Permaculture

Nimbin is one of the most active permaculture communities in the world. The village has several schools where people from all around the world come to study the theory and practice, as well as many individuals who practice this type of agriculture principles on their properties and farms.

Permaculture is a system of agricultural and social design principles centred around simulating or directly utilising the patterns and features observed in natural ecosystems. The term permaculture was developed and coined by David Holmgren, then a graduate student, and his professor, Bill Mollison, in 1978. The word itself originally referred to “permanent agriculture” but was expanded to also encompass “permanent culture”, inspired by Masanobu Fukuoka’s natural farming philosophy that social aspects were integral to truly sustainable systems.

Permaculture has many branches that include, but are not limited to, ecological design, ecological engineering, integrated water resources management, sustainable architecture and regenerative and self-maintained habitat and agricultural systems modelled from natural ecosystems.

Mollison has said: “Permaculture is a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted and thoughtful observation rather than protracted and thoughtless labour; and of looking at plants and animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single product system.”