Planning for Abundance: Permaculture and Radical Transformation

Abstract

While the most visible and vocal forms of radical politics emphasise conflict, protest and opposition, this paper champions some of the more quiet, cooperative and quotidian approaches to the challenges of our times. Focusing on the themes of food and justice, it takes inspiration from permaculture, an ethical design system inspired by nature. David Holmgren, one of the original founders of permaculture, suggests 12 design principles for use in creating sustainable systems. These principles are introduced and applied to a range of concerns relevance to the politics of food justice, from the practicalities of designing abundant gardens to the challenges of emotional sustainability during a period of great transformation. (C) 2014 by The Transformative Studies Institute. All rights reserved.