PERMACULTURE EXPERT & PRO DOME BUILDER - HOLISTIC PROGRESSION DESIGNS - Blog

Two Birds With One Stone; Natural Swimming Pool & Earthen House

9/8/2018

In Permaculture we are always designing towards multi-functions. We are mimicking nature: the energy or waste flows from one element to feed another.

There are many examples of this. One I would like to highlight here is creating a natural swimming pool that stores water and increases the value of the property, while providing you with a non toxic building material. This can be applied in you back garden or, on a bigger scale, it is a great way to kick start a project.

Killer Natural Plaster Recipe

31/5/2018

In this blog post I’m going to share with you my killer recipe for a final plaster that I have used and evolved over the last eight years. The final layer is what you will see day to day, so it’s worth making it nice. If you’re interested in a recipe that is non-toxic, made from easy to find natural materials and has a beautiful finish then read on.

Como Convertir un Pedazo de Tierra en un Floreciente Proyecto?

17/4/2018

Hace tres años en este mismo mes, un cliente me pidió que le ayudara a transformar su tierra en un proyecto de eco-turismo y hogar autosuficiente. El terreno está ubicado en la fascinante Turquía, con vistas al mar de la Mármara. En este artículo, comparto los aspectos más destacados del proceso y los resultados de dos meses de intenso trabajo, aplicando el diseño de Permacultura a un lugar precioso, pero difícil.

Resumo el nacimiento y los primeros pasos de Alişler Yurdu, que ha ido evolucionado hasta convertirse en un proyecto pionero, sostenible e inspirador. Siga leyendo para que vea un ejemplo de cómo las tierras degradadas del Mediterráneo se puede curar, se puede convertir en biológicamente productiva y transformarla en un paraíso de Permacultura.

NVC & Meditation in Permaculture

12/3/2018

The human side of Permaculture, community, is the glue that holds everything together. That's why it is something I see as fundamental and, in many cases, the most important piece in Permaculture designs that involve other humans. It is also the most complex and the weakest link of the chain. Here in this blog post I would like to share with you two useful tools that we can choose to use that can help us navigate through this complexed and often over looked side of Permaculture: Non Violent Communication and mediation.

What Does a Course With Matt Prosser Look Like?

13/2/2018

Sustainable, creative, beautiful and low cost building is one of my biggest passions. Combining that with the pragmatic logic of Permaculture design is powerful, dreams can come true! I am excited to share the knowledge and experience that I have gained over the last ten years and one of the best ways for me to do this is through courses. I'm pumped to be running courses this year in Turkey and Spain. If you would like to see what a course with me looks like then check out this little 90 second video...

BİR ARAZİ PARÇASI YAŞAYAN BİR PROJEYE NASIL DÖNÜŞTÜRÜLÜR?

22/1/2018

Beş yıl önce bu ay, bir müşterim arazisini bir eko-turizm projesi ve kendi kendine yeten bir eve dönüştürmek için benden yardım istedi. Arazi, göz alıcı Türkiye topraklarında Marmara denizi manzarasına karşıydı.

Bu blog yazısında, güzel ve oldukça zorlu bu arazideki sürecin önemli noktalarını ve 2 aylık yoğun bir Permakültür tasarımı uygulamasının sonuçlarını paylaşacağım. Böylece öncü, sürdürülebilir ve ilham verici bir projeye dönüşen Alişler Yurdu’nun da doğumunu ve ilk adımlarını özetlemiş olacağım.

Yazının devamını okuyarak Akdeniz’de çorak bir arazinin nasıl iyileştirilebileceğini, biyolojik olarak verimli hale getirilebileceğini ve bir Permakültür cennetine dönüştürülebileceğini görebilirsiniz.

Lessons Learned in a School Garden

14/12/2017

This month I would like to share with you my experiences designing and running a six week project with twenty two children ages 11 – 13 at a local international school. The project was 12 hours of classes covering the basics of making and maintaining a veggie garden. Here is this blog post I will go through some of the knowledge the students gained and other benefits of having a school garden.

