“We cannot solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them.” Albert Einstein.
Permaculture stands for permanent culture. It is an ecological method of design that shapes many practices, including farming.
The term permaculture was first coined by two Australians, David Holmgren and Bill Mollison. However, many of their design ideas were inspired by Masanobu Fukuoka’s sustainable farming methods. The founders of permaculture recognize that a change in farming is needed. A change in culture is needed as well – a change in the way we view the world.
American culture, and indeed Western culture, often sees human beings as somehow separate from nature, that nature is out there and we are in here. Anthropologists don’t necessarily see such a demarcation from us and nature and neither do permaculturists. Not only are human beings a part of nature, it is optimistically believed that we can do more than mitigate our harm to the environment. Through the active implementation of permaculture principles, we can actually improve the environment around us.