Experience

Introduction to Permaculture

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Suitable for small groups (8 to 16)

0000,00 MUR per person

What if you could learn to see a place differently?

You may have already heard about permaculture.

You may have watched videos, read articles, followed permaculture projects online or experimented in your own garden.

There is now more information about permaculture available than ever before.

But understanding permaculture and knowing how to apply it to a real place are two very different things.

That is what these two days are about.

Permaculture cannot be learned
from a screen alone

You can read about water harvesting, living soils, agroforestry, biodiversity and permaculture principles.

But a real site asks different questions.

Where does the water come from?
Where does it go?
How does the wind move through the landscape?
How does shade change throughout the day?
What is the vegetation telling us?
How are people already using the space?
What relationships exist between plants, animals, buildings, water and people?

Permaculture begins with observation.

And that is exactly where our course begins.

Two days on a farm — not two days in a classroom

Terganic Farmstay becomes our learning ground.

We will walk.
Observe.
Question.
Touch the soil.
Look at plants.
Follow water.
Identify resources and constraints.

And gradually learn to see the site as a living system.

Instead of simply talking about permaculture, we will constantly connect the principles to what is actually happening around us.

We observe. We understand. We design.

Day 1 — Learn to See

We begin with the foundations of permaculture:

the ethics, the principles, observation and systems thinking.
Then we take those ideas outside.
Why is this tree growing well here?
Where does the water flow?
What is the vegetation telling us?
Which areas are used most frequently?
Could one element perform several functions?
What relationships already exist between different parts of the system?

The objective of the first day is simple:

to start seeing what you may not have noticed before.

Day 2 — Learn to Design

On the second day, we gradually move from observation to design.

How can we organise the different functions of a site?
Where might we place a home, vegetable garden, trees, animals or productive areas?
How should we think about access and movement?
How can we work with water rather than against it?
How can we create positive interactions between different elements?
How can a constraint become a resource or an opportunity?

You will then work with others on a practical design exercise based on a real situation.

Observe. Analyse. Imagine. Design. Present.

Learning to use the right tools

Modern tools, including AI, can help us research species, explore ideas, compare options and organise information.

We will use them when they are useful.

But tools do not replace observation, local knowledge or good design decisions.

The land provides the context.
The tools provide information.
The designer makes the decisions.

We are not going to teach you recipes

Permaculture is not about copying somebody else's garden.

It is about learning how to think and design.

The same principle can lead to one solution in Mauritius and a completely different solution somewhere else.

That is why our objective is not simply to give you techniques.

We want to give you a method:

Observe before acting.

Understand relationships.

Work with the resources already available.

Create systems in which elements support one another.

You will leave seeing your environment differently

After two days, you will not be a permaculture designer.

And we are not going to pretend otherwise.

But you will have gained the foundations to:

understand the core principles of permaculture,
observe land more systematically,
identify resources and constraints,
recognise important ecological relationships,
understand how different elements can perform multiple functions,

and begin developing a simple design.

Most importantly, the next time you look at a garden, farm or piece of land, you may begin to see relationships where you previously saw separate elements.