Paleo and Permaculture. Permaculture and Paleo. There’s a certain ring to it, no? We’ve all heard of the Paleo Diet. If you haven’t, well, good for you. You probably don’t use the internet that much anyway. Double thumbs up. For the rest of us clawing at our keyboards far too much, we know it as a way of eating that focuses on eating grass-fed meats, pasture-raised eggs, organic vegetables, fruits, a healthy dose of quality fats, seeds, nuts and some extend it to include raw and cultured dairy (aka, ‘Primal’, as coined by Mark Sisson over at Mark’s Daily Apple).

 

I largely follow this way of eating myself, albeit without strict adhesion. Life would cease to exist for me otherwise. You don’t even need to coin it as technically ‘Paleo’. Personally, it just makes biological sense. My body and health love me for it. This rather ‘minor’ task of eating is one we can’t quite escape or neglect as human beings unless science is hoping to progress to a new state of ethereal power otherwise.

 

I’ve contemplated the ethical implications and acknowledge how significant the impact of what we eat has on our carbon footprint. Oh how I have ever. What I’ve come to realize though, is no matter how we eat, we have an impact on the planet. Not to mention, we all know there is no one way to do things ‘right’. By whose standards is ‘right’ anyway? The eskimo or the gorilla? The Queen or Miley Cyrus? (ok, that’s not fair. There’s not much right about that girl lately). 

 

Eating food in it’s pure, local and unadulterated state, CAN, however, largely reduce this burdensome load on the planet. So I’m all for eating in a way that is sustainable, supports local farmers, and promotes good health. This is what I love about the paleo lifestyle. It’s emphasis, for the most part, is on returning to the earth to source real food as nature intended for us to eat. Shock horror if this just so works out that it’s also most optimal for our health and wellbeing.

 

All this talk about food and nutrition leaves me wondering though; why so few have heard of Permaculture? Or if they have, they may have brushed it off without much thought, relating it to something only those green-thumbed hippies partake in whilst dancing around the campfire throwing seeds about. Or maybe it’s just a new trend of hair-perming fresh from the Milan catwalk?

Dear friends. Permaculture is so much more than that. Read my quick take on it here.

 

Permaculture espouses the idea that we don’t have to accept the idea that as humans, we are just here to simply rape and pillage the planet. That we CAN give back to mother nature in the process.

 

Ironically enough, I actually stumbled across the concept of Permaculture through my paleo-eating-extravaganza-of-a-journey. It really was a sequence of one thing that led to another (thanks to the power of the mighty invisible internet). All this talk about health and nutrition, had actually left me feeling like something was still missing from the puzzle. Like there was still more for me to do. I realise, there will always be more for me to do, but the idea of focusing on simply one aspect of my life with such scrutiny, left me feeling overwhelmed and powerless. No matter how much I read about how grass-fed meats trump, raw milk this and pasture raised eggs that, all the dots weren’t connecting. Sure, I was part of this picture but the picture was only half painted. I was just simply a consumer and a consumer I did not want to simply be. In no way was I actually actively partaking in the process of getting this food onto my plate. This to me, is an integral part of the paleo diet that I feel is missing.

 

With all the talk of it being a lifestyle choice rather than being simply a diet, about 90% of the focus remains on food and exercise. I think there are a lot of people out there who have spent far too long scrutinizing over the perfection of their diet and exercise regimes, they forget to look beyond and see that there are other parts in their life that are keeping them from feeling whole. Let’s consider it in a more holistic view then, shall we? Lifestyle encompasses so much more than simply what we eat and how we exercise. I realize this is a lot of work for just one person to do, to educate and talk to the world about every aspect of one’s lifestyle (especially with such variances from culture to culture), and thus, why I can only touch on bits and pieces in my own writing.  As I do this, however, I’ve come to acknowledge that together, we are so much more powerful. This is not a one man effort. It requires piecing together the puzzle and we each have a piece to contribute.

 

If you want to talk about hunters and gathers, they didn’t simply rock up to the grocery store or farmers’ market to fill their shopping basket. Now I don’t want to inflict layers of guilt onto anybody here. Yes, we all are doing the best we can (or most of us are anyway), and we are somewhat limited by certain parameters and these things are simply a product of modern technology and advancement and we just get thrown into that picture as little minions. What I’m getting at, is that there still exists this disconnect from the land. We can’t really be in touch with our food and nature unless we have an active role to play in it. Many of us still don’t partake in the sacred ritual of sourcing our own food, even if it is as simple as growing a few herbs on the balcony.

 

This way of living was fundamental to our ancestors and every community that has ever graced this planet. We are some of the first few generations that have had no part to play in this process. Would we be digressing as a society to revert back to an agricultural society? No, I’m not proposing that at all, although to me, an agricultural society sounds far better than an industrial society. Then again, even agriculture is known as being the greatest sin man committed to this planet.

 

What I’m proposing is that we find ways to incorporate these methods of Permaculture into our everyday lives as a way to reestablish this connection with nature. To take more responsibility for personally bringing food onto our plates in whatever way we can and looking at the bigger picture. When we actively participate in life and in the regeneration of new life (not in that way folks… in the ‘let’s build soil, plant trees and food, and create stronger communities kind-of-way‘), that’s where the juicy fun really begins. *wink wink*

 

Paleo and Permaculture really do go hand in hand.

 

Growing bio-diverse food is one thing. Knowing what to do with it and how to cook it is another.  Likewise, knowing what to eat for optimal health is one thing. Knowing how to grow and cultivate it yourself is another. You can’t have one without the other.

 

I’m in the process of writing an e-book to help you on this journey. It’s a slow, painstaking but utterly riveting journey and you can keep up to date on the progress when you sign up to my updates here. Trust me, you’ll be the first to know when it’s done!

 

Have you heard of Permaculture and in what ways are you starting to implement these concepts into your daily life?

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