Heather Jo Flores

Heather Jo Flores is the director of Permaculture Women’s Guild and created about 30% of the content in the Permaculture Design Course, as well as designing the overall program.

She is a Gen-X Chicana writer, farmer, musician, artist, educator and introvert. Over the last 30 years, she held leadership roles in dozens of environmental and humanitarian projects, of my own making as well as in collaboration with groups like Greenpeace, Earth First, Food not Bombs, Oregon Council for the Humanities, and many more. 

Back in 1999, Heather Jo Flores founded the original chapter of Food Not Lawns, in Eugene, Oregon. Seven years and many gardens later, wrote Food Not Lawns, How to Turn Your Yard into a Garden and Your Neighborhood into a Community, which was published by Chelsea Green Publishing Company in 2006 and spawned an International movement.

Though she dropped out of high school in 10th grade, she has slowly accumulated a massive education since then, and holds degrees in certificates in several areas, culminating a Masters of Fine Arts degree. Heather’s education focused on creative writing, fine arts, and permaculture as a set of tools and techniques, but also diving deep into how to teach permaculture to diverse audiences, and especially to folks like her, who respond better to non-traditional schooling and alternative pedagogies.

Her work is about being creative, getting dirty, and generating beautiful results. Inside all of her classes, you will find an equal balance of video, artwork, infographics, photographs, written materials, and links to a wide variety of resources.

Heather does not accept 1:1 mentees for the Permaculture Design Course, but does provide direct support for all students.