written by Eunice Neves
End of July 2021, Rowe and I were conducting online interviews to permaculture practitioners who were applying permaculture in very challenging circumstances. The first people we interviewed were two peace activists, students of Rowe Morrow’s, who were using permaculture to redesign a primary school in Kabul. During the interview, we understood they were worried about the rising tensions in the city. A few weeks later, they were forced to flee from Afghanistan to save their lives.
Desperate to find safety, they asked us for help. We didn’t have experience in asylum seeking but we had a powerful guide – Permaculture.
Permaculture empowered us through its solution-oriented way of thinking in different stages of the asylum seeking process. From defining the first steps to leave Afghanistan, to finding open doors for humanitarian support in safe countries, to presenting a resettlement program to the Portuguese authorities to reflecting and evaluating how it all went two years later.
More than offering answers, Permaculture guided us to ask questions and test our options through its three ethics: Earth Care, People Care, Fair Share. How could we design resettlement possibilities that would be good for the People, good for the Earth and share resources Fairly among those who were involved?
We started by contacting our permaculture networks in neighbouring countries and found various colleagues in India who were willing to welcome our Afghan friends in permaculture related internships. Unfortunately, the Indian government didn’t open doors to Afghan refugees.
We spent the next months researching and analysing possibilities in other countries: humanitarian visas, student visas and so on, in Australia, USA, Canada. There was so much to learn about asylum processes and its complexities. Fortunately, we came across more people in search of similar opportunities and started exchanging knowledge, contacts, and learning from each other. As our Afghan support group grew, so did the list of Afghan friends asking to flee from Afghanistan.
After a while, we understood that Portugal, as a smaller country, would be a better option than the bigger countries, so we approached the Portuguese government and explained the situation. We had no success at first because we had no concrete solutions, but things changed when we came across Terra Sintrópica, a local NGO in Mértola – south of Portugal.
Terra Sintrópica’s work focused on land regeneration and food production, using Agro-Ecology and Syntropic Agriculture as key strategies. The organisation had been interested in welcoming refugees in their previous programs and were willing to partner with us (as Permaculture for Refugees, P4R) to support Rowe’s students. The Council of Mértola joined as a partner too, which was crucial to help us gain credibility from the government.
The permaculture ethics, principles and methods underpinned the way we co-designed the next steps with our national and international partners. I share a few examples below.
“In the problem lies the solution” – seeing problems as opportunities helped us look for solutions that would solve various issues, “stacking functions”. Mértola is depopulated and desertifying, that is, young people have been leaving for the big cities, looking for opportunities; industrial agriculture practices have been destroying the landscape; and climate change impacts are evident and growing. Terra Sintrópica was looking for people to engage in their training programs and support their mission. Our Afghan students were looking for a safe country, a place to land, recover and create future opportunities. With all this in mind, and through our permaculture lens, we could see opportunities for mutually beneficial relationships and partnerships (as we see in Nature, our best teacher).
“Least change for the greatest effect” – defining the resettlement project around an existing program of Terra Sintropica (Bolsa de Terras) seemed the easiest and best option, as it would match the needs and outcomes of both organizations with the least amount of effort. We called the project “Terra de Abrigo” – the land of shelter.
Based on Permaculture’s holistic approach – mapped in the permaculture flower and its seven domains – we designed a multidimensional resettlement program for the group. Its key dimensions (social, ecological, physical and psychological, professional and educational, cultural, legal and financial) helped us define a pattern for the project, as well as its general goals (support, integration, training and education). Later, we defined the details – “Design from patterns to details”, another permaculture principle.
“Small and slow solutions” – On the 3rd of March 2022, we brought eight Afghans to Mértola: one baby boy, three ladies and four men in their twenties. Even though our list of asylum seekers was growing, we decided it would be better to start with a small group (a small group in a small village). This would allow us to test the program, learn from the experience and, hopefully, gain trust from the Portuguese authorities to repeat and scale it up afterwards.
“Accept feedback and apply self-regulation” – Our weekly feedback sessions were decisive to continuously evaluate the program and guide its evolution. Our Afghan friends were invited to reflect and evaluate each passing week. This wasn’t always easy, nor for the Afghan culture nor the Portuguese culture. Still, it was essential to ensure the program was meeting everyone’s needs (asylum seekers, Terra Sintrópica’s team, local partners, local council, P4R) as well as the governmental requirements set by the Portuguese High Commission for Migrations.
The team of Terra Sintrópica, which coordinated the program, had a similar process all along. Continuously “Observing and Interacting”. Reassessing what was happening between all the parts involved in the program, and adjusting actions and activities accordingly.
A “Cooperation over competition” mindset was the only way to flow along the complexities of integration with a focus on solutions. Mutually beneficial solutions for those who host and those who are hosted.
The day our Afghan friends received their Provisory Residency Authorization in Portugal (six months after they arrived).
