permaculture

[Lawrence London <lfljvenaura@gmail.com>]

Permaculture Mailing List homepage revision - includes resources from Scott
Pittman and Permaculture Institute mirrored at
https://sites.google.com/site/permaculturelist/
http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/permaculture

Documents from the Permaculture Institute and Scott Pittman
https://sites.google.com/site/permaculturelist/home/documents-from-the-permaculture-institute-and-scott-pittman

Documents from the Permaculture Institute and Scott Pittman
Scott Pittman of The Permaculture Institute writes about Permaculture
Standards and Principles. This document and others from P.I. can be read
here:
Definition of PDC Standard.txt
https://sites.google.com/site/permaculturelist/home/documents-from-the-permaculture-institute-and-scott-pittman
And here:
https://lists.ibiblio.org/sympa/arc/permaculture/2014-September/045235.html

Permaculture Certificate Course Syllabus
http://www.permaculture.org/what-is-permaculture/certificate/syllabus/

PDC Outline
http://www.permaculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/PDC-Outline.pdf

<>

Definition Of PDC Standard

Scott Pittman of The Permaculture Institute writes about Permaculture
Standards and Principles. This document and others from P.I. can be read
here:
Definition of PDC Standard.txt
https://sites.google.com/site/permaculturelist/home/documents-from-the-permaculture-institute-and-scott-pittman
And here:
https://lists.ibiblio.org/sympa/arc/permaculture/2014-September/045235.html

This a a follow up on the North American Permaculture Convergence workshop
titled “Permaculture Standards and Principals”.  We did not complete the
agenda I had set forth but I would like to elaborate on what was discussed
with the addition of my thoughts on issues not covered in the workshop.

What is a PDC?
 A Permaculture Design Certificate Course is the gateway to understanding
permaculture design.  On completion of this course a certificate is issued
to acknowledge that the participant is now a permaculture apprentice.
Following the course one is expected to continue their learning process by
directly experiencing all of the categories covered in the PDC ie becoming
pattern literate, understanding the principals and how they relate to human
space, methodologies of design, hands on experience in the techniques of
gardening, building, site development, and etc.

Who is qualified to teach a PDC?
Traditionally it was taught that whoever was certified through a PDC was
qualified to teach the PDC and to engage in professional design.  This was
established by Bill Mollison in the late seventies in response to his
feeling of urgency about the deterioration of the world’s ecosystems and
the break down of human social justice.  While the urgency still exists it
has become clear to senior teachers of permaculture that a two week course
is insufficient time to confer on students the authority to teach or
design.  In no field that I know of is two weeks an adequate amount of time
to turn a novice into a professional.

This tradition still exists with some teachers of permaculture and has
lead, in my opinion, to a deterioration of the quality of information being
transmitted as well as designs that are not truly representational of
permaculture design.  Some Permaculture Institutions have established a
much higher standard for entering into the teaching and design profession.

The Permaculture Institute of North American, a fledgling organization, has
published their standards for teaching and design and it is available on
their web site at www.permaculturenorthamerica.org.

The Permaculture Institute established in 1997 by Bill Mollison, Scott
Pittman and Arina Pittman has also published their standards at
www.permaculture.org.  We only recognize those teachers and designers who
have completed their Diploma of Permaculture in either teaching or design.
This is typically a two year process following the PDC and for teachers a
Teacher Training Course.   We will not accept most PDC certificates for
Diploma application unless they were issued by a teacher with an existing
Diploma.

How much time is required for a PDC?
Traditionally the PDC takes two weeks of instruction to cover the
curriculum.  According to the “Foundation Yearbook of The Permaculture
Academy” 1993 edition states that the basic Permaculture Certificate Course
is 72 hours to cover the basic curriculum.  This time does not cover any
experiential learning, design practicum, field trips, videos, talent show,
and other extensions beyond the  72 contact hours necessary to cover the
curriculum material.  I, personally, feel that the original 3 week PDC was
a more appropriate time period to cover all the material.  I do not believe
that anything less than 12 full days of instruction can adequately cover
the material necessary for a certificate.  The Permaculture Institute does
not recognize PDC’s issued for less than 12 days of instruction.

