Permaculture: An Inclusive and Sustainable Leadership Framework for a Changing World

What is that we are building and working for? What does it mean to thrive in the midst of uncertainty? As our collective lived experience in the world becomes more chaotic and strained, these will continue to be fundamental organizing questions. It will also animate the ways in which leaders set strategies, invest in the people they lead, and look to the future.

Long-term and holistic resilience must be a critical goal of all organizations and businesses. Whether it’s competing for more expensive and less readily available resources or figuring out how to keep employees engaged in the face of a more competitive business environment, leaders will need to consider resilience more broadly as they apply it to their strategy and leadership work. At Greatheart, we focus on building this kind of resilience by promoting the inclusive leadership behaviors of individuals and transforming cultures from the inside out. 

In 2013, while attending a sustainable design and build school in central Vermont, Yestermorrow, I came across a framework that I thought was deeply compelling. Permaculture, initially developed as a design system for sustainable agriculture, offers a unique perspective when applied to leadership. It emphasizes principles like sustainability, resilience, and collaboration, making it a powerful framework for leaders in uncertain and stressful times. In this blog post, we’ll explore some of the core concepts of permaculture and how it can provide insights and practical strategies for effective and sustainable leadership.

Embracing the Ethics of Permaculture

At the core of permaculture are three ethics: Earth Care, People Care, and Fair Share. These ethics can be seamlessly integrated into leadership practices:

Earth Care: Inclusive leaders must prioritize environmental stewardship. Yes, sustainable and inclusive leadership involves making decisions that have a positive impact on the environment, both the physical environment but also the organizational ecosystems within which leaders exist. Practically speaking, this could mean adopting eco-friendly practices in your organization, reducing waste, and supporting initiatives that promote sustainability. The cradle to cradle design movement is an excellent example of Earth Care being applied to the business world. 

People Care: Inclusive leaders prioritize the well-being of their team members. This includes fostering a healthy work environment where psychological safety and standing are a priority, promoting work-life balance, and advocating for equitable systems and policies that ensure employees feel valued and supported. Caring for the people under their leadership is one of the quickest ways for leaders to build trust and loyalty. I’ve also found that deep personal care about those we lead provides us with an opportunity to make and recover more gracefully from the inevitable mistakes we’ll make.

Fair Share: In inclusive leadership, this principle applies to equitable resource distribution and ensuring that everyone has access to opportunities and benefits. Fair leadership is about creating an inclusive and diverse workplace, promoting fairness and transparency in decision-making, ensuring equitable compensation, and equal access to development opportunities. Meaningfully attending to these kinds of issues can slowly start to address some of the persistent social inequalities that exist in society but also in our organizations and teams.

Designing for Resilience

Permaculture is all about designing systems that are resilient and can adapt to change—is this not also a core strategic imperative? Leaders can apply this concept by creating organizations that are agile and capable of effectively responding to unexpected challenges.

Diverse Teams: Just as biodiversity is crucial in permaculture, diverse teams can bring a range of perspectives and skills to an organization. Leaders should encourage and advocate for greater diversity in their teams to foster innovation and adaptability.

Redundancy: In permaculture, redundancy is a key concept to ensure that critical functions are not overly dependent on a single element. In leadership, this can translate to cross-training employees, ensuring that key knowledge and skills are not concentrated in one individual. This can also be applied to the systems and processes that organizations create. Future-minded teams cultivate resilience as a key characteristic of their processes to ensure the long-term health and success of the organization.

Feedback Loops: We know that feedback is critical to our improvement and permaculture systems rely on feedback loops to effect continuous improvements. Whether related to production processes or human capital concerns, leaders should design and implement regular feedback mechanisms within their organizations so that issues can be effectively addressed and then iterative upon.

Applying Permaculture Principles to Decision-Making

Permaculture principles, such as "observe and interact" and "use small and slow solutions," can guide leaders in making informed decisions:

Observe and Interact: Leaders should take the time to understand their team and their organization's dynamics thoroughly. By observing and interacting with employees, leaders can identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement. Through centering this principle, leaders can also build stronger working relationships with their colleagues, resulting in a greater sense of belonging and more engaged employees.

Use Small and Slow Solutions: In leadership, rushing into decisions can lead to unintended consequences. Instead, leaders should take a thoughtful and incremental approach to problem-solving. This reduces the risk of making hasty decisions that could harm the organization. Note that this principle does not give leaders permission to avoid making difficult decisions. Rather, it is a complement to the Observe and Interact principle—if you’re continuously paying attention to the overall health of your organization, you should be making adjustments as opposed to major changes. 

Collaboration and Community Building

Permaculture emphasizes the importance of community and collaboration. The building of resilient systems is critically dependent on collaboration. Leaders can foster a sense of community and shared vision within their organizations. Inclusive leaders also know that it’s critical that they develop inclusive networks that they can turn to in times of need and for help solving intractable problems.

Community Building: Within the organization, leaders can create a sense of community by promoting open communication, teamwork, and shared values. A sense of belonging can really contribute to employee engagement as employees who feel connected to their colleagues and work are often more engaged and motivated.

Networking: Leaders should actively seek out partnerships and collaborations with other organizations, sharing resources and knowledge. Building a network of support can help organizations navigate challenges more effectively.

Sustainable Resource Management

Permaculture teaches us to use resources efficiently and sustainably. Leaders can apply this principle by optimizing resource allocation within their organizations and thinking more broadly about what constitutes a resource deserving of respect.

Conserve Energy: Just as permaculture encourages energy-efficient systems, leaders should promote energy conservation within their organizations. While this can include more obvious energy conservation efforts, like reducing energy consumption and adopting renewable energy sources, it should also apply to conserving other resources. With burnout amongst many employees at an all-time high, leaders should also think about employees’ energy and efforts as a resource to be thoughtfully managed, deployed, and replenished. 

Financial Sustainability: Businesses exist to generate positive outcomes and returns on investment for their stakeholders. This means that leaders should manage finances prudently, ensuring long-term sustainability. Permaculture principles can be applied to budget development, investing in more sustainable and resilient practices, and minimizing financial waste.

Long-Term Vision

Permaculture encourages a focus on long-term resilience over short-term gains. While somewhat counter-cultural, leaders must adopt a similar perspective and look beyond immediate results.

Futuristic and Visionary Leadership: Leaders should develop a clear vision for their organizations that aligns with sustainability principles. This vision should guide decision-making and inspire employees to work towards a shared goal. An approach to strategy grounded in the principles of permaculture would ultimately prove beneficial to the long-term success of the organization and its stakeholders.

Patience and Persistence: Achieving long-term sustainability requires patience and persistence. The Seventh Generation core value, from the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, is one of the best examples of patience, persistence, and the long view. Leaders must demonstrate a thoughtful approach to building long-term resilience and capacity within their organization while recognizing the reality that their organization relies heavily on the resources and environmental factors that are beyond their immediate control.

Permaculture, with its focus on sustainability, resilience, and collaboration, offers valuable insights for today’s leaders. By embracing the ethics of permaculture—designing for resilience, applying permaculture principles to decision-making, promoting collaboration, and managing resources sustainably—leaders can create organizations that thrive in our ever-changing world. Inclusive leaders must be focused on a holistic approach to leadership and permaculture provides exactly that. For too long, profit has been solely focused on financial gain when in reality, it should be concerned with what brings us the greatest collective benefit. Frameworks like permaculture, the growth of corporate social responsibility guidelines, and the balance of profit and purpose in certified B Corporations are indicators that progress is being made to more holistically define what it means to be successful.