“Each important function is performed by multiple elements” – The integration of the group was only possible through the support of many people. Some people have met them personally, such as the local community in Mértola. Others, never met them but felt moved or responsible to support the Afghan diaspora. The ways in which each person and organisation has contributed have been so diverse and valuable. Women in Mértola offered soup, fruit, shoes, baby clothes, hair cut; local organisations offered printing copies for the legalities and weekly classes, transportation for cultural visits, sport activities; on a national level, so many people inside different institutions have offered hours of clarification on the asylum processes, on educational pathways, heath support; and professionals in different fields have given advice and shared their contacts. On an international level, an informal Buddys’ Network (individuals from the USA, Canada, UK) kept growing, offering one on one personal and psychological support to the Afghans who came to Portugal and those who stayed in ‘Safe Houses’ in Pakistan, waiting for more asylum opportunities.
“Each element performs multiple functions” – Our small support group, now bigger and called International Support Group for Former Afghan Peace Workers (ISGFAPW), unites elders and youth with a similar values in doing everything they can to find the necessary resources to support our Afghan friends find safe haven and keep sane. Each person contributes in multiple ways: offering time, contacting personal networks, fundraising, writing articles, teaching language, offering psychology sessions and supporting legally to name a few.
“Networks” – The support networks built around the project, with its diverse forms of capital, have proven the power of grassroots action to tackle pressing problems, such as forced migration. Like in the permaculture movement, a global network of like-minded people united in common ethics and principles, acting locally for the benefit of all.
“Use edges & value the marginal”, “Use and value diversity” – The interior of Portugal is marginal when compared with the coastal areas of the country, where most people live. The lack of health facilities, education institutions, public transportation, etc. impels people to leave looking for better conditions. Especially young people. Why can’t these ‘marginal places’ become ‘welcoming places’ for refugees? Just as it happened in Mértola? Suddenly, Mértola gained eight young inhabitants who, through the Terra de Abrigo program, contributed to the regeneration of the land, supported the local economy, enriched our culture through cross-cultural experiences – often delicious and fun, with lots of good food, music and dancing. We all gain when we value and respect diversity.
“Integrate rather than segregate” – A country should not open doors to migrants and refugees as if they are only ‘working machines’ who will contribute to the economy. Integration is a key-word when dealing with migration and forced migration.
“The integration of refugees is a dynamic and multifaceted two-way process which requires efforts by all parties concerned, including a preparedness on the part of refugees to adapt to the host society without having to forego their own cultural identity, and a corresponding readiness on the part of host communities and public institutions to welcome refugees and meet the needs of a diverse population. The process of integration is complex and gradual, comprising distinct but interrelated legal, economic, social and cultural dimensions, all of which are important for refugees’ ability to integrate successfully as fully included members of the host society.” – UNHCR, 2014
Each person is unique and if supported to flourish can give and receive immensely. Our Afghan friends came to Mértola with broken lives and broken roots. Mértola offered them a safe place to heal their wounds, and, in return, they helped heal the land and warm the hearts of many people, who knew what was happening in Afghanistan and wanted to help. They lived in Mértola for the duration of the resettlement program, 18 months. Enough time to create new roots and gain courage to fly again. Mértola wasn’t their final destination, but instead a ‘transition place’.
Final Evaluation / Reflection: “Roots that give wings” is the title we gave to Terra de Abrigo’s final evaluation, based on the experiences and perspectives of various people who engaged with the resettlement program in Mértola. We thought we were writing a qualitative evaluation, but ended with an open reflection that explores the complexities and ‘fine lines’ of the resettlement process. More than offering answers, we raised questions for reflection.
Replication or transplantation? One of the members of our International Group, who has been incredibly committed to finding solutions for all our Afghan friends, shared with us her approach on the evaluation process of innovative initiatives: “I conceptualise it as a four phase, non-linear process: innovation – evaluation – dissemination – transplantation (not replication as it needs to adapt to new contexts). As we say in Permaculture: Ethics and Principles are broad and applicable everywhere, Strategies and Techniques are local and contextual.
“Start small, learn, transplant” – this is not a permaculture principle, but it describes what we have done to create another resettlement project that brought 17 Afghans, from the same group of activists, to the city of Leiria in 2022 . ‘Barakat Leiria’ was the project name given by one of our Afghan friends hosted in Mértola. It means ‘Blessed Leiria’. Coordinated by a local NGO (InPulsar) the Barakat project adjusted the patterns and findings of Terra de Abrigo to its specific urban context.
Now, 2025, we are again in contact with the Portuguese government to bring another 20 Afghans, from the same group of peace activists, to Leiria, for a third resettlement project. This project will be designed on the learnings of the previous ones.
“The Prime Directive of Permaculture: the only ethical decision is to take responsibility for our own existence and that of our children.” – Bill Mollison.
Are we ready to accept responsibility for the impact that our lives have on other countries, including Afghanistan? As permaculture designers, I believe we have the mindset, ethics, principles and methods to make a difference, even if small. Let’s do it.“Work where it counts” – Rowe Morrow