What is the curriculum of the PDC?
The PDC curriculum was officially endorsed by the International
Permaculture Convergence in 1994 and most teachers utilize some iteration
of this curriculum which has remained pretty much the same since the early
80’s.  I have posted the Curriculum for Permaculture Institute PDC at
www.permaculture.org and Robyn Francis’ curriculum is available for those
interested.   I do not have other curricula to share.   Sometime in the
early 90’s Bill Mollison declared that “Permaculture a Designer’s Manual”
was the official curriculum for the PDC.  Many teachers do not accept this
change and continue to use the old curriculum with those additions that are
necessary to stay up to date on new scientific data (ie climate change),
and new information on “invisible structures”.

I think it is critical that teachers of the PDC share a curriculum that
contains the same material and rigor as the original that was developed by
Mollison.  There will certainly be some differences depending on the
ecosystem one is teaching in and the cultural context.
Overall, all PDC certificates should represent a specific body of knowledge
presented over a minimum period of time.

Part of the curriculum has to include design exercises based on the land
one is teaching on, hands on exercises of various “techniques” practiced by
permaculture ie swaling.  All courses should include a talent show to wrap
up the course.  The talent show is the first time many in the course have
ever faced a group of their peers and given the gift of themselves; they
are opening their hearts to their fellow classmates and teachers and this
is part of the community building that has been taking place over the
duration of the course.  The talent show is as much a part of permaculture
as is the “herb spiral”!

What exercises are required for a PDC?
A PDC should have a design practicum as part of the curriculum.
Traditionally it was a site design of the property on which the course was
held and came at the end of the PDC.
This was fully drawn out and presented to the class towards the end of the
PDC.  Some teachers give several small design assignments based on
different environmental influences ie mapping out the water shed and
interventions necessary to conserve runoff and put it to beneficial use.

With the development of the extended classes over a few months there is a
better opportunity to really develop a design because there is considerable
time between each class and the students have the opportunity to get
together in design teams and really do the research necessary for a
complete design.  I have found that without the benefit of good drafting
skills that most designs coming out of a residential PDC are poorly done.

There should also be several “hands on” exercises to demonstrate various
techniques articulated in the classroom ie pruning, banana circle.  Many
teachers use the evenings to present more in depth explication of subjects
with power point presentations and videos.

What is the price of a PDC?
Most PDCs in the developed world seem to range from US $1,700.00 to
2,100.00 but it really depends on the costs to put on the course.  If it is
a residential course then 3 meals a day are provided plus snacks and
beverage.  Rooms or camping facilities add cost to the course.  PDC courses
that are not residential tend to be less expensive with fewer expenses.

I believe that the PDC is one of the best instructional bargains around; it
is certainly cheaper than a two week yoga retreat!  I follow my own ethics
when determining the price of my own courses and base it on an annual
target of what I need to live and raise my family.  I have never expected
to become rich teaching permaculture nor do I think that I should live in
poverty.

There are those who teach the PDC who are unapologetic capitalists and
charge as much as the market will handle or seek large numbers of students
for each course, some have started to use the internet for conducting the
PDC on line.  I think a lot is lost with on line courses and the
Permaculture Institute does not accept the on line PDC as fulfilling the
requirement of a PDC for Diploma application.

Who may issue the PDC certificate and under what authority?
Traditionally anyone who completed a PDC was authorized to issue
certificates and to declare themselves a permaculture designer.  This
practice was started by Bill Mollison in the 1980’s and was followed for
many years by his students.  Currently many teachers around the world are
establishing professional associations to inject more professional
standards in both teaching and design.  The Permaculture Institute was
founded for that purpose.  We do not recognize any certificates unless the
teacher has a Permaculture Diploma.  We do not recognize lead teachers of
the PDC unless they have a Diploma in education.  For more information on
our diploma process go to www.permaculture.org.

I believe that those teachers who encourage their students to go out and
teach after receiving a PDC certificate are doing a disservice to their
students.  There are few PDC graduates who have sufficient knowledge or
“experience” following a two week course to teach or design.

The ethics of permaculture are the primary guiding influences in all
aspects of permaculture and that certainly applies to teaching and design.
One has to be thoroughly grounded in Earth sciences, as well as the
invisible structures to adequately convey the incredible diversity of
permaculture.  Permaculture as a whole has suffered very little
diminishment of its ethics and principals since its inception but there is
a disturbing trend developing of bottom feeding marketeers entering the
ranks that predates on peoples good intentions to profit without providing
fair value for their clients.  There is a clear need for the old aphorism
of “buyer beware”.  Fortunately this trend is limited and many of the
followers of permaculture have started to work to weed out unethical
predators, it is part of being a good gardener.

