Practical Solutions Home
Tools and technology
The range of technology available to us is extraordinary, ranging from a screwdriver to a tractor to the world wide web.
Technology has a key role to play in creating the better world that permaculture practitioners envisage. But how can we identify the right technology for the right situation? How can be sure we get the most out of the technologies we use? How do we minimise the environmental and social harms that technology can cause? And how do we make sure that technology is available to everyone who needs it at a price they can afford? This section gives some answers to these questions.
Alternative technology is a term used to refer to technologies that are more environmentally friendly than the functionally equivalent technologies dominant in current practice.
Appropriate technology is a philosophy, a way of thinking and seeing the world. It's a concept which was developed as 'intermediate technology' in EF Schumacher's groundbreaking (1973) work "Small is Beautiful".