Living Ecology Permaculture Internships

What Living Ecology Permaculture Internships does

Living Ecology Permaculture Internships is a US-domiciled non-profit LLC that organizes and delivers permaculture education programs in rural India. Its core offering is the Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) course, supplemented by seven advanced specializations covering teacher training, rainwater harvesting, landscape mapping, drought mitigation, design consultancy skills, and school permaculture design, alongside an international internship program. All instruction is delivered in person at Aranya Permaculture Farm, a 20-year-old dryland farm, with practical sessions conducted in surrounding villages.

The underlying "technology" is a social permaculture pedagogy that combines classroom theory, experiential learning, and hands-on village work, delivered through a single core partnership with Aranya Agricultural Alternatives — a 30-year-old Indian NGO that co-issues certificates of completion and provides access to its established farmer network. The business model is event-driven and direct-to-consumer: participants apply through the company website for scheduled cohort-based courses, pay course fees (undisclosed), and may crowdfund their program and travel costs via a FundMyTravel integration. A secondary revenue stream comes from donations channeled through GoFundMe campaigns targeting specific initiatives such as providing water for dryland farms.

The company has no disclosed institutional funding, no app or digital product, no certifications or regulatory licenses, and an 11-50 person headcount. Its entire operating model is anchored on the Aranya partnership and on a relatively small annual cohort cycle, making it a niche, partnership-dependent educational non-profit rather than a scalable technology-enabled business.

Name

Living Ecology Permaculture Internships

Legal name

Living Ecology, LLC

Website

https://livingecology.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Living Ecology Permaculture Internships is a US-based non-profit that delivers in-person permaculture design certification, advanced training courses, and international internships in rural India, in partnership with Aranya Agricultural Alternatives. It serves individual learners, aspiring teachers, and international participants through cohort-based, event-driven programs funded by course fees and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Permaculture Education and Training

NAICS

Technical and Trade Schools (61151)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental Conservation & Sustainability Volunteering (EDAIAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sustainable/Regenerative Agriculture & Conservation Practices (EDAOAOAO), Environmental Education, Capacity Building & Community Engagement (BPADALAO)

Keywords

• Permaculture education
• Sustainable agriculture training
• International internship programs
• Rainwater harvesting courses
• Design certificate courses

Headquarters

HQ city

Corona

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Course Fees: Revenue generated from permaculture design certificate courses and advanced courses including teacher training, rain water harvesting, mapping and landscape graphics, drought mitigation, design consultancy skills, and school permaculture programs.
2. Donations and Fundraising: Participants can fundraise for their program fees and travel costs through FundMyTravel partnership. Organization also accepts donations via GoFundMe for initiatives like bringing water to dryland farms.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Living Ecology Permaculture Internships delivers international permaculture education and internship programs in rural India, centered on a Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) course and a suite of advanced specializations including teacher training, rainwater harvesting, mapping, drought mitigation, design consultancy skills, and school permaculture design. Programs are taught in person at Aranya Permaculture Farm and surrounding villages through an exclusive partnership with Aranya Agricultural Alternatives. Participants earn a dual certificate of completion from Aranya Agricultural Alternatives and Living Ecology upon finishing required assignments.

