Permaculture in the academic world?

Hello all,

I'm a bit new to permaculture in practice. I've read some literature about permaculture and have toured a rather functioning diverse farm built around PC design. There's many different ways of practicing PC, it's all very place based but varying methods seem unified on themes of designing resilient, more self-renewing systems that mimic more complete plant and animal communities.

At my current level of exposure to permaculture, I find that most of it's self-described practitioners are using PC design on more of a citizen-science, individual or small group project level, DIY for short. I'm finding less academic institutions or more rigorously conducted projects that are collecting more data testing the merits of PC design. My question to the general PC public is why this might be and also if anyone can point towards academic institutions studying and measuring the effects of organizing systems according to a more ecological or systemic approach.

I wasn't sure where to make this topic and I imagine someone has raised a similar discussion, but I was having trouble finding it.

Anyways, thanks for any input.

The main reason, I think for this is because Bill Mollison (founder of permaculture) was rather opposed to the idea of schools, colleges, or universities running permaculture programs. Since permaculture involves so many different things, it would be a nightmare for funds to get allocated- one professor fighting another, so on and so forth.

Hello

Not sure where you're based but you might be interested in some of the stuff the Permaculture Association are doing in the UK - https://www.permaculture.org.uk/our-work/research

It's not on the website (should probably fix that!) but I run their 'Permaculture International Research Network', PIRN for short. If anyone is interested in getting involved we're on facebook (https://www.facebook.com/InternationalPermacultureResearch) or drop an email to: pirn@permaculture.org.uk