the croak of a frog
pierces through the whole cosmos
turning it into
a single family.
- Chang Chin-ch'en
Gaiacraft : Temple Permaculture
Permaculture Design Certification Course
Permaculture is a whole systems approach to conscious living. It promotes an awareness of the world in a new light with a focus on sustainability, low impact living, organic gardening and healthy community development. Using a series of principles, techniques and technologies, permaculture empowers people with the skills to evolve their relationship to themselves, each other, the land upon which they live and the planet.
Bill Mollison, the founder of permaculture, defines the world as such:
"Permaculture ("Perm"anent "agri"culture and "Perma"nent "culture") is a sustainable design system stressing the harmonious interrelationship of humans, plants, animals and the Earth.
Permaculture principles focus on thoughtful designs for small-scale intensive systems which are labor efficient and which use biological resources instead of fossil fuels. Designs stress ecological connections and closed energy and material loops. The core of permaculture is design and the working relationships and connections between all things. Each component in a system performs multiple functions, and each function is supported by many elements. Key to efficient design is observation and replication of natural ecosystems, where designers maximize diversity with polycultures, stress efficient energy planning for houses and settlement, using and accelerating natural plant succession, and increasing the highly productive "edge-zones" within the system.
Permaculture is a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted & thoughtful observation rather than protracted & thoughtless labour; & of looking at plants & animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single-product system."
Join us for an adventure in learning. With the 72 + hour core curriculum we will learn together how to map and design our land and our lives, to plan for emergency, grow food organically and work together to build a more sustainable future. With the certification you will be empowered to use the word permaculture in your business and consider yourself a permaculture designer able to hire yourself out for permaculture consultations and teach permaculture workshops with confidence. Not only is this a course about learning how to practice permaculture, it is also about how to teach permaculture.
Course Topics include
* design methods * understanding patterns in nature * climatic factors * water * soils * earthworks and their use in earth repair * techniques and design strategies for both urban and rural applications * the temperate climates * dry lands * cold climates * humid cool climates * humid tropics * trees and their energy transactions * aquaculture * waste management * energy efficient architecture * legal strategies and trusts * effective working groups * right livelihood * money and finance * ethical investment * bio-regional organisation * effective aid and much much more
There are 13 core classes, one a moon for a full year. All classes are required for completion of the course. Normally these courses cost $800 - $2000 but here in Roberts Creek at this time the course costs only $300. The maximum class size is 8 to ensure an intimate learning environment. We will move around to different locations for each class, students have the option to host a class on their land if they wish.
Sunday, September 13, 2009 at 04:28AM