Our ethos
Leaving the world a better place through our actions is our guiding principle, this applies to all aspects of our lives. We use the 3 ethics in permaculture - earth care, people care and fair share. What this means is looking after the natural world, looking after ourselves and each other and only taking what we need and no more.
In the garden this means that we have space for ourselves, space for nature and ideally growing some food to sustain us as well. We also follow organic gardening principles to further protect nature
Who We Are
Damian Nicholls
I’m a lifelong gardener and being in nature is where I’m happiest, having designed numerous gardens over the years. I have a degree in Environmental Science, am a qualified project manager and a formally trained cabinet maker. Discovering permaculture was a turning point and since then I’ve undertaken the Permaculture Design Certificate and am now working towards the Diploma, this has brought additional design skills and perspectives. I believe it’s important to garden organically and to make best use of resources, maybe this explains my obsession with composting and water butts.
I think community is a vital part of our social fabric and have volunteered with tree planting groups and also helped establish and run a community association. We’ve transformed how we live over the years and are working towards the nirvana of a zero waste home, though it’s a journey of many steps.
Suzanne Nicholls
I grew up near the coast in Waterford which instilled in me both a love of the sea and a belief in the restorative powers of nature. My early career was in documentary film making and I’m drawn to people and their stories, which led to the second part of my career in communications. I attained a masters in Public Communications, with a particular interest in behavioural change, which I’ve used to design several successful health campaigns. I now work for a social enterprise designing and delivering environmental and social change campaigns. Reducing waste and finding ways to help people live more sustainably are at the heart of what we do.
I often experiment on our family first when we’re looking at new zero waste campaigns, it’s important we believe in what we’re doing and can prove that the changes work.