How You Can Make Pumping Veggie Beds

28/10/2017

There are a few things that you will want to get right when creating your veggie beds, once this preparation is done you´ll be in a great position to start producing awesome, tasty, nutrient rich veg. Basically it’s all about creating healthy soil, if you have healthy soil and you water well you will have healthy plants. That´s what I will walk you through in this blog post.

Six Ways to Easily Integrate Permaculture into Your Life Today

30/8/2017

You may have heard of Permaculture or perhaps you are interested in getting more ideas on how to live a more sustainable life style. For sure there are many things that require a big investment or take time and patience to change. Like getting a electric car or running our houses of 100% renewable energy. But that said there are some actions we can do in our every day lives that can have a positive impact. That’s what this blog post is about, a handful of ways to easily integrate Permaculture in your life.

How to Make a Circular Veggie Garden Video

30/7/2017

Are you thinking of setting up a vegetable production system, or are you looking for some inspiration to tweak or extended your set up? Here is a short how to video I made a couple of years ago whilst implementing a design.

Ferro-cement Water Tanks a DIY, Affordable Solution.

29/5/2017

Tank ready for final plaster.

When there is no water there is very little else. That is why water is, with good reason, the backbone of land-based Permaculture design. As designers, we observe and create opportunities to catch and store water. There are many options available to us: in the soil, in biomass and in ponds, dams and tanks. There is lots of great tried and tested solutions out there that you could explore. Today, in this post, I will share with you my views on ferro-cement tanks.

Build Your Dream Home

22/3/2017

Imagine living in a dome like this, surrounded by Permaculture systems that respect and mimic nature while providing you with abundance? It looks like a dream, doesn't it?

Transforming such dreams into reality is my passion and this is why I am so excited to continue our collaboration with Domegaia. Domegaia's mission is to help provide low cost, high quality, eco friendly homes for the world.

This autumn we will be running two courses here in Europe. Venues and dates will be posted in the coming weeks. Join our mailing list on the right to receive priority booking.

Super Adobe – An Accessible Doorway to Earthen Building

11/2/2017

During the courses I run I observe how much fun people have when building with earth. It is intuitive, kind, forgiving and fun. It literally connects us to the earth. One earthen building technique that’s a creative and low cost way of getting started in the natural building world is super adobe.

Reducing Support for Destructive Systems

9/1/2017

People often ask me about this in workshops, so I thought it would be interesting to write a blog post on it. Following the Permaculture ethics of Earth care, People care and Fair share (return of surplus to the first two) means taking responsibility for our actions and working towards reducing support for destructive systems. It is a great challenge for us to set for ourselves, no doubt. That's why I believe it is helpful to see these ethics as guidelines and goals we aspire to.

Imagination, Play and Gratitude

16/12/2016

Now is the time alot of us are we gearing up for the Christmas holidays, looking forward to spending time and celebrating with friends and family. But in our modern world there can be a tendency for waves of adverts, plastic and over stimulation.

Last month I installed a super simple small play area made from recycled car tyres at a local school and I received some feedback from the children. It is a little reminder that there is value and joy to be found in keeping it simple and reusing.

The Permaculture Principle of Water

24/11/2016

Water: measuring, harvesting, storing, using, reusing, working with and guiding it are all essential actions in productive systems.

In the Mediterranean, however, water scarcity and poor water harvesting systems, combined with soil erosion, are some of the biggest challenges we face. To help us design appropriate responses and solutions for this we have a principle in Permaculture that guides us.

Predator Habitats in Your Veggie Garden

27/10/2016

Natural systems are self-maintaining and self-regulating complex webs of interactions full of diversity. It is clear that we want to mimic them as much as we can. Work with rather than against nature – Right? Thriving in balance, abundance and diversity, is what most of us interested in Permaculture are shooting for.

This blog post is about consciously inviting diversity into your vegetable production space. Through diversity comes stability and in turn harmony. Below are five predator habitats to think about incorporating into you veg production system.

How to Design With 3 Simple Steps

28/8/2016

Are you about to start a project? Use this simple three-step process and I can assure you it will streamline your design. First water, then access and finally structures. A simple but key design approach.