Product overview

Living Ecology offers permaculture education programs centered around its Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) course and a suite of Advanced Permaculture Courses. The core offering is the PDC, which provides foundational permaculture design training and certification. This is supplemented by seven advanced courses covering teacher training, rainwater harvesting, landscape mapping, drought mitigation, consultancy skills, and school permaculture design. The company also runs an international internship program that combines coursework with hands-on field experience in rural India, partnering with Aranya Agricultural Alternatives for program delivery at Aranya Permaculture Farm. All participants who complete assignments receive a certificate of completion from Aranya Agricultural Alternatives and Living Ecology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Permaculture Design Certificate Course (PDC) A foundational course teaching permaculture design principles, practices, and implementation, awarding a Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) upon successful completion of required assignments. Designed for individuals seeking recognized permaculture certification.
• Permaculture Teacher Training Advanced training program preparing participants to become certified permaculture instructors. Suited for aspiring teachers, trainers, and educators.
• Rain Water Harvesting Course Course teaching rainwater harvesting techniques for watershed restoration and farm water management. Designed for practitioners who want to drought-proof land and implement water harvesting systems.
• Mapping to Scale and Landscape Graphics Advanced training in creating to-scale maps and graphic permaculture design maps for land planning. Suited for aspiring design consultants and practitioners planning their own sites.
• Permaculture Solutions for Drought Mitigation and Climate Change Advanced course focused on drought-proofing land and applying permaculture principles to climate change adaptation. Designed for practitioners and learners in dryland contexts.
• Permaculture Design Process and Consultancy Skills Advanced training in permaculture design theory and process plus the consultancy skills needed to launch a permaculture design business. Suited for aspiring design consultants and entrepreneurs.
• School Permaculture Design and Teaching Activities Program teaching participants to design school permaculture sites and create fun teaching activities for school permaculture programs. Designed for aspiring permaculture educators.
• International Permaculture Internship Program International internship program that pairs permaculture coursework with hands-on field experience working with rural villagers in India. Designed for participants seeking cultural immersion, social permaculture experience, and capacity building with farmers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Certificate of completion from Aranya Agricultural Alternatives and Living Ecology upon completing required assignments

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• International Permaculture Conference (IPC) IndiacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Living Ecology participated in the 13th International Permaculture Conference hosted by Aranya Agricultural Alternatives in Hyderabad, India. The organization shared photos and engaged with the global permaculture community at this major industry event.
• Aranya Agricultural AlternativescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAranya Agricultural Alternatives is the primary partner organization hosting Living Ecology's permaculture courses at their 20-year-old dryland farm in India. With 30 years of experience working with thousands of villagers, Aranya provides expertise in water harvesting, watershed restoration, and agricultural training. They co-issue certificates of completion to participants.
• FundMyTravelminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFundMyTravel is a crowdfunding platform partnered with Living Ecology, allowing participants to raise money for their permaculture journey, program fees, and travel arrangements. The platform provides campaign support, tips for spreading the word, and sharing tools for social media and email exposure.
• GoFundMeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerGoFundMe partnership used for fundraising campaigns to support Living Ecology initiatives, including bringing water to dryland farms in India. Donors can contribute and share campaigns to support environmental impact projects.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms): Global farmstay and work-exchange network placing volunteers on organic farms; closest direct competitor to Living Ecology's farm-immersive volunteer learning model in agriculture and sustainability.
• Permaculture Research Institute: Internationally recognized permaculture education and certification body offering PDC and advanced courses globally; competes for the same permaculture-design learner audience as Living Ecology.
• Aranya Agricultural Alternatives: Living Ecology's host partner and India's leading permaculture training organization; offers overlapping PDC and advanced permaculture courses and could effectively bypass Living Ecology to recruit students directly.
• Projects Abroad: Large international volunteering and internship provider with environmental and community-development programs; competes for the same 'international service-learning' participant demographic.
• IVHQ (International Volunteer HQ): Global volunteer-abroad platform offering environmental and sustainability placements; directly competes for fee-paying international volunteers seeking meaningful overseas experiences.
• GVI (Global Vision International): International service-learning and conservation program provider with sustainability-focused placements; comparable fee model and target audience of impact-driven international participants.
• Service Civil International: Long-established international volunteering organization running short- and long-term environmental and community projects; comparable international service-learning positioning.

Regional players

• Navdanya: India-based movement for seed sovereignty and sustainable agriculture that runs educational programs and farms; regional peer operating in the same geography and subject-matter space as Living Ecology.

Emerging players

• Global Permaculture Network: Hub connecting permaculture teachers, designers, and projects worldwide; an emerging platform that could aggregate and substitute for individual schools like Living Ecology.

Others

• Idealist.org: Major online directory for nonprofit jobs, internships, and volunteer opportunities including environmental and sustainability programs; functions as a distribution channel rather than direct competitor, but shapes participant discovery.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/living_ecology
• Facebookfacebook.com/livingecologys
• Pinterestpinterest.com/livingecology

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Living Ecology Permaculture Internships