About

Hi there, my name is Matthew Keogh. I'm a practising syntropic/ agroforestry farmer. I've got over 3 years practice at this form of regenerative agriculture, originating at an eco-community under the guidance of a permaculture teacher in the Sunshine Coast region.

I have experience and knowledge to help others implement this at their property, for food security and to help build more regenerative communities. In my research, syntropic farming represents a key part of the future of sustainable food production.

As you read this, it's worth pointing out that you don't need a whole lot of space to do a syntropic food forest. It can be just a few hundred square meters. Though the one I've worked and managed at is about 1250sqm, and that is quite a good size. In permaculture philosophy we are interested in scall-scale intensive systems, rather than extensive, poorly managed systems ... so less can be more in this sense.

You will need plenty of sunlight in your chosen location, and preferably some water source for irrigation. This may require some land clearing, and/or putting in a bore, water tank etc. There is also the matter of soil fertility... if your land is particularly infertile, you may not be able to set up a food forest just yet. It may have to come in stages later once the soil profile has been improved, such as with some select pioneer species. You can potentially fast-track this process however if money is not a particular concern, such as by bringing in soil and compost from elsewhere.

In general, there will be costs and time involved for you in setting up a food forest. But I think it can all be done relatively affordably if your budget is tight. And as far as time, an analogy is in getting water from one place to another. So two options may be carrying buckets of water, or building a pipeline to transport water. The latter in my view could be seen as a syntropic approach, and the former more conventional approaches. So, it is more time and effort in the beginning, but long-term arguably more efficient and sustainable.

My approach is to empower individuals and groups with the knowledge and skills they need to be self-sufficient in practicing and managing their systems. I think often things can be made unnecessarily complicated, when in many ways the development of syntropic food forests need not necessarily be. It can be a much simpler and fun process than we may have previously imagined. I can help teach you what you need to know throughout so you will be confident and competent to potentially even do your own systems one day.

Outside of my interest in regenerative agriculture and permaculture, my background is in sustainability on a macro level as far as exploring what improved social systems look like, particularly with respect to economics and governance. I use to be a local coordinator for The Zeitgeist Movement up in North QLD for a number of years, and left there after the pandemic. These days I'm more interested in the Game B ecosystem which I feel is a further development and refinement of the ideas and activities in this space.

I am open to proceeding on a gift economy or pay as you can basis if you don't have enough funds. Get in touch if that's you and we can work something out. And if you are not in the Sunshine Coast region, do also feel free to reach out, as perhaps I may still be able to assist you in some way.

Look forward to connecting.

Matthew

ABN: 93 108 837 480