Season 2
SEASON 2 EPISODE 2
In this episode of Land Language, hosts Brit Sastrawidjaya and Bethany Rydmark sit down with Jonathan Clay, founder of The Kalos Project in Houston, Texas, a regenerative farming and permaculture design organization working to rebuild local food systems from the ground up.
Together, they explore how permaculture's closed-loop principles apply to team leadership, what it takes to create a safe container for difficult conversations on a job site, and the ambitious platform Jonathan is building to close the gap in Houston's local food economy.
"I'm not going to make this basil any better than it is. It's already in its genome. I just need to be a steward of the soil that's around it. It's the same thing I'm doing with the people."
—Jonathan Clay
We explore:
Why the same principles that govern regenerative agriculture apply directly to how you grow a team
The specific approach to use when a team member becomes frustrated
The best practices Jonathan has used to mentor his team
The economics of regenerative business
How The Kalos Project is building infrastructure to let ordinary people participate in local food production
On the ground, Jonathan and his team are converting underutilized urban land into permaculture-designed food systems for Houston households and businesses. At the organizational level, he is developing a platform that lets farms operate with up to 80% volunteer labor, removing the friction (liability, onboarding, logistics) that keeps community members from showing up.
This episode is a grounded conversation exploring how permaculture thinking translates from soil to team, from farm to food system, and from a corporate career to a mission worth building. You don’t want to miss it.
Jonathan Clay is the founder of The Kalos Project, a Houston-based organization using regenerative farming and permaculture design to turn underutilized urban land into thriving local food systems.
Before founding Kalos, Jonathan spent years in corporate enterprise sales, an experience that clarified his belief that extractive systems, whether agricultural or organizational, cost more than they return. His approach to leadership mirrors his approach to soil: understand what is already there, find the companion elements that help it thrive, and stop tilling everything up to start over.
The Kalos Project works with Houston families, businesses, and communities, and is developing a platform to connect volunteer labor with local farms at scale.
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