For the past two weeks, Kusamala has been up to its eyeballs in Permaculture Designing.
Northwest of the centre, in the classroom at the end of the market garden, nine people from the Lilongwe Wildlife Center (LWC) are participating in a Permaculture Design Course led by Eston and Biswick. The course is sponsored by UNDP as a part of a larger environmental project focusing on reforestation, recycling, and urban permaculture.
Throughout the two weeks, the course has included a combination of theory and practical sessions. The first few days focused on the basics of permaculture, such as the ethics, the principles, the focus on utilizing existing resources, and the importance of observation and analysis. Getting their hands dirty with compost making and swale building, they also learned different techniques to improve soil fertility, how to plant complimentary guilds, water and land management.
LWC participants making compost
Tomorrow the participants will present their permaculture designs as the culmination of their permaculture certification. The designs will incorporate the different permaculture zones into a plan for making areas of the LWC more productive, to meet both human and environmental needs. It’ll be exciting to see what they come up with!
At the other end of the farm, Kristof Nordin from Never Ending Food has been leading a supplemental Permaculture Design Course for our interns and a few members of staff. Since all of the participants live at the centre and are exposed to permaculture practices in their daily work, the course has largely focused on the theory and design process. Kristof has been using the centre as a living classroom, including daily walks around the farm to observe permaculture theory in practice.
Kristof teaching about water management
Similar to the LWC PDC, the participants will presenting their designs as the final project on Monday. Given the international flavor of the group, Kristof has focused on diverse climates and challenged the participants to create designs in their place of origin.
It’s been a busy couple of weeks and we’re excited to see eighteen new permaculturalists join the team!
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