What International Permaculture Collaboration Laboratory (CoLab) does

International Permaculture Collaboration Laboratory (CoLab) is a non-profit, community-led collaborative network supporting permaculture practitioners worldwide. Operating as a remote, distributed organization with approximately 6 employees alongside volunteers, freelancers, and contributors organized into self-governing circles (Digital Circle, Funding Circle, Comms & Outreach Circle, Permaculture in Africa Circle, Welcome Circle), CoLab delivers events, trainings, services, and resources through its main perma.earth website and supplementary sub-brands including Minimum Viable Academy (eLearning), the CoLab Podcast, the Global Permaculture Map, and the Permaculture Research International Network.

The platform is built on a stack of open-source and community-oriented tools: WordPress with multilingual support (English, French, German, Spanish), a Nextcloud collaboration space, Slack for internal communication, Matomo for analytics, Mailpoet for newsletters, Leantime for project management, and CoBudget for financial tracking. The Digital Circle has maintained this infrastructure since 2016, providing ethical hosting, technical support, and digital consultancy to allied permaculture organizations. Funding flows through grants (notably the GROW Project and Next Steps Project), donations via Open Collective, and membership contributions, with freelance roles compensated using an Equitable Wage framework ranging from approximately 28–30 GBP/hour.

CoLab serves a horizontal base of grassroots permaculture projects, national and regional permaculture associations, permaculture schools and academies, and freelancers seeking permaculture-aligned work. The organization reaches a global audience through multilingual content, allied networks, an interactive Global Permaculture Map, and events including the Emergent Festival. Its value proposition centers on ethical digital infrastructure, collaboration tools, a funding database of 100+ grants, accredited PDC pathway development, and a fellowship program (Finca Verde) combining regenerative farm work with permaculture design instruction.

Name

International Permaculture Collaboration Laboratory (CoLab)

Legal name

International Permaculture Collaborative Laboratory

Website

https://perma.earth

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

International Permaculture Collaboration Laboratory (CoLab) is a non-profit, community-led collaborative network that delivers events, trainings, eLearning, and digital infrastructure to permaculture practitioners, projects, schools, and associations worldwide through its perma.earth platform and allied networks.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Permaculture Education and Community Collaboration

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Program & Project Implementation (TA Delivery) (BPADAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Federated Giving Organizations (e.g., United Way-type) (BPAGAKAG)

Keywords

• Permaculture education
• Community collaboration platform
• Regenerative agriculture training
• Grant funding support
• Elearning courses

Headquarters

HQ city

Remote

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations: Accepts one-time and recurring donations through Open Collective platform.
2. Membership Contributions: Contributors join as members and may contribute financially or through work contributions.
3. Funding from Grants and Projects: Funded through projects like GROW Project and Next Steps Project, including Emergent Festival, e-Learning development, and community support initiatives.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

International Permaculture Collaboration Laboratory (CoLab) operates a collaborative ecosystem offering events, trainings, services, and resources for the global permaculture movement. Its core offerings include an eLearning platform (Minimum Viable Academy), a community collaboration space, the Global Permaculture Map, the CoLab Podcast, technical services (Digital Circle Services), grant support (Funding Circle Services), communications consultancy, and the Permaculture Research International Network (PIRN). The organization is funded through donations and grants and serves practitioners ranging from grassroots projects to international collaborations.

Product overview

International Permaculture Collaboration Laboratory (CoLab) operates a multi-platform ecosystem centered around its collaborative permaculture platform (perma.earth). The offering consists of a core platform providing events, trainings, services, and resources, complemented by Minimum Viable Academy for elearning, the CoLab Podcast for grassroots project stories, and the Global Permaculture Map for community visibility. The GROW Project extends offerings through PDC pathway development and the Emergent Festival. Supporting services include Digital Circle (ethical tech services), Funding Circle (grant assistance), Comms Consultancy, and the Permaculture Research International Network (PIRN). The Community Space enables member collaboration, while downloadable resources and newsletters support ongoing engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Minimum Viable Academy: An elearning platform for good, creating open, inclusive, safe and vulnerable learning spaces for facilitators to develop diverse skills and tools. Offers courses, workshops, and training including Conflict Transformation, Community Building Practice Labs, Personal Transformation Design, and more.
• Digital Circle
• Funding Circle
• Permaculture in Africa Circle
• CoLab Podcast
• Global Permaculture Map