This process is a solid, logical and practical tool that you really want to add to your tool belt. I have been using this approach for nine years because it makes so much sense.

Applying these simple steps will save you time and energy. It can be applied across the scale, from making a small veggie bed in your garden to full on broad acre design. Below I’m going to take you through the process.

How to Put Your Summer Bonanza Into Jars!

14/7/2016

It is that time of the year. You are harvesting left, right and center, the fruits of your labors are arriving, you have baskets and boxes of veggies in your kitchen. There is so much that there is no way you can eat it all. So, how do you catch and store your abundance. Read on to learn how to make great preserves with your summer abundance.

The What, Why, How & When of Food Forests

28/6/2016

The root of the word Permaculture comes from permanent agriculture. It is a design system based on the understanding of natural ecosystems and the mimicry of their key elements.

Something that I have noticed many people being excited about is food forests and forest gardens. Read on to learn about the what, why, how and when of food forests.

3 Plants to Include in Your Veggie Beds

26/5/2016

I always remember what one of my teachers said to me when I was first starting out with Permaculture and organics: "It is all about harmony and beneficial interactions".

I would like to share in this blog post an example of that teaching, applied to growing vegetables organically. There are three multi-functional plants to include in every design, from small back gardens to large scale market vegetable gardens. Plant these three and you will be one step closer to companion planting.

Give it a go and see for yourself!

Reducing the Risk of Fire

27/4/2016

If you live in an area with a Mediterranean or tropical climate, the idea of fire must have certainly crossed your mind. I saw several fires while living at the Panya project in Thailand and it is scary stuff. Them experiences lead me to think deeply about its risks and pushed me to learn how to minimize these through design.

In the Mediterranean climate fire can be a very real threat. There are a range of strategies that vary in complexity that can be implemented depending on the seriousness of the threat, location, time and resources available.

Obviously this is a huge subject, here I'm going to give you just a broad overview!

Water: The Problem & Solution for Landowners in the Mediterranean

10/3/2016

The Mediterranean region is one of the most affected areas of climate change. Water deficit, soil erosion, pollution, forest over-exploitation and loss of natural habitats are some of the main environmental challenges you and your land are likely to face if you live in this region.

However, as any Permaculturist would tell you, the problem is the solution. Permaculture takes these challenges and, through design and specific strategies, transforms them into solutions. Affordable and accessible solutions! That’s what makes Permaculture so interesting and empowering.

The success of land based projects will depend on how the inherent challenges of being located in the Mediterranean region are tackled. If you have land or plan to have land in a Mediterranean country and would like to transform it into a thriving project or home, read on as this will surely interest you.

How to Turn a Piece of Land Into a Thriving Project?

21/2/2016

Click image to enlarge

Three years ago this month a client asked me to help him transform his land into an eco-tourism project and self-sufficient home. The land is located in fascinating Turkey, overlooking the Marmara sea.

In this blog post I share the highlights of the process and outcomes of two months of intensive work applying Permaculture design in a beautiful but challenging spot. Summarising the birth and first steps of Alişler Yurdu, which has evolved into a pioneering, sustainable and inspiring project.

Read more to see an example of how degraded land in the Mediterranean can be healed, become biologically productive and transformed into a Permaculture paradise.

What Would it Take for a School Kitchen Garden to Become the Door to Sustainability for an Entire Community?

31/1/2016

Kitchen Gardens are populating schools around the world at high speed. A sort of revolutionary idea years ago, it has now become a fashionable and normalised initiative in most countries.

Why are school kitchen gardens so amazing? Teachers and psychologists have been researching and documenting their impact for a while now. Developing awareness for the environment, engaging students in their learning, fostering community participation, increasing self-esteem, improving diet,
increasing physical activity … are some of the attributes school kitchen gardens are given.

So yes, there is no doubt that school kitchen gardens are great. Now, what if we took them one step further? What if a kitchen garden would become the entry point for a bigger transformation in the school and the community around it?

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This is where I share with you my passions, learning and experiences.

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Certified Permaculture Design Consultant Spain, Permaculture Spain ,Permacultura España