We seek the reimagining of existing paradigms for community development, land management and engineering. We are not afraid to take creative risks to advance these visionary goals, while maintaining a commitment to integrity and authenticity in our services. We work to integrate ecological processes with agriculture to regenerate both land and human spirit.
BODHI facilitates the strengthening of our existing human habitats against today’s adverse challenges (e.g., extreme weather events, economic insecurity, food and water shortages, fraying social fabrics, decaying mental and emotional well-being, etc.), while supporting the design and implementation of new land projects based on time-tested principles embedded in Permaculture, Holistic Management, and Regenerative Design. BODHI leverages our experiences and expertise that are unique among other practitioners of engineering and land planning. We are able to offer our clients something different.
More specifically, we:
As individuals, we can all start making small steps in a direction that will lead us collectively to a more rooted society while accepting that life is constantly changing and adaptation is necessary for growth.
Context is everything. Understanding the climatic and environmental forces inherent to a site, as well as the “personal climate” (e.g., holistic goals) of the humans involved is fundamental to the long-term success of a project.
Most members of our society need better hobbies to move more from "consumer" to "producer". As such, we think it wise to invest in traditional pastimes, skills, and occupations that have supported humans for ages — particularly those that involve a relationship with nature.
Our society's most challenging problems are complex. Solving these requires us to push beyond the prescriptive, technocratic, and narrow approaches that we are taught in our institutions. We often use the Holistic Management Framework as a proven decision-making strategy for managing complex systems while delivering solutions balanced in socioeconomic and environmental values.
BODHI means "enlightenment". Although we don't claim to be awakened beings, we strongly acknowledge the influence that our physical environment, food and water consumption, and sources of energy contribute to our mental, physical, and spiritual well-being. As such, we provide coordinated design and consulting services for Food / Water / Shelter that are rooted in an understanding of how to work with natural and complex systems.
This approach is contrary to the complicated and reductionist paradigm that dominates the engineering and agriculture fields today. Our society could benefit from a different perspective, so we start with root cause problem solving (versus short-term symptom-based solutions) and operate with an expanded "toolbox" that doesn't always favor new technology. We are not reinventing the wheel — just trying to reimplement the wisdom and human-environment relationships that proved successful for ages past.
Bobby Tucker, PE, is BODHI’s president and resident professional engineer. He is a regenerative farmer by trade and works part-time for Tetra Tech as a senior water resource engineer and lead strategist/technical expert regarding the food-water-energy nexus. His professional resume exhibits a vast range of water-related projects throughout the U.S. and beyond, with a focus on low-impact site development, green infrastructure design, onsite wastewater management, and the integration of sustainable agriculture systems as a holistic approach to watershed challenges. His client base with Tetra Tech has ranged from state and federal agencies, local municipalities, non-profit organizations, and private businesses.
Throughout his entire 15+ year professional career, he has established and operated Okfuskee Farm – a “Diversified Farming Experiment” focused on development of agroforestry and regenerative-based agriculture systems for Piedmont, NC. During this time, he has specifically refined his techniques for utilizing livestock (primarily sheep, hogs, and chickens) as ecological land management tools, integrating native perennial into the farmscape, and soil building techniques through holistic-planned grazing, no-till cropping, and coppice forestry. The farm hosts multiple tours each year to educate students and others on a regenerative agriculture. In addition, Bobby has initiated and led numerous collective marketing businesses and has served as Secretary and Chair of the Chatham County Ag Advisory Board from 2015-2021.
He started Bodhi Land & Design in 2016 to better assimilate his two professions (engineer/farmer) and offer clients his expertise and services without the higher cost barriers a large engineering firm requires. His professional understanding of land design, infrastructure development, broad-acre permaculture, and regulatory compliance has created exciting opportunities to pursue innovative models for integrating ecological farming systems with residential development.
Bobby lives and farms in Silk Hope, NC with his wife Bronwyn, and three young children.