Permaculture self-reliance refers to a way of life that connects you with nature, with family members and your neighbors, and can include all activities that bring value, either moral or physical, to the well-being of the community.
It enables empowerment through increased local resource-flow by giving, trading and sharing. Self-Reliance values and cares for the individuals, in a community context; it is a shared responsibility of people whose values align, in theory and in practice. Self-Reliance improves your well-being and the general well-being of the ecosystem.
It is somewhat opposed to the concept of self-sufficiency, which has unfortunately been associated with the practice of Permaculture; “being autonomous” has become a vector for a worrying trend: communities or individual homesteads cut themselves off from the outside world, working intensively on attaining difficult goals, in terms of providing for all their needs.
This article aims at clarifying some of these ideas, while focusing on practical solutions for achieving attainable goals. Self-reliance aims:
Biomimicry - Following Nature’s Model
The first step in the direction of self-reliance is acquiring the understanding of Nature’s models and patterns. Through this, we aim to harvest, store and use as much energy as possible, on site. When looking at the Biosphere from different points of view, ranging from the micro to the macro, we can notice fractal patterns that apply both to the living and non-living elements.
In order to achieve this, we must start from the basics – aligning with the landscape, and with the elements that find themselves nestled in the different niches. Water is first on this list, with the aims of slowing, soaking, infiltrating and using it to fuel living systems. Next comes the access, itself being a priority for the purpose of durability and of passive functions it can perform (water harvesting, heat storage, soil stabilization etc.). Then structures, which need to use locally available resources and know, and also take into consideration the energies present on site.
Only then do we take a long look at what to feature in a cultivated ecology: trees, perennial and annual plants, animals large and small, all weaving their existence through the larger patterns of the available space.
Social Behavior - Changing Our Mindset
Changing the shapes and forms of how we interact with Nature, should be followed by changing our mindsets. Specifically, we’re looking at positive behavior; in a world of finite mineral and non-organic resources, we need to rely once again on living resources for fulfilling our most basic needs: from shelter to potable water, from fibers to building materials, from more raw resources to more sophisticated products stemming from ferments to other conservation practices.
A Permanent Culture is built and developed slowly, consciously, deliberately; we don’t aim for maximum yield, but for maximum use and functions within the system of the resources we can produce regeneratively. Little by little, we can transition from a culture of exploitation, to a culture of regeneration; the aim is to integrate.
Developing the practical tools
Bill Mollison used to quote his grandfather: “Never sell anything off the farm that can’t walk, or fly on its own”. What that meant was that massive exporting off the land, which is the current industrial model for farming, would greatly impact its sustainability.
But there is a second layer of wisdom to be extracted from this: the pace at which regeneration takes place. Water moving on the farm should do so at a pace slower than walking.
In terms of tools, I’m referring to much more than your regular hand tools, for low energy consumption; I’m referring to the tools that we use for designing (human) life into a regenerative model: observation, communication, feedback, information flow, distributing resources etc.. All of these, if they don’t already exist, require the investment of time and effort into creating them; and those that are already in use can be retrofitted or fine tuned to respect our ethics.
We value slow and small-scale solutions. Permaculture is an inclusive science, and should invite other professions and fields of expertise to contribute to this model of self-reliance.
Resource and Information Flow
If we are to build self-reliance into our communities, we need to be involved once again in the different processes, and not be cut off from the land and from other people. Permaculture is information intensive, and this requires intentional steps in the direction of inclusivity.
Knowledge and know-how have little value without flow; if a resource is available within a community, it should be directed to where it is needed. Awareness plays an important role in making that decision, as well as being empowered to decide and act upon it. Once a resource is distributed, a feedback loop is necessary to ensure the decision was the right one; if not, adjustments should be made, or the decision revoked, or the loop is replaced with another.
Both positive and negative trials are taken into consideration, and added to the common library so that future decisions are informed on the topic.
The nature of the network that performs these functions is decentralized and reactive; it is also aligned with local realities (resources, scale, culture etc.)
Developing Ethical Networks, at Appropriate Scales
Creating closed-loop systems again requires awareness of needs, both individual and systemic. Surplus energy or surplus yield need to be fed back into the system, or appropriately distributed amongst community members. If this exceeds a certain level, then it can lead to chaos; to avoid that, limits should be implemented to the system.
This system is intrinsically opposed to the industrial model of production of goods and services, which produce beyond needs levels that can be identified clearly; in the capitalist system, production is aimed at creating an economy, and does not correspond to real needs or to demand; within this scarcity model, these are even withheld for market considerations – such as lowering or driving up the perceived value.
In conclusion, Permaculture Design imitates natural models, where plants, animals and insects are linked to each other due to their complementary functions. In time, this creates assemblies of correlated living and non-living elements, placed in appropriate spatial relationships, and respectful of the environment.
Self-sufficiency is developed on the basis of available resources, through awareness, information exchange and consideration for the well-being of the whole system. By following natural patterns, communities can and should build regenerative models that function like the larger biosphere: through collaboration and positive competition, complex feedback loops and without any waste.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Permaculture Design imitates natural models, where plants, animals and insects are linked to each other due to their complementary functions. In time, this creates assemblies of correlated living and non-living elements, placed in appropriate spatial relationships, and respectful of the environment.
Self-sufficiency is developed on the basis of available resources, through awareness, information exchange and consideration for the well-being of the whole system. By following natural patterns, communities can and should build regenerative models that function like the larger biosphere: through collaboration and positive competition, complex feedback loops and without any waste.
