THE PLOWBOY INTERVIEW BILL MOLLISON

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Whether you're an organic gardener, an ecologist, or someone who's just plain concerned about the uncertain future of commercial agriculture, you're sure to find Mollison's insights fascinating . . . simply because permaculture does seem to represent a viable way out of the crisis in food production and supply that we're now facing.

PLOWBOY: Bill, it seems ironic that — being a native of a small, isolated island — you're designing ecosystems that have worldwide applications. You must have had years of agricultural training while preparing for such a monumental task.

MOLLISON: Actually, I haven't had a great deal of institutional horticultural education at all ... but I suppose my background has helped prepare me for my current involvement with land systems.

I'm a sixth-generation Tasmanian, you see, so the peculiar sort of dual marine/bush orientation — common to natives of that land — is in my blood. Tasmania is largely an agricultural state, but it also contains a good bit of heavily forested territory. About half the island isn't even yet fully explored, and I spent a lot of my childhood trudging the uncharted areas.

I grew up very independently, and without much formal training. My father died when I was 14, so I left school to help run our family bakery. As a result, I escaped having to spend a lot of hours in a classroom . . . and I think such a lack of traditional education is almost essential for anybody who does anything creative. Later in life — at about age 37 — I did go to the University of Tasmania and complete a degree . . . but I did so mostly to develop a bit of mental discipline. I also taught there, for some ten years, as a lecturer in Environmental Psychology.

My real education, however, has come from the variety of jobs I've held. For most of my life I've been either a fisherman or a fur trapper. I also — at different times — ran a market garden and a dairy.

I've been involved in wildlife and marine research, too. For several years, I worked with the Wildlife Survey Division of the Commonwealth Scientific Industrial Research Organization, or CSIRO. We tackled Australia's large-scale pest problems, such as the locust plagues and the rabbit scourge. Following that job, I dabbled in fisheries research for several years . . . mainly concerning the estuaries between sea and fresh water, although I did a lot of inland lake work as well. And then — at various times — I've gone into the forest to become a true bushman ... felling and milling trees, locating new forest stands, and seeking new trails through the wilderness.

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