Biographies

Lusi Alderslowe

As an international permaculture practitioner, teacher and diploma tutor, Lusi has students and apprentices around Europe.

A bit of background – having travelled widely and completed an MSc in Human Ecology, she lived in Glasgow from 2004 to 2012. There she studied her first PDC (Permaculture Design Course), Diploma in Applied Permaculture Design and Training of Permaculture Teachers, as well as home educating her two children, and working for Bodhi Eco-Project and Urban Roots. In 2006 she co-founded an outdoor children and parents’ play-group called ‘Nurture in Nature’, for her wee eco bairns Robin and Luis which became one of her Permaculture Diploma designs. The other 9 diploma designs included one of a Housing Association Children’s Garden in an area of multiple deprivation where she worked for 2 years, and teaching permaculture which she has been doing since 2009.

In 2012, Lusi and her family moved to Gatehouse-of-Fleet in Galloway, SW Scotland, where she continues to engage both children and adults in permaculture. Lusi completed the Forest School Leader/ Level 3 training with Lily Horseman in 2013, and co-founded an after school group called Forest Fun, through which she has played with children in the forest every week for 6.5 years, and led a ‘summer camp’ for a week for 6 years. Lusi was also involved with the Family Fun Permaculture Adventure at the beautiful Anam Cara which was 4 days of action-packed learning and playing!

In the local school, Gatehouse Primary, Lusi has worked on numerous projects to improve the school grounds including creating a biodiverse, sensory Peace Garden, building an outdoor classroom, polytunnel, den-building area, planting a food forest, signage and more. The children are enthusiastic, learning lots and getting a beautiful space made (more information on the school website).

Since 2014, Lusi has been coordinating the international ‘Children in Permaculture’ project  for the Permaculture Association (Britain) which is an Erasmus+ funded, sociocratically organised European project. In the process, Lusi has written case studies, curriculum, session plans, hundreds of activities and a book about engaging children in permaculture. You can read it for free online, or purchase a book here.

Lusi is involved in various organisations locally and nationally, including being a member of the Permaculture Scotland Working Group of the Permaculture Association,  and the Gatehouse Development Initiative.

Lusi cooks, forages, gardens, plays with her kids, surveys badgers, cycles a lot, walks more, organises numerous events, and loves our abundant and beautiful earth. She has a fun, informative, participatory teaching style with lots of diversity.

Lusi and Ed are both on the certifying teachers register to award Permaculture Association certificates.

Ed Tyler

One of my earliest childhood memories is of me “connecting” with a spontaneous birch woodland growing on waste ground on the edge of my home town of Canterbury. Since then I have been on a long migration north and west, ending up in the stunning landscape of Argyll. Permaculture is the ideal discipline for me to both learn from the natural world and to share that knowledge.
I completed my Diploma back in the mid-90’s and have set up two successful community gardens in different locations according to permaculture principles. I also co-founded a successful organic box scheme.
Since moving to Argyll 10 years ago I have been working in my own bio-region doing my own small bit to make it more resilient. This has taken me along various paths including setting up a design course at Kilmartin House Museum, being part of Transition Scotand, becoming chair of our local development trust, gaining Climate Challenge Fund funding and helping develop a Local Produce project.
I specialise in reading the landscape. I use insights from ecology, geology, geomorphology, history, folklore and archaeology to develop designs that literally grow out of what is living there already; in other words, I try to listen to and work with the natural world. This is my constant inspiration.

Fiona MacDougall

After completing a degree as a Mechanical engineer ( 26 years ago) and spending time in industry. I travelled extensively, experiencing many cultures and this led me to feel a need to become more self-sufficient and in tune with my natural environment.

I first came across permaculture in 1999 when I did a course with Ben Law (of grand design fame), whilst doing woodland restoration work.

Since that time, I have been living a low impact/off-grid lifestyle which has involved building my own dwelling, growing food, generating power, gathering water and fuel and composting “everything”.

My area of special interest is in working with natural materials. I have been a basket weaver for 17 years, built wooden huts and done traditional thatching for a museum. Furthermore, I’ve enjoyed inspiring woman to take on similar challenges as myself and encouraging children to gain these skill from an early age.

I finally did my PDC (Permaculture Design Course) with Lusi in 2012 and have been assisting with the Glasgow PDC since. In Oct 2013, I participated in a Permaculture Teaching course, and I am now looking forward to sharing my skills and learning new ones.

KATHY BECKETT

Kathy spends most of her weekly hours working as a market gardener in Glasgow. She has a background in art and design, finding her way into horticulture through growing natural dyes and working towards a permaculture design diploma. She was a core group member of Wake Up Glasgow, a mindfulness group for young adults, for around four years and trained to facilitate the Work that Reconnects on the programme lead by Kirsti Norris, Chris Johnstone and, Jenny Mackewn in 2016. Her main interest is connecting people with the beauty and miracle of nature.

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