Project Description
About Us
About Us
We support farmers, community organizations, and social movements with strategies that address environmental degradation, global climate change, loss of small-scale farms, and the erosion of indigenous cultural knowledge.
What Inspires Us
Campesino a Campesino (Farmer to Farmer) is a movement that originated in Guatemala in the 70’s as a response to the collective impacts of the armed conflict, colonialism, paternalism, charity and the impositions of large scale development programs. This horizontal way of working connects people to share practical skills for tending the Earth.
“Buen Vivir” or Living Well, is an Andean philosophy that inspires and gives direction to our work. It centers community, culture, and ecological balance over economic development.
Permaculture ethics; people care, Earth care, and fair share, and permaculture principles shape our approach to agroecology. Its foundations in indigenous ecological knowledge, observations of natural systems, and new appropriate technologies guide our work.
Emergent Strategy is an exploration into the human relationship to change. Check out Adrienne Maree Brown’s book, Emergent Strategy.
Circle Work and Action Circles are approaches to group discussion and decision-making that help us improve our communication skills, to transform conflict, be more creative, and innovative in our work.
Appreciative Inquiry is an alternative to extractive research. It’s participatory, using generative questions to leverage success, creating positive solutions, and self-determined change.
What Inspires Us
Campesino a Campesino (Farmer to Farmer) is a decentralized movement that originated in Guatemala in 1972 as a response to the collective impacts of the armed conflict, colonialism, the impositions of large scale development programs and the paternalism of charity work. This horizontal way of working connects people to share practical skills around land management and farming. The Campesino a Campesino model helps us embrace the indigenous knowledge and experience of our partners.
Permaculture ethics, care of the people, care of the Earth and fair share and Holmgren’s 12 permaculture principles have shaped our approach to agroecology. Its foundations in indigenous ecological knowledge, observations of natural systems, and new appropriate technologies guide our work.
Appreciative Inquiry is an alternative to extractive research. It’s participatory, using generative questions to leverage success, creating positive solutions, and self-determined change.
Emergent Strategy is an exploration into the human relationship to change. Check out Adrienne Maree Brown’s website and read her book, Emergent Strategy.
The Circle Way is an approach to group discussion and decision making developed by Christina Baldwin and Ann Linnea. It has helped us improve our listening skills, transform conflict, and discover our “emergent strategies’.
Our Name
The Garden’s Edge, is inspired by the “Edge Effect”, one of the 12 permaculture principles. When two different systems come together, their interaction creates a diversity that wouldn’t otherwise exist. We see this in the shallows where water meets land and many species thrive. Permaculture design compels us to create edges to promote this kind of diversity; and this is the goal of the Garden’s Edge.
Our work highlights and supports the Edge Effect, not only in natural ecosystems but also on a cultural level, creating rich experiences by bringing different cultures together to learn from one another. Through our work, we have seen the rich diversity of agricultural practices and the thriving new “gardens” that bloom in harsh conditions thanks to thoughtful interactions and effective design.