Person-In-Environment

"Person-in-Environment" is the calling card of social work. At it's theoretical base, this separates the profession from others in the human service field. It recognizes the agency of individuals and communities in creating change as a person or persons in their environment. But person-in-environment also speaks to social work's deep understanding that an environment or system can have a tremendous impact on an individual or community.

A joke: How many social workers does it take to change a lightbulb?
Punchline: The lightbulb doesn't need to change - the system needs to change.

Permaculture is also a person-in-environment model. Like social work, this systems theory recognizes the agency of individuals and communities to affect change through ecological means of meeting, sustaining and governing their own needs. Beyond that, it offers the ultimate social web, connecting across species to find the right 'fit' and relationship for mutual beneficence. There are unexplored models of interspecies cooperation and synergy that may guide social work theory and models if someone took the time to quietly observe and learn. Permaculture offers social work a new perspective on where our current systems falter, and the devastating impact on people (plus). For example, Temple Grandin has observed that, "some of the stereotyped behaviors exhibited by autistic children are also found in zoo animals who are raised in a barren environment".

So how many permaculturist social workers does it take to change a system? Lets find out.