1. Completion of PDC and member of Permaculture Association
I completed my PDC on the Earth Activist Training course at Landmatters in Devon, in September 2011. I have been a member of the Permaculture Association since 2013.
2. Applying permaculture for at least two years
I’ve completed projects and undertaken work between 2013 and 2015 in the following categories:
- Administration and organisational design: Galleywall Nature Reserve Summer 2014.
- Architecture, building and retrofitting: Solar Panels; Shoe Cupboard.
- Art, Media, Culture and Communications: Galleywall Nature Reserve Summer 2014; Workshop Design; Writing, Activism, and Right Livelihood.
- Business: Writing, Activism, and Right Livelihood.
- Community Development: Galleywall Nature Reserve Summer 2014.
- Design Consultancy: Katie and Paul’s Allotment.
- Education: Workshop Design.
- Personal development, and the ‘inner transition’: Zone 00; Writing, Activism, and Right Livelihood; Learning Pathway.
- Site Development: Back Garden; Solar Panels; Mini Greenhouse; Shoe Cupboard.
3. Demonstrating Design Skills
My entire portfolio demonstrates these skills, specifically:
- Use permaculture ethics, principles and theory as appropriate to the situation: Shown throughout my portfolio.
- Make accurate and appropriate use of intentional design processes: I used SADIM for Katie and Paul’s Allotment, Deano Martin’s process for Galleywall Nature Reserve Summer 2014, and the permaculture design web for my Zone 00. I also developed my own process and used it for the Solar Panels design.
- Use processes and tools that suit the clients and situation: As well as the processes listed in the previous point, in my Writing, Activism, and Right Livelihood design, I began with the Design Web, and moved to my own process when that proved not to be a good fit. The design tools I’ve used are listed below.
- Show that you can produce designs that include land and social elements: Back Garden and Katie and Paul’s Allotment are primarily land designs. Galleywall Nature Reserve Summer 2014 has both land and social elements. Workshop Design and Writing, Activism, and Right Livelihood are primarily social designs.
- Use a variety of design tools:
- Client Interview (also here).
- Site Survey (also here).
- Energy sectors.
- Prioritising implementation and scheduling implementation (also here).
- Function/element analysis (also here, and here).
- Connections between elements.
- Exclusion analysis for site choice.
- SWOC analysis.
- Input/output analysis (also here).
- Mind-mapping (also here).
- Zoning.
- Designing with patterns and principles.
- Systems thinking.
- Create designs that are intelligible, coherent and effective: Shown throughout my portfolio.
- Choose and produce appropriate presentation and documentation for clients and third parties: I used a small sketch for my Shoe Cupboard design, which was only to be shown to my partners at home. I used a draft flyer and a website for the Galleywall Nature Reserve Summer 2014 design, which had to be shown to the other committee members. I used a full design document for Katie and Paul’s Allotment, so that Katie and Paul would have plenty of detail for implementation.
- Present ten designs: My ten designs are listed here (also final presentation planned for London Permaculture Festival, July 2015).
- Show you have achieved fluency with design processes and tools:
See the links to specific design processes and tools above, and my portfolio as a whole.
4. Applying permaculture in your own life
These designs have improved my own personal sustainability and brought me closer to permaculture ethical living:
- Back Garden: creating a garden from 40m2 of urban concrete.
- Solar Panels: choosing and installing microgeneration.
- Zone 00: improving my self-care and mental sustainability.
- Writing, Activism, and Right Livelihood: navigating the balance between what I do with my ‘work’ time.
5. Developing your permaculture practice.
I’ve reflected on my practice and design skills throughout my designs, with a Reflection section at the end of each design. For example, see the Reflection sections of my Back Garden design and my Zone 00 designs, one at each end of my diploma journey.
There is an evaluation section on each of my designs, e.g. Solar Panels; Back Garden; Galleywall Nature Reserve Summer Events.
My Learning Pathway design particularly shows this reflective and learning process, and I have also written about my permaculture diploma journey.
See the 5.2 Accreditation Criteria (PDF file) for more details on these criteria.