MULTIPLY is proud to be supporting Brighton Permaculture Trust this year as part of our social mission to donate a minimum of 10% of our annual profits to grassroots projects that make an economic, social or environmental impact to local communities.
Jan Mulreany of the Brighton Permaculture Trust and Natasha Allden and Katherine Courtney of MULTIPLY, in the orchards at the Stanmer orchard.
Brighton Permaculture Trust is a charity that promotes greener lifestyles and regenerative development through design. An experienced team of volunteers and permaculturalists run a wide range of courses, events, and community food projects.
The School’s Project
This year’s donation will go toward multiplying the Trust’s outreach to school children through the School’s Project. The aim is to inspire children, opening them up to a new way of thinking and connecting with their environment. Providing roughly 2 hours of educational experience for up to 100 children across the Brighton and Hove area.
The School’s Project will prioritise schools in areas of social deprivation where several community orchards have been planted by the Trust. Activities will be chosen to suit the participating children from bug hotel building, apple juicing to orchard care, visits to the orchards and educational talks on permaculture and biodiversity.
‘Brighton Permaculture Trust is pleased to be able to work with MULTIPLY as a practical example of Fair Share – sharing their surplus with projects that will make a difference to children in Brighton communities’. Jan Mulreany, Trustee.
Permaculture and Business-to-Business Technology Transfer
Although technology transfer may seem a long way from community permaculture projects, they are different manifestations of the same vision to enable people and the planet to flourish. Brighton Permaculture Trust is focussed on inspiring, connecting and learning, bringing people together to advance the development of solutions to environmental and socio-economic issues. MULTIPLY is opening-up the way people and businesses think about sustainable growth, promoting a purpose-led, lateral growth approach, connecting knowledge and technology with new opportunities to multiply value.
Permaculture Ethics and Principles
Brighton Permaculture Trusts applies the principles of Permaculture to all their projects, similarly, MULTIPLY directly applies this innovative philosophy to the way we do business and deliver projects.
Earth care, people care, and fair share are the ethics that underpin the 12 core permaculture principles. The table below shows how the principles of permaculture are shaping our business approach:
| Principle | How MULTIPLY applies this principle |
| Observe and interact | We work closely with our clients to observe and inform meaningful, enduring solutions. Internally we continue to observe and improve our Technology Transfer Framework. |
| Catch and store energy | From our team’s energy; promoting flexible, remote and on-site work to our streamlined framework. We do not charge by the hour; we charge by the project – meaning our clients gets what matters only. |
| Obtain a yield | We deliver revenue increases and de-risk our clients through B2B technology transfer, ensuring a yield is always obtained as part of our projects. |
| Apply self-regulation and accept feedback | Our purpose-led value builds in self-regulation by ensuring every decision is done with confidence knowing that the result will have a positive social and environmental impact, enabling sustainable growth. |
| Use and value renewable resources and services | We are directly enabling clients to use existing resources and services to MULTIPLY value. |
| Produce no waste | From being a digital-first operation, to multiplying the value of existing technologies and knowledge we are reducing waste across our activities. |
| Design from patterns to details |
MULTIPLY’s Technology Transfer Framework is based on observing and researching technology transfer to understand the pattern that informs the framework. The framework in turn gives our team and clients confidence in the approach to delve into the detail without losing focus on the over-arching project values and aims. |
| Integrate rather than segregate |
We focus on a customer-led approach, engaging a broad stakeholder group and externally integrating knowledge. |
| Use small and slow solutions |
Our Technology Transfer Framework is iterative, using a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods to take small, considered steps at pace with confidence. |
| Use and value diversity | Diversity is one of our three core values, recognising and embracing diversity in our teams, programmes, places, and companies. |
| Use edges and value the marginal | MULTIPLY designs solutions to build a company laterally, looking beyond the edge of a single industry. |
| Creatively use and respond to change |
We are the change-makers, enabling companies to creatively engage with B2B technology transfer as a new route to sustainable growth. |
Find Out More
If you would like to find out more, or get involved with the Brighton Permaculture’s School’s Project, please contact admin(at)brightonpermaculture.org.uk. To keep up to date on MULTIPLY’s technology transfer programmes, research, and social enterprise work sign up to our Quarterly Newsletter.