Permaculture designers have found many creative ways to address economic challenges in order to get their projects done, and to transition to a more regenerative lifestyle. Our economic system is set up in many ways as a “factory” model where you go to school, get a job, go into debt (sometimes before the job part), and spend the rest of your life paying it off. And then you retire and spend money if you saved it, or you keep working if you didn’t.
This isn’t how it always has worked.
Not every culture spends their entire adult lives working to pay off debts. The Bushmen for instance, are so good at meeting their necessities that most of their time is free time which they spend exploring, dancing, singing, and hanging out together.
You may be thinking, “but I don’t want to live like a Bushman.” And ok, most people who are used to modern living don’t, but it’s interesting to look at why they don’t have to work so hard; it isn’t just because they live simply, though that is certainly a part of it.
It’s also because they are very knowledgeable about the resources that they provide for them, and very skilled at accessing them when they need to. They’re also good at maintaining a balance and knowing what the limits of their ecosystem are.
Some East Indian cultures have a different kind of “retirement.” During child bearing years, people work, and raise their kids. Elders often spend their time in pursuit of wisdom and self-actualization. A kind of deep dive into what life is all about, and are supported by their communities to do that.
There are many other examples of cultures that have had different approaches to economics and different life passages or emphasis. While the system we have in the US may work great for some people, it clearly isn’t ideal for everybody.
For those who might feel like they’re on a hamster wheel and would like to get off, we share some tools that may assist you. For those who might just want to enhance what they are already doing, these tools could help with that too.
Because this is an introductory course, we focus on introducing you to a wide range of choices. You can browse the ones you’re most interested in, or read about them all (they are all ground breaking in their own ways). We have a specialty course that dives much more deeply into the financial side of permaculture and into using these and other tools.