The main goal of this method is to use the Mat to learn about the clips model and to put it at the service of a group project. The Mat serves as a symbolic representation of the project to be worked on. Placed on the
ground, it takes strength and identity.
This representation encourages play and participation through other symbolic elements like stones, seeds, branches, leaves, etc. that are already in the place, creating a space of deep connection of the participants with their common project and with the facilitators.

Tensions can be seen as a piece of emergent information at a given time. A group project will go through situations with tension as part of a changing, growing, and learning process. This method allows collecting information by observing the group scenario as a force field, where the different vectors push in opposite directions. This facilitates the next step: to define which proposals can be developed in order to improve the group field and process.

A method to help groups orient their actions and understand their strengths and weaknesses using the Permaculture Principles in relation to the CLIPS model. The Assessment Tool cuts across all the CLIPS layers, and is a diagnostic tool that completes the Social Permaculture & CLIPS Method and should therefore be used after the Orientation Table in part 1).

We have developed a CLIPS-Self-Assessment-Tool to help groups to analyze their own group. It is a questionnaire
that can be found on the internet and completed online or on the computer. But the result of the questionnaire
doesn’t tell “the truth” about a project – this is important to bear in mind!