Products and services

• Minimum Viable Academy An elearning platform creating open, inclusive, safe, and vulnerable learning spaces for facilitators to develop diverse skills and tools, aligned with permaculture ethics and principles. Available in multiple languages including English, Italian, Spanish, French, and German.
• CoLab Podcast A podcast interviewing people from around the world involved in grassroots permaculture projects, hosted on the Minimum Viable Academy website.
• Global Permaculture Map An interactive online map allowing permaculture organizations to add themselves, supporting the global permaculture community in finding and connecting with projects across regions.
• Digital Circle Services Technical services including ethical hosting, Nextcloud collaboration spaces, app development, technical support, digital infrastructure consulting, and guidance on open-source tools for permaculture projects and aligned organizations.
• Funding Circle Services Assistance with grant writing and access to a funding database containing over 100 current funding opportunities for permaculture projects.
• Comms Consultancy Team Communication consulting services offered to support permaculture organizations with their communication strategies and outreach.
• Permaculture Research International Network (PIRN) An online network fostering knowledge exchange, peer group support, access to journals and books, and development of research projects in permaculture.
• Community Space A collaborative online space for CoLab members to connect, share opportunities, and participate in community discussions and governance.
• Finca Verde Fellowship Program Fellowship program based at Finca Verde regenerative farm in Lanjaron, Alpujarras, Spain. Offers weekly stipend of 50 EUR plus food and accommodation, combining hands-on farm work with permaculture design instruction.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100+ funding opportunities in searchable database
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The Digital CirclecoreTechnology or IntegrationDeveloped and maintains the CoLab website. Provides ethical hosting services, Nextcloud collaboration spaces, app development, technical support, digital infrastructure consulting, and guidance on open-source tools. Operating since 2016.
• Open CollectivecoreTechnology or IntegrationPlatform used for receiving donations and managing project finances including GROW Project funding and Funding Circle Services.
• Finca VerdeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner4-hectare regenerative farm in Lanjaron, Alpujarras, Spain. Hosts fellowship program for permaculture education and regenerative agriculture training, partially funded through CoLab's Next Steps Project.
• Minimum Viable AcademycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnereLearning platform creating open, inclusive, safe learning spaces for facilitators. Offers courses, workshops, and hosts the CoLab Podcast. Collaborates with CoLab on permaculture education development.
• Allied NetworkscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGrowing network of permaculture organizations, associations, projects, and schools that collaborate with CoLab, share resources, and participate in joint initiatives like the Global Permaculture Map.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Open Collective: Transparent funding platform for collectives and open-source projects. Highly relevant as CoLab's core financial infrastructure partner and a comparable model for community-funded, transparent nonprofit operations.

Emerging players

• Regenerative Design Institute: Education and demonstration site focused on permaculture and regenerative design. Comparable to CoLab and Finca Verde partnership in delivering hands-on permaculture training and operating as a regenerative demonstration site.
• Transition Network: International community-led movement building local resilience and sustainability initiatives. Comparable to CoLab in community-led GTM, distributed governance, and grassroots organizing model across global networks.
• Ecology Action: Sustainable agriculture research and education organization teaching biointensive growing methods. Adjacent peer to CoLab given overlapping practitioner audiences in small-scale regenerative agriculture and permaculture training.
• Commons Stack: Web3-enabled platform for funding and governing digital commons and regenerative projects. Adjacent peer to CoLab's Funding Circle and Open Collective usage for permaculture project funding flows.

Direct peers

• Earth Activist Training: Permaculture design certificate and teacher training organization combining earth-based skills with activism. Comparable to CoLab in its permaculture education focus and movement-aligned values around social and ecological design.
• Permaculture Association (UK): UK-based membership organization supporting permaculture practitioners and projects with education, certification, and networking. Highly comparable as a membership-driven permaculture network delivering training, design certificates, and community resources across a national ecosystem.
• Permaculture Research Institute: Global permaculture education and research network offering online courses, design certificates, and demonstration sites. Comparable to CoLab in its international permaculture education focus and reliance on a distributed practitioner network.
• Gaia University: Online permaculture and regenerative design university offering accredited degrees and design certificates via distance learning. Closely comparable to CoLab's Minimum Viable Academy and PDC pathway ambitions for delivering distributed permaculture education globally.

Broad incumbents

• Schumacher College: UK-based higher education institution offering courses in ecology, sustainability, and transformative learning. Comparable as a sustainability education provider operating in adjacent ecological/regenerative curriculum space.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCMzGMATF_W3R5Uv9kWVKZPA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pccolab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

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 International Permaculture Collaboration Laboratory (CoLab)