Keynote Speaker
David Holmgren - Aussie St - 3pm
Website: www.retrosuburbia.comDavid Holmgren is an internationally recognised environmental designer, ecological thinker, educator, writer and speaker, best known as Co-orginator of the permaculture concept from his co-authored book 'Permaculture One'.
The permaculture movement grew from his first publication Permaculture One, which David co-authored with Bill Mollison in 1978. David’s body of work has continued to promote and develop permaculture ideas and practice as a realistic, attractive, powerful and sustainable alternative to contemporary lifestyles based on extraction and consumption. He offers a current definition of permaculture as:
‘Consciously designed landscapes which mimic the patterns and relationships found in nature, while yielding an abundance of food, fibre, and energy for provision of local needs. People, their buildings and the ways in which they organise themselves are central to permaculture. Thus the permaculture vision of permanent or sustainable agriculture has evolved to one of permanent or sustainable culture.’
The movement has evolved to a worldwide network of individuals and groups who are contributing to a more sustainable future by reorganising their lives and work around permaculture design principles.
David has developed three properties, starting with his home base of ‘Melliodora’ on the edge of Hepburn Springs in Central Victoria. ‘Melliodora’ is one of the best known and documented permaculture demonstration sites in the world. David continues to consult widely and has supervised urban and rural projects. He has also presented lectures, workshops and courses at a variety of events in Australia and around the world. His writings span four decades and a diverse range of subjects and issues, but always illuminate another aspect of permaculture thinking.
David’s most recent book RetroSuburbia: the downshifter’s guide to a resilient future was launched in 2018. This 592-page manual shows how we can downshift our homes, gardens, communities and ourselves to be more sustainable and resilient in the face of an uncertain future. David will be presenting a talk titled Aussie Street at the festival, designed to help us integrate the ideas in RetroSuburbia into our everyday lives.
Come and be part of David’s thought-provoking vision for a resilient and life-enhancing, sustainable future.
