Neiger explains that in permaculture, people often get very excited before they have the depth of training needed.“ The intention and perspective is powerful and good. However, the [ current ] system for training in permaculture is a two-week course. It changes people’ s perspective, but it doesn’ t provide in-depth training. Novices don’ t have the knowledge to back up their excitement,” Neiger said.
But as permaculture becomes less of a fringe movement, its aesthetics, its applications and its influence are changing. Permaculture courses are appearing in dozens of universities around the world. Nationwide, beautiful permaculture landscapes are popping up on campuses and at public institutions. The movement’ s original idealistic young fans are being joined by scientists, engineers and other professionals, including horticulture and landscape design experts. A recent survey on sustainability, conducted by the Association of Professional Landscape Designers, suggests that 25 percent of the respondents use permaculture in their designs.
EMERGING ORGANIZATIONS
Meanwhile an organization has emerged to shepherd North America’ s permaculture movement into the future: the Permaculture Institute of North America.“ PINA was created to address a need to develop a higher level of credibility and professionalism for permaculture practitioners working in the public sector,” said board member Livingston-Stark.“ PINA’ s goal is to support professional development for permaculture practitioners, specifically in the fields of education and design. PINA will also become a resource for people interested in hiring a permaculture designer, or wishing to attend a quality Permaculture Design Certification Course.”
“ Permaculture is a new paradigm for thinking about environments,” says Peter Bane, PINA board member and author of The Permaculture Handbook: Garden Farming for Town and Country.“ After 40 years, it is beginning to leave the arena of the homestead where it took root, and expand into the public arena. We have begun to move into positions of authority in society. We are looking at stormwater conditions and urban heat island problems; we are looking at food deserts in our cities. Permaculture has answers for all these issues, where our conventional professions often do not. We are getting an audience. It’ s about time!”
Perhaps it’ s also time for garden communicators to reconsider the view that permaculture and gardening are competing philosophies and to look, instead, for the places where they intersect.
Above: Jono Neiger, author of The Permaculture Promise, holds the site plan for the soon-to-be removed highway project. Below: Students from Jono Neiger’ s Advanced Permaculture Course in Akron, Ohio, discuss regenerative design opportunities for the site of this soon-to-be removed highway.
RESOURCES:
• Essence of Permaculture, a summary of Permaculture Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability by David Holmgren, http:// bit. ly / 2h2da0m
• Permaculture Institute of North America, http:// pina. in
• Permaculture Design Magazine, http:// permaculturedesignmagazine. com
• Scott Mann’ s Permaculture Podcasts, http:// thepermaculturepodcast. com
• Edible Forest Gardens website of Dave Jacke, http:// edibleforestgardens. com
• Gaia’ s Garden by Toby Hemenway, http:// chelseagreen. com / gaias-garden
•“ Permaculture and Horticulture: Gardening with the Future in Mind” by Dale Hendricks in Hardy Plant Society / Mid-Atlantic Group, Vol. 29, No. 3, http:// www. hardyplant. org / assets / docs / Feature Articles / hendricks _ permacultureandhorticulture. pdf
PHOTOS COURTESY SABRENA SCHWEYER
Sabrena Schweyer, FAPLD, is a permaculturist and a national expert on sustainable landscape design. Co-owner of international award-winning firm, Salsbury-Schweyer Inc., she is best known for creating landscapes and gardens that are ecologically sensitive, as well as beautiful, personal and healing experiences for all those who enter.
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