What is permaculture
Mutually beneficial, synergistic relationships
Accredited PDC instructor
István Márkuly Permaculture system designer and contractor
Locations
Online theory classes, in-person summer camp and practice sessions
Prices, materials
PDC Online Training with various payment options
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+hours of in-person training
Permaculture Design Certificate
PDC 2025 With Geoff Lawton
We are honored to welcome Geoff Lawton as the lead trainer of this course – one of the world’s most respected voices in permaculture. This intensive PDC course offers 72 hours of theoretical and practical training, and upon completion, participants will receive the internationally recognized Permaculture Design Certificate.
Whether you're a beginner or looking to deepen your understanding of sustainable living and regenerative systems, this course will provide you with the tools and knowledge to create lasting positive change in your environment and community.
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All inclusive
available (+ fee) -
10 days autumn course
in Terény, Hungary
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Who is the PDC training for?
For urban and rural nomads, people who want to do something, pathfinders, experts, people who are interested, those who strive for sustainability, nature lovers and small communities, so that we can get closer to the nature that lives within us through personal and community experiences.
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What does the training provide?
The course places great emphasis on the theory of permaculture, and also reviews strategies and techniques that deepen the relationship between humans and the natural environment. The course provides basic permaculture design knowledge, which can be used to design sustainable systems that respond flexibly to changes, and living spaces suitable for food and energy services.
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Mutual, cooperative learning
In the learning system used in the PDC training, we discover knowledge together. Everyone contributes, because we can learn something from everyone. We learn from each other, from the teachers and from our environment at the same time.
What is permaculture?
Permaculture is a design system that observes patterns in our environment and replicates them. Thus, in cooperation with nature, we create sustainable and regenerative habitats for both humans and other living creatures. With this approach, we establish mutually beneficial relationships between landscape, people and resources. Permaculture is based on three main ethical principles: take care of the Earth, take care of people, and distribute the produced surplus equitably.
Permaculture is a design system for creating sustainable human environments.
Bill Mollison - researcher, writer, scientist, teacher and biologist
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+ hours offace-to-face lectures
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Online
resources
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Regenerative lifestyle with permaculture
Our values
About Permaculture
Permaculture integrates landscape, resources and people by creating mutually beneficial, synergistic relationships. Based on the operation of natural ecological systems, it applies the principles of zero waste and closed-cycle systems. It approaches with a holistic approach and uses strategies and solutions that can be used equally well in rural and urban environments, on a small and large scale, in the organization of our individual lives, in the reconstruction of natural systems, in the creation of communities, or even in the reconstruction of social systems.
Ethics
Permaculture establishes a definite ethical system that serves as a guideline for everyone who thinks responsibly about the future.
The three ethical principles of permaculture:
- Earth Care
- People Care
- Fair Share
Philosophy
The essence of permaculture is cooperation with nature. We examine and design the systems according to their role, so we do not focus on achieving a high yield. We take into account the natural development processes of the systems, let them "ripen", we plan not only in space, but also in time.
Permaculture design
The purpose of permaculture planning is to consciously create systems that are useful for humans and have natural diversity and resilience, that is, they successfully adapt to stress and are in dynamic balance with their environment.
Course Schedule
PDC 2025 course
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We recommend you arrive on the 5th or earlier to make sure you will be heartfully present
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The course kicks off on the 6th September at 8:30 AM
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Theoretical, in-person lectures every day from 8.30 AM to 5.30 PM.
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There will be one coffee-break in the morning and one break in the afternoon with 1,5 hour lunch.
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Evening activities and sessions will be offered and announced each day relating to the days topics.
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During the course you will complete a design exercise with a real practical example.
1. Introduction to Permaculture, The Philosophy Behind Permaculture, Ethics, Permaculture in Landscape & Society
Our first meeting will kick off with a meet and greet session, followed by a couple of fun exercises to give us an idea of what community means in permaculture.
We will then learn about the history of permaculture and go through what permaculture itself means. We will outline the ethical and philosophical foundations of permaculture. We will explain how the course is structured and what you can expect over the next few months.
