Sitting at our back doorsteps, all we need to live a good life lies about us. Sun, wind, people, buildings, stones, sea, birds and plants surround us. Cooperation with all these things brings harmony, opposition to them brings disaster and chaos.

I can easily teach people to be gardeners, and from them, once they know how to garden, you'll get a philosopher.

The first time I saw a review of one of my permaculture books was three years after I first started writing on it. The review started with, "Permaculture Two is a seditious book." And I said, "At last someone understands what permaculture's about."

The only ethical decision is to take responsibility for our own existence and that of our children.

I think it's pointless asking questions like "Will humanity survive?" It's purely up to people - if they want to, they can, if they don't want to, they won't.

A really failing society has a lot of rules (or laws).

People do things which I find quite amazing - things I would never have done and can't understand very well.