<>

What is Permaculture Design Certificate Course
http://www.permaculture.org/what-is-permaculture/certificate/

Our Permaculture Design Certificate Course (PDC) material was originally
developed by Bill Mollison, co-founder of permaculture, to teach the
principles and foundations of sustainable design. All PDC courses offered
throughout the world must follow the same format (see course syllabus
<http://www.permaculture.org/what-is-permaculture/certificate/syllabus/>
and PDC Outline
<http://www.permaculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/PDC-Outline.pdf>)
to assure that the integrity of the certification process is upheld.

At a minimum, any certificate course shall meet the following criteria:

- The lead instructor is an established permaculture teacher with a Diploma
in Education
<http://www.permaculture.org/what-is-permaculture/permaculture-diploma/>
(beginning in 2015) or equal credentials . Lead instructor is present
*throughout
the entire course* and course certificate bears his/her signature.

- The course provides a minimum of 72 hours of direct contact with
instructor(s), in addition to group design time, homework assignments,
self-study time, hands-on projects, visits to demonstration sites and other
learning activities. *Courses shorter than 12 contact-days are generally
not offering sufficient time for learning and should be evaluated by
potential students for their validity.*

- Course material is inclusive of, but not limited to, all subjects listed
in the PDC Outline
<http://www.permaculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/PDC-Outline.pdf>.

- Course includes at least one design project exercise or multiple design
vignettes.

- Course includes Talent Show at the end.

Currently, there is no unified oversight for the multitude of permaculture
courses offered globally. We encourage prospective learners, if in doubt,
to request course syllabus from the lead instructor and compare it against
criteria listed above or contact us with further questions.
Certification

Participants of Permaculture Design Courses that meet the criteria above
receive Permaculture Design Certificates from their lead instructor(s) upon
completion of the course.The certificate attests that the recipient has
acquired certain knowledge of the subject, and it enables the recipient to
start using the word “permaculture” in their livelihood and professional
practice.

When using permaculture strictly in their personal lives, students are able
to begin applying their knowledge right away. Those wanting to use
permaculture in a professional capacity must complement their certificate
with an additional two years of acquiring practical knowledge and hands-on
experience as well as pursuing continuing education
<http://www.permaculture.org/continuing-education/>. However, those
students who come to PDC with substantial previous experience might be
ready for professional practice much sooner. Currently, there are no
unified criteria to determine when each particular individual might be
ready for practice. The responsibility of that decision rests with each
practitioner.
Diploma

Persons who acquire substantial practical experience, achieve excellence in
their professional permaculture practice and meet certain additional
education requirements, are ready to apply for the Permaculture Diploma
<http://www.permaculture.org/what-is-permaculture/permaculture-diploma/>.
Persons who wish to teach PDC as lead instructors must have a Permaculture
Diploma to do so. Co-teachers and guest instructors do not need a
Permaculture Diploma.

Permaculture Design Certificate Courses offered by the Permaculture
Institute <http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-design-course/>

PDC Syllabus
<http://www.permaculture.org/what-is-permaculture/certificate/syllabus/> / PDC
Outline
<http://www.permaculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/PDC-Outline.pdf> /
PDC Curriculum Links for Permaculture Teachers (coming up)

Continuing Education Suggestions after PDC
<http://www.permaculture.org/continuing-education/>  / Permaculture Diploma
<http://www.permaculture.org/what-is-permaculture/permaculture-diploma/>/
Permaculture
Diplomats <http://www.permaculture.org/people/diplomats/>
<>

Permaculture Resources
http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-resources-2/
Permaculture Resources
Ever wonder what  is permaculture <http://www.permaculture.org/what-is/> –
then read this blog post to get started.