2. Concepts and Themes in Design
In this session, we will learn about the key concepts and topics related to design. We slowly start to understand the key components - stability, diversity, stability, system, chaos, yield, resources, timeframe - of a strong, sustainable system. We will find out why we follow natural patterns and how natural systems improve resilience, stability, productivity and diversity. Finally, we will learn about the ethical principles of permaculture and how they are applied to key areas of design.
3. Methods of Design
This time we will talk about how to observe and analyze the area, the components of the design and how to replicate natural systems in your own area. We will also learn how to make strong connections between these elements.
4. Patterns
Patterns are created by different media such as water and earth, air and water and so on. when different media - water and earth, air and water, etc. - meet. In fact, they are physical imprints of processes in nature. Understanding the basic patterns in nature provides us with a valuable tool. In this class we will explore methods of observing and mapping patterns.
5. Climatic Factors
This week we will focus on weather systems. In order to create maps, first we need to know our location on Earth. Understanding the different climatic influences in our own area will greatly help us develop the desired microclimate. This knowledge will help us to adapt to climate change.
6. Trees and Their Energy Transactions
Trees are key players in ecosystems. They influence the climate by affecting water flow, wind, heat and light. They build soil and provide habitat for a wide range of organisms. This week we seek to understand how these amazing creatures are connected to the rest of the ecosystem.
7. Water
Water connects everything. In this session, we will explore the global cycle of water, how it impacts our design system, and specific strategies to retain and use water.
8. Soils
Soil is a key resource. We will learn how to regenerate soil and develop healthy nutrient systems. We will talk about techniques to increase soil fertility, such as compost extraction, bio-nutrient solutions and mulching.
9. Humid Cool / Cold Climates
This week, we will review the characteristics of humid-continental climates - the vegetation cover, temperature and precipitation characteristics, the soil, and so on. We will look at different ways to harvest water and build energy-efficient homes. Finally, we discuss the cropping and livestock systems that work best in this climate.
10. Humid Tropics / Dryland Strategies
We will learn the characteristics of humid tropics and drylands, their soil types, methods of earthworks, construction and food production in these climate zones.
11. Aquaculture
Aquaculture consists of such highly productive crop and livestock systems that - in addition to high yields - can regenerate the living environment. In permaculture, aquaculture naturally provides for oxygenation, heating/cooling and nutrient flow. This session will focus on the benefits and design of aquaculture systems.
12. Strategies of an Alternative Global Nation
This week is all about the social aspects of permaculture - how we can create local communities and partnership to move towards sustainability, towards an ecological paradigm shift. We also talk about strategies for alternative communities.
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€Standard: One meal per day, camping acccommodation, tea, coffee
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€All inclusive: 3 meals per day, camping accommodation, tea, coffee and snacks
All the World’s Problems Can Be Solved in a Garden.
Geoff Lawton - Permaculture advisor
Trainers, mentors
Main Facilitator:
Geoff is an internationally renowned permaculture consultant, designer, teacher, and speaker with over 40 years of experience. He obtained his PDC in 1983 with Bill Mollison, widely regarded as the "Father of Permaculture". Since 1985, Geoff has specialized in permaculture education, design, implementation, system building, administration and community development. Working in over 50 countries, Geoff has taught over 15,000 students.
He founded the Permaculture Research Institute of Australia and Zaytuna Farm, home to Geoff and Nadia's family. As an award-winning permaculture designer, Geoff's main goal is to encourage the creation of self-replicating educational demonstration sites around the world.
Supporting Trainers & Local Experts:
Istvan is a third-generation permaculture teacher, consultant, and local community developer—and a proud father. With over 25 years of hands-on international experience, he has worked across diverse cultural and ecological landscapes, from wetlands to arid deserts.
He holds a degree in Sustainable Horticulture and Permaculture from Ireland and has participated in numerous advanced training programs led by some of the most respected figures in the field. His mentors include Geoff Lawton, Warren Brush, and Paul Taylor, with whom he frequently co-teaches.
Istvan strongly believes in the learn-by-doing approach. He is passionate about encouraging people to integrate permaculture principles into their daily lives - where they may be.
