Of the several thousand Members of the Nemenhah Band, most live in urban or suburban environments.  Relatively few live in rural settings or have farm holdings.  Our projects, therefore, do not consider large-scale food production.  We don't have the space, nor the inclination.  We leave that to the folks who can make a difference there.

Small, family-scale projects are key to the Nemenhah Model Permavillage Demonstration Site.  The design as a whole is divided into smaller designs that could each stand alone in an urban or suburban plan.  The Spiral Herb Garden and the Bamboo Circle, each with their water catchment elements, are good examples of this concept.  The Kitchen Garden will accomodate three families of four people, and the surplus will be distributed to local Nemenhah Members who are dedicating space to other projects. 

Similarly, the Barrelponics and Chinampas projects are geared to be small enough to fit into an urban setting.  We have a dozen of these small projects starting up, each with one to five, fifty gallon barrel systems.  Those local Members who have ponds have offered to allow Chinampas systems to be installed.  The surplus protein will be distributed in trade for garden produce.  The Vermiculture is designed to benefit both the gardens and the aquaponics by supplying earthworms to improve the soil and to feed the fish.

A Community of a dozen families will all benefit by providing their own fresh vegetables and fish, and they will also begin to create a cash surplus that can be directed into developing alternative energy ideas for them going forward.  The Nemenhah Band will benefit by having a hands-on model in which to learn the principles that they can carry back to their local Chapters. 

Each Chapter will support their own Permaculture Projects in tern.  By the time all 57 Chapters (to date) are up and running, with projects of their own, the Nemenhah Band will have a Community Network functioning in every State of the U.S. and in three Canadian Provinces, and even in a couple of Latin American Nations.  We hope to be able to connect these dots to create a little "Perma-Nation" within the nation.