Volunteer Landscape Design for a School, Non-profit, Church, Farm, ect.

Hi Permies Community!  I am a landscape designer (unlicensed landscape architect)  who has tried to start a few businesses and failed at it.  Great businesswomen, I am not!  I am currently in my latest try, doing contract work for a landscape architect, designing RV resorts.  The work is fun, because design is fun, and it is a skill I learned in my first job after school, so at this point I'm pretty decent at it.  My passion though, is Permaculture design, and I would like to get more of those sorts of jobs.  I need a way to break into that pool of work (it must be out there, right?) so I thought doing a couple of volunteer designs for bragging rights could be a good start.  

Here's a bit about me, so you know what I am able to do, and what I am not.  I have my Master's degree in Landscape Architecture and my Permaculture Design Certificate from Oregon State.  What I don't yet have is a license, so I can't stamp plans.  Any project that I design would need to be reviewed and stamped by a licensed civil engineer or landscape architect from the state the project is in.  That being said, the cost savings would be substantial having me do the design and then fix any redlines from the licensed professional.  

If anyone does know of an organization who needs a design, please give them my contact info:  
Rachel Rudd
208-549-9845
gspermaculture@gmail.com

Hi, Rachel. We started a group called Permaculture Guild of Missoula (PGoM) for just what you are describing. I'm a new designer too, doing some volunteer designs on my own six acre plot in Montana as well as a four acre site in Denver, and hopefully others as well soon. If you'd like to network with us, we can expand to Oregan projects and get you set up with an online portfolio to showcase your work and help us develop the business. It might require a bit of volunteer participation at first. Please contact me at 406-239-8028.

Jesse Fister

Hi Jesse! That sounds really interesting, I will definitely get ahold of you today. I am actually located 6 hours south of you in Wyoming, so I am sort of in the neighborhood. I've been wanting to make an appointment to visit Wheaton labs, so maybe one day I can drive up to Missoula and kill two birds with one stone if the Guild has a meeting I could sit in on.