I grew up on a farm in Western Colorado and swore I would move to the city the day I turned 18 and never come back. I did move...but I came back, too. Now I am living on the remaining part of the family farm and working with other family members to transform a derelict 10-acre apple orchard into a functional food forest.

My interest in permaculture arose from my interest in herbal medicine, which I have been seriously studying for years. I took an online PDC in 2013 (Geoff Lawton's first online offering) because I wanted to integrate permaculture concepts into the holistic health concepts I was already using as a herbalist - and it works beautifully. Permaculture herbalism considers the whole person, and that person's environment - work, home, family, friends, goals, past, present, future - to develop true solutions to health challenges and for ongoing wellbeing. It is fascinating and there is always more to learn!