Eco Caminhos is a leading permaculture farm and hub in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest, where people reconnect with nature and learn practical solutions for sustainable living. Located in Nova Friburgo, Rio de Janeiro, we demonstrate how humans can restore ecosystems while building resilient communities and healthy local economies,through permaculture, agroforestry, and natural building.
Permaculture is a holistic design system that enables people to live in harmony with nature by mimicking the resilience, diversity, and sustainability of natural ecosystems. Coined by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in the 1970s, it originally meant permanent agriculture, but later expanded to permanent culture to include the social and ethical dimensions of sustainable living.
Permaculture provides practical principles for organizing food production, water systems, buildings, energy use, and community life so that human activities regenerate rather than degrade the environment.
At Eco Caminhos, permaculture principles are the guiding philosophy behind everything we do.
Our vision is deeply aligned with the philosophy of permaculture.
Create conscious regions that harmonize regenerative agriculture, life, and community with nature.
Modern society has become increasingly disconnected from the natural systems that sustain life. Through our work we aim to reconnect people with these systems and demonstrate practical ways for a sustainable living.
Eco Caminhos is part of the broader concept of Ecolibrium, where ecological balance and human development work together to create resilient regenerative regions.
People are at the heart of permaculture and at the heart of Eco Caminhos.
Life on the farm follows the rhythms of nature. Days begin with the sunrise and slow down as dusk arrives. Healthy food, physical activity, and meaningful outdoor work help people rediscover a balanced way of living.
Participants experience simple but powerful moments such as gathering around a bonfire, swimming in natural pools, hiking in the mountains, and working with the land. Living together with people from many cultures encourages learning, cooperation, and personal growth.
Permaculture also requires discipline. Living sustainably is not achieved by simply admiring nature. It requires preparing soil, planting and harvesting food, building houses, recycling materials, and maintaining the systems that sustain life.
Through these experiences people learn that we are part of an intelligent ecosystem that has evolved over millions of years. Practices such as permaculture, agroforestry, and natural building bring us closer to nature and teach us how to live in harmony with it.
Community meetings provide space for people to express feelings, share ideas, and offer constructive feedback. When someone is ill or struggling, the community provides support and care.
Food production is based on agroforestry systems that mimic natural forests. Coffee grows beneath diverse layers of native trees, fruit trees, nitrogen-fixing species, and biomass plants.
These systems restore degraded land, increase biodiversity, improve soil fertility, and produce healthy food without agrochemicals.
Water is carefully managed across the landscape through integrated permaculture strategies that protect, capture, infiltrate and treat water naturally at every point in the cycle.
Eco Caminhos demonstrates natural building techniques using local materials such as clay, sand, bamboo, stone, and wood. Thick cob walls, green roofs, and passive climate design create comfortable buildings with minimal environmental impact.
Energy efficiency comes first. Passive building design keeps houses warm in winter and cool in summer. All cold and hot water systems operate through gravity and thermosiphon systems, requiring no pumps.
Today Eco Caminhos is an energy-neutral farm — all energy comes from natural sources.
Permaculture designs eliminate waste by turning every output into a resource. At Eco Caminhos, nothing leaves the cycle — everything feeds the next system.
As a regenerative hub, Eco Caminhos also serves as a place of learning permaculture and inspiration for the wider community. Farmers, students, volunteers, and visitors from around the world come to learn practical regenerative solutions such as permaculture design, agroforestry, and natural building.
By sharing knowledge and demonstrating working systems, Eco Caminhos helps inspire communities to regenerate landscapes and build resilient local economies.
Eco Caminhos demonstrates that regenerative living is not only possible but practical. By reconnecting people with nature and applying permaculture in daily life, we work toward a future where agriculture, communities, and ecosystems thrive together.
