Plant Systems

New Jordan Project – Permaculture Jordan

We are presently in Jordan and are establishing a new NGO “Permaculture Jordan” and we have been offered USAID funding for $US53,000 to establish a new project here in the Jordan Valley sharing bio-diversity of productive crops and tree species that have potential but are not yet here. The work is linked with the work of other plant researchers who have already linked to other Arabic countries and successfully grown and monitored the viability of many species.

The trees and shrubs we are supposed to plant in Jordan are as follows:

  • Cereus cactus
  • Argania spinosa
  • Black sapote
  • Yellow pitaya
  • Sapodilla
  • Marula
  • Passionfruit
  • Pitaya
  • Cassia
  • Capers
  • Acacia
  • Myrrh
  • Frankincense

We are also supposed to collect some endemic species of Jordan to share.

We will be able to buy a small block of land with an old house we can renovate to use as an office and education centre, we will have to set up a small nursery site, a small closed nursery for quarantine, water, watering system with drip or equivalent, a fence, digital camera to record things, we will donate an old laptop and we will need to get access to about 5000 m2 of land to plant the trees out. How we arrange the plantings and the other crops we plant etc is up to us of course.

If you are interested in helping us extend our work further this is an ideal opportunity now that we will be setting up our own base in Jordan working directly with local people.

Cheers Geoff and Nadia Lawton

Geoff Lawton

Geoff Lawton is a world renowned Permaculture consultant, designer and teacher. He first took his Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) Course in 1983 with Bill Mollison the founder of Permaculture. Geoff has undertaken thousands of jobs teaching, consulting, designing, administering and implementing, in 6 continents and close to 50 countries around the world. Clients have included private individuals, groups, communities, governments, aid organizations, non-government organisations and multinational companies under the not-for-profit organisation. In 1996 Geoff was accredited with the Permaculture Community Services Award by the Permaculture movement for services in Australia and around the world. Geoff's official website is GeoffLawtonOnline.com. Geoff's Facebook profile can be found here.

12 Comments

  1. This is a very exciting project! I am sure that the results will be as amazing as the other projects in Jordan.

    For those interested in helping, in what ways could they be of assistance?

    Hi Douglas
    we will be looking for people to help us fund raise and also volunteers on site to help get the project off the ground and running so that we can establish an education centre as part of the project.

    Cheers Geoff and Nadia

  2. I think that many, many people could help fund this project by getting in touch with their nearest Jordanian Club.

    Could we have more information about the project to show prospective donors and information on how to donate (contacts, bank accounts,etc.)?

    As soon as I have this information, I will publicise it to increase support for the project and Permaculture Jordan.

    Also, I would be more than happy to volunteer on site if I can fit it into my schedule for 2007.

  3. You lucky people are working with the most exciting project I can imagine. Be blessed!

    I have been working on the other side of river Jordan, in the valley of Artas, Palestine in 2003 and 2004 with a project of my own, the ‘Herb Village’. Permaculture was not known in Palestine then, and I am afraid that is still the case. And – the most amazing thing happened when I asked for further funding – the foreign ministry (Finland) told me my project was not sustainable!!

    I wish you will have success and the support and understanding of the local people. In Artas the people are wonderful!

    Uma

  4. Geoff & Nadia,

    Thank you for your work, and especially for inspiring others with this informative site. I’ve been following, silently, for quite some time–the “Greening the Desert” video is truly inspirational. I recently wrote an article about Iraq, in which I point out that these kind of projects are–in my opinion–critical to solving the very complex set of problems in Iraq:

    https://www.jeffvail.net/2006/10/solving-problem-of-mutually-exclusive.html

    I’m glad to see that USAID is giving you a grant, but in all reality it should be 1,000 times that size. I used to drive by the “Bone Yard” of mothballed fighter planes in Tucson, Arizona on my way to work each morning, and I would imagine how much peace and stability we could achieve had we, rather than purchasing these thousands of multi-million dollar war machines, instead set up a few thousand permaculture and micro-credit programs like your Jordan Valley initiative…

    ~Jeff Vail

  5. Dear Geoff and Nadia,

    I am very happy to hear that you are establishing a new NGO on permaculture Jordan. I do believe that the permaculture Jordan will develop well and provide directly opportunities for local people to learn and to share about permaculture as well as other issues.

    I am happy to involve with you anyways if possible. Maybe we can share about this in coming December when you come to Vietnam.

    Best regards,

  6. hi, me and my friend awen are intrested in learning more about permaculture, we already have some experience with establishing an eco (volunteer education) structure in Bulgaria, we would be happy to join the project as volunteers i am bulgarian, he is french ,22,26 we both speek some languages and love life in nature,could you write me more about the project
    ;)
    Hi we are now setting up this new project on the ground and will be asking for volunteers very soon.

    Cheers Geoff

  7. Dear Geoff and Nardia,

    I was very inspired by your work when I was last in Sydney and you were giving a talk at Permaculture North. I too would like to become involved in ths project as a volunteer, having done a PDC with Fiona Campbell and Russ Grayson back in the early 90s. I am based in Mullumbimby. Please let me know what needs to be done or just keep in toch with progress.

    Cheers,

    Marina

  8. Dear Geoff and Nadia,
    In the summer of 2006 the 1st 14-day permaculture design course was held in Belgium in the town of Vissenaken, at the organic vegetable farm Yggdrasil. It was sold out quickly and a huge success, withy some press coverage. A next course will take place in the summer of 2007. Yggdrasil’s owners Piet and Lucrece would like to get permission to publish your text of the film Greening the Desert and reproduce its words in their bi monthly little newsletter. Can you give permission, and could you provide the right text? With many thanks, and much admiration for your work. Best wishes..

    Hi Aagje
    you have our permission but we do not have the right text only the recorded text on the video.

    Cheers Geoff

  9. Dear Geoff and Nadia,

    This project sounds very interesting. I live in Amman and would be very interested in talking with you to see if I could become involved.

    Thanks,

    Karen

  10. hello,
    we are still very interested in working as voulonteers fot this project
    and could be ready to start in less than two months.
    you can contact us through email for more details about us
    good luck

    nevena awen

  11. Hi and thanks for your work!
    I had a friend just outside of Mullem on the way to Byron who I have lost contact with. he was very much a permaculture activist back in 97 I would really like to connect with him again -I can only remember his first name (Ross) and he was married to a Laura do and they had a Boy named Avalon – do you possably know him?
    Thanks Jiva
    please have a look at our – http://www.youtube/thetemplatorg

  12. go for it , it,s a joy to establish / create such a project , we have an organic farm at ajlune area , looking forward to exchange ideas , at our farm we have new projects never done before in jordan ( fog & rain harvesting – net system , cultivation of earth bacteria LAB & mycorrhiza , redworm , soil fermintation , solar heating , magnatic feild electricity generation in addition to farming also we accept volunteers 5 hours work vs. free food & accomodation……contact us 962 79 5538194 , 079 5538194

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