Local team facilitator
Gábor graduated as a horticultural engineer. He worked for five and a half years in vegetable seed cultivation and breeding, then worked as a project coordinator at a food industry company. Gabor completed the Permaculture Design Course with the Életfa Permakultura in 2020. Putting what he learned there into practice, he transformed the garden of an office building in Budapest using a permaculture approach and continued to work on the foundation of this area for the following two years. His main areas of interest include soil revitalization, the creation of plant systems, selective breeding, building bridges between cultures, and shaping the attitudes of future generations as a parent.
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€Standard: One meal per day, camping acccommodation, tea, coffee
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€All inclusive: 3 meals per day, camping accommodation, tea, coffee and snacks
Though the problems of the world are increasingly complex, the solutions remain embarrassingly simple.
Bill Mollison - Australian researcher, writer, scientist, teacher and biologist
Locations
Each area hides a variety of challenges.
Terény - Hungary
Our site is nestled in a beautiful green environment in the heart of county Nógrád, in Terény. About 1,5 hours drive from the capital Budapest. The heart is an 8,600-square-meter farm with a welcome reception area, two yurts, compost showers with hot water and the camping site that makes it an ideal venue for various regenerative energy events. The garden, which is constantly under transformation and growing, represents true permaculture diversity.
The farm is surrounded by +80 hectares of land. Each area hides a variety of challenges, from the almost completely flat field next to the village, through the planted acacia trees, the mud hill covered with protected plants, to the barely accessible ancient hawthorn.
What we offer
The course main facilitator is Geoff Lawton, Permaculture consultant, designer and teacher.
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Globally recognised Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC)
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72 hours of in-depth theoretical and hands-on training based on Bill Mollison’s Permaculture Design Manual content
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Face-to-face lectures with Geoff Lawton
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Istvan Markuly +20 years of experience in permaculture, as a co-teacher
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Full access to a dedicated online platform with private forum and downloadable materials
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List of reading recommendations related to the course
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At an open permaculture space with real solutions already implemented (water treatment, earthworks, forest garden, market garden, small and big animal system etc)
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Daily hot lunch, tea and coffee during the whole course. 3-course meal is available for an addition fee (see all inclusive deal)
Accommodation
Camping site on the farm is available free of charge, with warm showers, compost toilets and community kitchen. Camping gear should be ensured by each participant bearing in mind that nights can get chilly in September. We recommend you stay with us on the site to make the most out of the 10 days.
Accommodation is also available in the village. If you are interested we can send you some recommendations. Let us know via email at hello@permaculture.hu.
Prices Include
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+72 hours training
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face to face with Geoff Lawton
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10-day camping accommodation (bring your tent and gear)
Packages
Standard fee: 1,200€ (includes one meal per day, camping accommodation, tea, coffee)
All-Inclusive: 1,500€ (includes 3 meals per day, camping accommodation, tea, coffee and snacks)
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€Standard: One meal per day, camping acccommodation, tea, coffee
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€All inclusive: 3 meals per day, camping accommodation, tea, coffee and snacks
Frequently Asked Questions
What kind of certificate does the course provide?
Participants receive an internationally recognised Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC), certified by the Australian Permaculture Research Institute.
Can I start working after completing the course?
Yes, after completing the course you will be able to do permaculture design, and if you have the appropriate skills, you can also start teaching. You’ll become part of a global network, opening up opportunities for collaborations that match your experience.
Can I bring my family?
Yes, family members are welcome on site if it helps you organize your trip. However, it is your responsibility to ensure they do not disturb your learning or the course flow. Make sure they have their own activities during the day.
Is Geoff Lawton going to be involved for the whole duration of the course?
Yes, Geoff Lawton as the lead trainer will teach approximately half of the sessions. He will be present on-site during the course.
What facilities are available in the community kitchen?
The community kitchen includes a shared fridge for storing your food. There’s also a simple kitchen setup with a sink and cooking facilities.
Can you help with transport from the airport to the site?
Yes, we encourage carpooling among participants. We will send out a carpool form where you can offer or request rides, whether you’re driving your own car or renting one. Terény is also reachable by bus or train. Let us know in advance if you need to be picked up, and we’ll send detailed emails to help you find your way before the course starts.
Send a message
Contact us
Nóra Miklós (9.00am to 7.00pm, CET - Hungarian timezone):
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