Hi all, there are a few spots still in the course…
To register or for more info, contact: Kolmi Majumdar, Quail Springs, (805) 886-7239, info@quailsprings.org
P.O. Box 417, New Cuyama, California 95254
Spring 2007 Permaculture Design Certificate Course with Geoff Lawton AND Darren Doherty
at Quail Springs Permaculture Farm and Learning Oasis (dry land agricultural setting)
DATES: May 14-27th, 2007
LOCATION: Upper Cuyama Valley in the Southern/Central California Mountains, approximately 2 hour drive from LA, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo.
COST: $1350 for full payment received by January 31, 2007, and $1450 for payment after February 1, 2007. *a $400 deposit upon registering to hold your space, with balance paid in full one week prior to course (May 7th) (camping and meals included) payment plans are offered
"All the world's problems can be solved in the garden."
Go to http://www.quailsprings.org/programs.htm for more information.
What is Permaculture?
Permaculture is a holistic approach to land use design, based on ecological principles and patterns. It aims to create stable, productive systems that provide for human needs, harmoniously integrating the land with people. Permaculture principles can be applied to any environment, at any scale - from dense urban settlements to individual homes, from farms to entire regions.
This world-recognized, 72-hour course provides an introduction to Permaculture as set forth by movement founder Bill Mollison. Students are invited to bring details of their own sites or potential sites and explore site-specific Permaculture solutions. The course serves as the foundation for further study and is a prerequisite for a Diploma in Permaculture Design, awarded by the Permaculture Research Institute. To date, hundreds of Permaculture designers worldwide have been certified through the course, creating a global network of ecological activists influencing major corporations and creating new soft-energy business alternatives. The course covers sustainable living systems for a wide variety of landscapes and climates, with special emphasis on arid zones.
Course Content
The course includes the application of Permaculture principles to food production, home design, construction, energy conservation and generation, and explores alternative economic structures and legal strategies supporting Permaculture solutions. Specific topics include:
Theory and principles of Permaculture
Nature-friendly house placement and design
Energy conservation techniques for cold climates
Recycling and waste management
Soil rehabilitation
Organic food production
Water harvesting and management, including earthworks
Ecological pest control
Drought-proofing
Soil rehabilitation and erosion control
Animal husbandry
Aquaculture
Catastrophe preparedness and prevention
Windbreaks and fire control
Aspects of eco-village design
Community
Invisible structures
About the Instructors
Geoff Lawton is the Director of the Permaculture Research Institute in Australia, assuming the position from Permaculture founder Bill Mollison. Lawton has worked for clients that include communities, governments, aid organizations, non-government organizations and multi-national companies. Lawton has served clients in 17 different countries, including Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, USA, Mexico, Macedonia, Vietnam, Costa Rica, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, England, Denmark, Australia and the South Pacific. A recent project in Jordan is documented on a video called Greening the Desert available for viewing on his website (http://www.permaculture.org.au/).
Nadia Abu Yahia (Lawton) was born in the Dead Sea Valley in Jordan. She learned traditional ways of land use from her father, an expert farmer and herbal healer of Palestinian, Bedouin descent. She later went on to complete her Permaculture diploma in design, education and site development and has recently become a registered Permaculture teacher.
Darren Doherty has been a full-time Permaculture Designer since 1993 (at age 24) and focused the first half of his career on design and development work, to the point where he became the most prolific Permaculture Designer in Australia, designing and developing over 1100 properties in that period, with a large development and management team backing his design efforts. With the births of his two younger children, by 2002 he tailed off his emphasis in that regard and is now working on selected "special projects" and teaching about 5 PDC's per year. He spends about 40% of his working time these days in Viet Nam or managing his Viet Nam projects (Permaculture development and education projects for M&M's/Mars Inc. & ACDIVOCA) with the remaining time spent managing a 60ha working research & demonstration farm in Southern Victoria, Australia plus a smattering of broadacre design jobs here and there. David Holmgren and he co-teach one Permaculture Design Course a year here in his home town of Bendigo, Central Victoria.
About the Farm
Quail Springs is a land-based project of True Nature, a non profit organization, dedicated to the learning and sharing of essential living skills which support personal, community, and ecological health and balance. We accomplish our mission through the offerings of family camps and life skills workshops, vocational and mentoring programs for teens, and internships and service learning at our Permaculture designed farm setting and learning oasis in the Cuyama Valley of California where life-long learning is nurtured in an atmosphere of community support.
This is a 450 acre farm at 3900 feet (approx. 1100m) elevation and we are shaping the land and our lives towards a model of self-sufficiency. This property is in its third year of development with community-built structures, a spring-fed gravity flow water system, a dam, swales, food gardens, tree plantings, food forest, animal systems, and a great community spirit.
What to expect
Learn and live Permaculture design and development while camping onsite. In addition to primitive camping facilities and compost toilets, participants should also be prepared for some cold evenings and mornings.
This 72-hour certificate program is a 13-day, residential design course with a one-day break in the middle and a celebration at the end.
Quote about the course
"I thought I was coming to learn about gardens, and instead I learned about life, and the importance of community and interdependence."
Caretaker
Quail Springs
Learning Oasis and Permaculture Farm
805-886-7239