*Permaculture is what we use to tell us what to do* – Larry Santoyo

Permaculture is an ecological design system. It is an approach to finding
solutions for sustainability in all our undertakings – a way of looking at
such questions as “How do I build an ecologically sound home?”, “How do I
decrease my own ecological footprint?”, “How do I direct my money to do
good work that restores communities and local economy?”, “How do I grow my
own food and create life-affirming conditions for other living things,
instead of relying on commercial food supply and all its vices?” – to name
a few. Permaculture teaches us how to design natural homes,
<http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-resources-2/natural-building/>
how to create abundant gardens,
<http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-resources-2/gardens/> plant food
forests, <http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-resources-2/food-forest/>
how to include backyard animals
<http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-resources-2/backyard-animals/>,
how to build biodiversity to protect wildlife, regenerate degraded
landscapes and ecosystems,
<http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-resources-2/landscape-regeneration/>
harvest rainwater
<http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-resources/principles/rainwater-harvesting/>,
develop ethical economies
<http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-resources-2/ecological-economics/>and
communities, and much more. As an ecological design system, permaculture
focuses on the interconnections between things more than individual parts.
What Is Permaculture
http://www.permaculture.org/what-is/
I have taught permaculture for the past 20+ years and the question of what
is permaculture is the hardest I am asked to answer; because the depth and
breadth of permaculture is virtually infinite and the questioner is always
primed with toe tapping impatience for the quick sound bite – I usually
take the easy way out.

The easy answer is that permaculture is a design discipline based on the
foundational ecological principles of nature. One then takes one’s
observations of natural systems and applies the lessons learned to the
human based environment. This easy answer is rife with further questions
and implications and generally doesn’t satisfy the questioner nor does it
instill in them a desire to learn more, even though it is a fairly good
definition of permaculture.
Ethics, Spirituality, Politics

I, personally, think of permaculture as a system of ethics and ecological
principles that, if thoughtfully pursued, leads to a regenerative living
system that supports the environment and social justice. You could say it
is a guide to understanding and practicing spiritual Animism.

I know that one of the cardinal rules of permaculture, as taught by Bill
Mollison, was no “woo-woo”, (read spiritualism), and no politics but I have
found that if one follows the basic ethics and principles of permaculture
the outcome is to run, smack dab, into spirituality and politics. Not that
I am going out to form a church or political party, because to me, these
two institutions have to bear the major responsibility for the
deteriorating situation we find ourselves in today.

Certainly most religious organizations find Animism an alarming concept,
even though it is imbedded in their teachings, and it is, after all, only
teaching that “all” things are sacred. How do you argue with that?  The
incredible lack of will to end wars, hunger, poverty, environmental
destruction, and all the other horrors can be laid directly at the feet of
the political systems and their cozy partnership with corporate profit.
The religious establishment tends to walk in lock step with the political
direction rather than providing a moral and ethical anchor.
Are Gardening and Ecological Agriculture Permaculture?

The purview of permaculture is often reduced to simply a method of
gardening, or to ecological agriculture, or organic farming with a twist.
These elements are only a very small part of designing, creating and
inhabiting a resilient sustainable environment.

Gardening is definitely one of the tools of permaculture, and so too is
home building, forestry, soil creation, sustainable waste management and so
forth. It boils down to those many skill sets and technologies we use to
create our living environment. What is often left out of the answer are the
“invisible structures” of economics, legal structures, and social behavior.
Mollison taught that the visible structures (gardening, building etc.) were
those things we needed to do to be regenerative and the invisible
structures taught us how to do it. In discovering both the “what” to do and
“how” to do it we use the ethics and principles of permaculture to guide
us.  My friend Larry Santoyo says that, “permaculure is something we “*use*”
to discover what to “*do*“.”

*The bottom line is that permaculture is a road map to finding our small
place in the world as an integral part of the whole planetary system.*
<>

Permaculture Ethics
http://www.permaculture.org/permaculture-ethics/

*Permaculture Touchstone*

Permaculture ethics were presented in my first Permaculture Design Course
as the touchstone of designing towards sustainability – whether as a
landscape designer, as an architect, urban planner, as a farmer/gardener,
as a teacher or activist, as an urban dweller seeking to find balance and
create an ecologically-sound life.

I was amazed that I hadn’t been presented with a statement of ethics in any
other discipline I had studied; I had known about the Hippocratic oath
taken by medical practitioners, but not for professions that deal with the
health of the land, of our communities or our cities and ecosystems.  Since
that time I have realized how critical ethics are in my permaculture design
work and my teaching of permaculture.  Ethics guide my work and my daily
activities.

