Permaculture is practiced by farmers in Vietnam, by bushmen in Namibia—and by a college professor near downtown Greensboro. Founded by Australian-born Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in 1978, permaculture has been defined as “a system of applied design for the creation of sustainable human habitat.” The word combines “permanent” and “agriculture” or “permanent” and “culture. “It’s basically a way of designing our landscapes so that whatever we do ends up having the look and feel and functional workings of an ecosystem,” says Dr. Charles Headington, a UNC-G lecturer who promotes permaculture by word and deed. “We try to imitate natural ecosystems. We even intensify what ecosystems do. Headington regularly conducts workshops and classes on the topic, but he also integrates the system into his life. His family’s 50 X 150-foot lot on Mendenhall Street in Greensboro is a living, breathing testimony to the joys of this sustainable way of being in the world. (03/25/03)
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