One of the functions of the PSW committee is to ensure that the cash generated by memberships and other income, after bills such as rent for the meeting hall and any required equipment for meetings such as computer, projector and sound system are bought, is to ensure any excess is used to provide services to the members, thus complying with Permaculture Ethic 3: Fair Share. A number of ideas have been presented and ratified by the committee over the years, with varying levels of success.
About ten years ago it was suggested that there be sponsorship for members to attend a Permaculture Design Course (PDC) to grow talent and knowledge in the group. The was done on the understanding that the receivers of such scholarships would then provide workshops to members so returning knowledge to the group.
Unfortunately, while several people were able to attend a local PDC on PSWs ticket, in the end there were no returning workshops conducted so the idea fell into disuse.
This Year (2026)
For the last ten years or so, allowing for regular outgo and equipment purchase, there has been $16,000 to $17,000 in the PSW coffers. A new idea has come from the PSW president to make use of that cash and put investment back to the planet and at the same time to benefit members.
This idea is to provide micro-grants to members (not loans) to put investment back into the group and back into the planet, to enable members to boost an existing passion that will create increased resilience for the recipient and the group.
Grants will be between $200 and $2000 to enable the recipient to pay for learning or developing skills and/or purchasing equipment, materials, tools, etc., to set up their sustainability/resilience passion project. The grant is not designed to cover any wages involved in projects; we are avoiding paying wages to us in any way since we readily share our skills and time. We invest in infrastructure, materials, equipment, fees for skills training from qualified providers, as long as it adds to our collective resilience, in regenerating and circular economies.
The grant is basically a ‘seed’ which will help to grow your skills so members are better able to teach others in the Permaculture community who may then teacher others, and so on, with the larger goal of helping to create a more resilient local community by sharing knowledge and skills. So the payback for the group is that the recipient will provide teaching in the form of workshops, living skills or presentations to pass on their skills to the group.
The applicant, as part of their application, shall address the following –
a. The skill/knowledge they want develop and then offer the community.
b. How this skill will build resilience and align with permaculture ethics and principles -
food, health, energy, water, community connection.
c. How they will share their skills/knowledge - workshops, people, timeframe, frequency.
d. A realistic, itemised budget within the limits of $200–$2,000.
e. How they will evaluate the success of your project.
Permaculture Sydney West shall:
a. Advertise your project on PSW website and via email, hot spot at meetings, at other events.
b. Allocate your grant money at agreed time frames.
c. Help find a mentor to guide you through your project.
d. Monitor the progress of your project to completion.
The Set Up
The idea was developed by current President Greg Meyer and Secretary Very Meyer and presented to the Committee Executive at their monthly meeting in April 2026, and it was approved unanimously by the Committee. Two members of the committee, along with Greg and Vera, agreed to be part of a panel set up to approve applications. This panel, at an online meeting, reviewed the draft application form and guidelines developed by Greg and Vera. As a result of that meeting, the form was updated and the idea was floated at the next general meeting, asking for feedback.
Ideas for projects the grants could be consider for included:
1. Attracting Beneficial Animals Group
2. Bee Keeping Group - hives, tools, PPE, membership fees
3. Chicken Keeping Group
4. Mushroom Group - equipment, spores, training
5. Native Australian Gardens Group - session with IndigiGrow
6. Sewing Group
7. Sour Dough Bread Group
8. Fermentation Parties - yoghurt, kombucha, kimchi, pickles, kefir, sauerkraut, miso
9. Hot Compost Parties - Bio-active compost and extracts
10. Natural Body Products Parties - soap, hair, skin, deodorant, toothpaste, sunscreen
11. Natural Home Cleaners Parties - all-purpose cleaners, laundry, metals, grease, glass
12. Sprouts and Microgreens Parties
13. Small Appliance repairs
14. Tool Sharpening.
The Journey So Far....
There has been some feedback, including the following suggestions for grant projects:
1. Gear to teach how to cut hair
2. Member offering a portion of their yard and a structure to host second seed saving meeting place closer to Parramatta which keeps seeds, seedlings, and plants in the ground
3. Bee keeping gear and lessons
4. Mushroom growing
5. Excursions to functioning Permie gardens, providing a donation to buy something to enhance resilience of that garden and maybe transport.
While there have not been any applications to date there has been considerable interest and keen discussion. The process is continuing, and it will be discussed again at the next (September 2026) meeting.
Note: the application form as approved by the panel can be downloaded here.
