Although Joseph LaPlante, aka Joey Stylez, is a Plains Cree Metis from Treaty 6 territory in Saskatchewan, his life has been very nomadic. “As soon as I was old enough I took to the road, and lived in many different cities: Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, Edmonton, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Windsor, Detroit…I have a saying that I don’t belong anywhere but I’m good everywhere.” His family brought him to these parts of the globe, as Joey’s wife, Carsen Gray, is from Haida Gwaii and has a strong connection to this place. Joey is happy to call HlGaagilda Skidegate his home now, and enjoys all the ways this land teaches his kids traditional values that aren’t so readily available in the big city.

Permaculture comes from the combination of two words: Permanent – that endures or persists through time, and Culture – an activity that supports human existence. Bill Mollison and David Holmgren first coined the term in 1978, in opposition to industrialized methods and in congruence with Indigenous or traditional knowledge. They defined “permaculture” as: “The conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive systems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of the landscape with people providing their food, energy, shelter and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way.”