Wellsprings of Permaculture

The above image is the logo that Bill Mollison created for the Permaculture movement, back when he conceived it in the late 1970s. He interprets it as follows:

"The great oval of the design represents the egg of life; that quantitiy of life which cannot be created or destroyed, but from within which all things that live are expressed.  Within the egg is coiled the rainbow snake, the Earth-Shaper of Australian and American aboriginal peoples...

"Within the body of the Rainbow Serpent is contained the tree of life, which itself expresses the general pattern of life forms...Its roots are in earth, and its crown in rain, sunlight, and wind. Elemental forces and flows shown external to the oval represent the physical environment, the sun, and the matter of the universe, the materials from which life on earth is formed..."

I have conceived of this blog as a tribute to Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, the co-creators of Permaculture, and of the worldwide Permaculture movement. When finished, it will consist of a brief summary of each of the 14 chapters in Mollison's magnum opus, Permaculture: A Designer's Manual, followed by my own commentary on each chapter. As a reader, you are welcome to "weigh in" with your own thoughts, questions, and observations in the comment section below. I cannot guarantee that I'll be able to answer your questions, but if not, I will attempt to direct you to sources that can--or else others can provide answers if you know them.)

After I complete summarizing and commenting on Mollison's foundational Designer's Manual in 14 blog entries, I will do likewise for David Holmgren's book, Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability.  In this book, Holmgren provides a rigorous explication of his 12 Principles of Permaculture.  So I will again summarized each of these chapters, provide my own comments, and invite you, the reader, to do likewise.  This project should be complete in 1-2 years. In the meantime, I encourage readers to procure and read one or both of these fine books, which provide the foundations of the deeply revolutionary Permaculture movement, which I see as our last great hope for our living planet.