Where are we?
Mycelio is located in the small beach town Playa Zipolite, on the largely undeveloped coast of Oaxaca in Southern Mexico. Zipolite is a mile-long beach famous for beautiful sunsets and a relaxed and carefree atmosphere. Once a well-known hippy traveler destination, Zipolite now offers enough services that it is starting to attract a wider variety of tourists. While travelers are always wise to take precautions, these days Zipolite is a safe place to walk alone or bring children.

Mycelio headquarters is centrally located on a bluff overlooking the beach, with excellent views and a short walk to the beach, shops, and restaurants. Everything is accessible by foot.

What is it like?
The Mycelio facility is an ongoing permaculture homestead project that seeks to teach by example. Permaculture is a design system for human landscapes that integrates traditional systems of knowledge with modern science and common sense.* Originally developed by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in the seventies, permaculture seeks to:
  • provide efficient natural food production systems for single families or communities
  • reduce ecological footprint by reducing and reusing waste products and reducing external energy inputs
  • make nature work for you, to reduce the amount of work you need to do
  • improve quality of life by placing human activities within a natural ecosystem

Playa Zipolite


View east from Mycelio


View west from Mycelio

More information about permaculture can be found at the The Wilder Institute website.

At Mycelio, we follow permaculture design guidelines in the organization of land, structures, and activities. Waste is minimized and reused as much as possible, and energy use is minimized as much as possible. Food served is from local farms, from organic sources where possible. Structures on our land are built with materials found on the land wherever possible, and are designed to encourage interaction with the environment. Many of the spaces are indoor/outdoor spaces that take advantage of the views, natural air currents, and existing geographical features.

What services does Mycelio offer?
Mycelio also seeks not to offer services that are provided by others in the community, but to use the community as much as possible and incorporate community members into activities. Mycelio has indoor and outdoor meeting spaces with bathrooms, kitchen and access to internet. We do not offer overnight accommodations, but we frequently partner with the Villa Escondida guesthouse across the street, as well as other hotels and guesthouses.
* Paul Cohen, "Shelter and Sustainable Development", from Building Without Borders: Sustainable Construction for the Global Village, Joseph Kennedy, New Society Publishers, 2004