*The three ethics of permaculture are:*

*1.Care of the Earth, 2. Care of people, and 3. Set limits to consumption
and reproduction, and redistribute surplus to the benefit of the Earth and
people.*

At first reading, this seems a simple guide, but, like all things
permaculture, a little reflection leads us into a morass of implications
and decisions to be made.
Care of the Earth

How does one care for the Earth when we have such an elementary level of
understanding of the Earth’s processes?  Care of the Earth has an
implication that we are knowledgeable enough to become the caretakers of
the planetary processes.  We, humans, are just learning the basics of the
foundational knowledge of life processes!  What mankind has exhibited in
the last 10,000 years is an incredible ability to lay waste to the Earth
with little to no care for it!

The first ethic sets a very high bar for those of us aspiring to teach
about and work with nature-inspired design, striving to achieve resiliency
that we observe in truly natural systems.

The second and third ethic are, really, a reiteration of the first one, but
with more specificity.
Care of People

Care of People is also a very grand aspiration especially within our
culture of individualism, and narcissistic tendencies.  The evolution of
the Western society into a class system of the “haves” and the “have-nots”
is a  sad testament to a lack of care for the “have-nots”.  This is not
just an economic divide but a social justice issue encompassing health
care, housing, meaningful work, education, justice, equality between
genders (not just male and female), racial equality, and the pursuit of
happiness.

I find caring for people particularly challenging since we have been so
wounded by a culture that judges one’s worth by the possessions one owns,
and by one’s conformity with cultural norms of beauty, education, income
and behavior.  Living in a culture that is primarily in corporate hands
does not allow us to truly explore our humanity or to express it,
particularly as it pertains to care of others.  To a sociopath this
humanistic attitude is the ultimate failure in the scrabble to the top
echelons of the social order.

Anyone who has seriously thought about the implications of permaculture
soon realizes that herein lie all the answers to the dysfunction of our
society and yet we continually default to the destructive behavior we have
been indoctrinated into by an educational system that’s primary purpose is
to engender an attitude of obsequious servitude to the corporate bosses.
Set Limits to Consumption and Population

The third ethic is a troubling one to me, not because it is unnecessary but
because it is so little understood.  The third ethic does not want to fit
into a comfortable sound bite, it is wordy and long and that has inspired
many  generations of permaculture teachers to morph it into something
simpler, easier to digest.

I often hear that the third ethic is: “a return of all excess to the care
of the earth and people”.  Somewhere along the line “set limits to
consumption and reproduction” was dropped from the lexicon.  I think this
may have been because of the political climate surrounding birth control
and the holy rite of consumption.

To be fair, the third ethic is so unwieldy and it does not trip off the
tongue as poetically as the first two ethics.

It would be great to have one of the pioneers of permaculture shine some
light on the history of this critical ethic.

More recently the third ethic has further devolved into “fair share” which
is a far cry from the original intent of this ethic.  Fair is an ambiguous
word that changes with the user, what is fair for me may be totally unfair
for you.  What is the gold standard of “fair”?  I am certain that this
misstatement of the third ethic derived from that constant quest for the
“sound bite” that sounds good but, sadly, conveys very little information.

I am much more concerned with the meaning conveyed by the third ethic than
the meter or prosody of the words.  It is critically important that we
state the permaculture ethics in non-compromised form so there is no doubt
in their meaning or necessity.

The ethics of permaculture are the core; around that core everything else –
permaculture methods, approaches, design concepts, practical applications –
converge.  If all our decisions are seen through the lens of the three
permaculture ethics we will not stray far from our best intentions.


FILES FOR DOWNLOAD:
-------------------------------------

 Definition of PDC Standard.txt
(10k)
Sep 16, 2014, 9:16 PM

PDC-Outline.pdf
<https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbnxwZXJtYWN1bHR1cmVsaXN0fGd4OjQyM2IyY2U0MjQxOGZjNTA>
(2226k)
Sep 16, 2014, 9:10 PM
<https://sites.google.com/site/permaculturelist/home/documents-from-the-permaculture-institute-and-scott-pittman/PDC-Outline.pdf?attredirects=0&d=1>

Permaculture Certificate Course Syllabus.txt
(4k)
Sep 16, 2014, 9:14 PM

Permaculture Ethics.txt
(5k)
Sep 16, 2014, 9:35 PM

What Is Permaculture.txt
(5k)
Sep 16, 2014, 9:36 PM

What is Permaculture Design Certificate Course.txt
(3k)
Sep 16, 2014, 9:31 PM