoulu ʻĀina initiative is reconnecting communities to ancestral agroforestry, healing land while feeding families. In Brazil’s favelas, food delivery networks are run by residents, for residents—creating not just meals, but food dignity.

Justice: Accountability from the Ground Up

In Minneapolis, post-George Floyd, Black-led initiatives like Reclaim the Block and MPD150 have pushed for alternatives to policing rooted in care and prevention. Their strategy? Community investment, youth outreach, and trauma healing as public safety.

Climate: Regeneration Through Trust

In Vanuatu, traditional leaders and youth climate organizers sit together in councils to manage marine protected areas, combining indigenous law with modern resilience science.

 Lessons for the World

  1. The Global South Leads: Many of the most effective, transformative models are being pioneered outside the Western gaze—by communities long overlooked.
  2. Solutions Don’t Need to Be Scaled to Be Powerful: Replication is not always the goal. What matters is depth, not just breadth.
  3. Leadership Is a Practice, Not a Position: Ethical leaders are often invisible to media and policy circles—but central to movements that actually work.
  4. Narrative Is a Tool of Liberation: These leaders know that changing the story changes the system. They reclaim history, identity, and imagination.

Who Are Some of Today’s Ethical Leaders?

  • Alicia Wallace – Activist from the Bahamas blending gender justice and climate action.
  • Bayo Akomolafe – Nigerian philosopher reframing leadership as “becoming fugitive” from oppressive norms.
  • Naomi Klein – Author and organizer exposing the intersections of capitalism, climate, and colonialism.
  • Rowan White – Mohawk seedkeeper restoring Indigenous seed sovereignty across Turtle Island.
  • Raj Patel – Economist and activist co-building food justice networks that dismantle corporate agriculture.

These voices—and countless more unnamed—form the invisible architecture of a better future.

What Comes Next?

If ethical leadership teaches us anything, it’s this:

Change doesn’t come from permission. It comes from community.

To support ethical community leadership where you are:

  • Invest in grassroots organizations, not just polished NGOs.
  • Create spaces for youth and elders to lead together.
  • Shift from “impact metrics” to long-term trust and resilience.
  • Design funding systems that support depth over speed.
  • Follow the leadership of those most impacted—not just those most credentialed.

A New Ethic for Our Times

In every region, on every continent, ethical community leaders are showing what is possible when power is relational, not transactional. When decisions are made in circles, not pyramids. When justice is lived, not theorized.

They are not waiting for permission.
They are not waiting for the system to fix itself.
They are building new systems—right now.

And the world is watching.   Now it’s our turn to follow their lead.

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. If you want to go deeper, build trust first.”
— Ancestral proverb, carried by ethical leaders everywhere

 

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COMMUNITIES

FLIP THE SCRIPT: DECOLONIZE THE FUTURE

Published

4 months ago

on

April 25, 2025

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COMMUNITIES

FLIP THE SCRIPT: WE ARE THE WEB

Published

4 months ago

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April 25, 2025

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