[Sdpg] Ecovillage and Permaculture Certificate Program: Integrating Land, Building, and Social Sustainability June 20th through August 13th Lost Valley Educational Center, Dexter, Oregon 2005

[Wesley Roe and Marjorie Lakin Erickson]

Ecovillage and Permaculture Certificate Program: Integrating Land, 
Building, and Social Sustainability

Summer 2005
Lost Valley Educational Center, Dexter, Oregon
June 20th through August 13th



Course Description

This dynamic two month residential course will provide a holistic 
introduction to creating ecovillages and sustainable communities. What 
makes this course truly unique is the integration of the physical and 
social elements of ecovillages. For the physical side of ecovillages, the 
course will include an entire permaculture design certificate course, with 
added content and hands-on projects in organic gardening, eco-building, 
eco-forestry, appropriate technology, and community site design. Social 
aspects will include subjects such as interpersonal communication in 
community, organizational and financial issues in community, as well as 
opportunities to participate in Lost Valley's deeply rewarding personal 
growth workshops.

The program will include many hands-on and experiential opportunities. By 
living at Lost Valley for eight weeks, course participants will have the 
opportunity to participate first-hand in intentional community life. This 
program is ideal for people with a wide variety of backgrounds. A 
Permaculture Design Certificate will be awarded upon successful completion 
of this course and college credit is available.
--Core subject areas	--Accredidation	
--Contact info & registration	--Instructors	
--Logistics, fee, participant expectations	--Application and Questionnaire	


Core Subject Areas

The three main subject areas of the course are:

· Land and Garden

· Built Environment

· The Human Community

These three subject areas will be integrated into a holistic core 
curriculum. In addition, course participants will have the opportunity to 
explore specific areas of interest in greater detail.



Land and Garden

In Land and Garden we will explore various methods of sustainable 
landscaping and plant propagation. Lost Valley's 87 acres of forests, 
gardens, greenhouses, and meadows provide a diverse range of landscapes for 
theory and hand-on practice.

Landscape Planning
Starting at the scale of the watershed, we will learn about the 
relationship between Lost Valley and surrounding lands. We will discuss 
issues such as soil conservation, the impacts of neighboring land use 
practices on Lost Valley's land and stream health, salmon restoration, and 
habitat connectivity. We will discuss permaculture and other progressive 
approaches to site analysis, ecological landscape design, and native and 
edible landscaping. Eco-forestry We will use Lost Valley's forest as an 
example to learn how to restore forest ecology while producing low-impact 
value-added forest products. Subjects covered will include tree 
identification, ecological fire hazard mitigation, medicinal mushroom 
cultivation, and soil health.

Organic Gardening
Learn to grow your own food. We will learn the basics and how they can be 
applied to a rural, urban, or suburban site. Subjects will include starting 
a garden on a new site, building soil, planting, seed saving, garden 
maintenance and watering, greenhouse growing, composting, and strategies 
for urban gardening. We will discuss various approaches such as double 
digging, biodynamic, and no-till.

Built Environment

In Built Environment we will explore issues of sustainability as they 
relate to the design and operation of buildings. Various structures and 
infrastructure on the property will be used for demonstration and hands-on 
teaching.

Eco-Building
This element explores methods of creating sustainable buildings. We will 
compare the sustainability of various materials and energy sources using 
life-cycle assessment. Learn to perform energy efficiency analysis, and how 
to reduce energy and water consumption, and utilize renewable energy. 
Hands-on projects in eco-building will include the use of reclaimed 
materials, cob, papercrete, natural finishes, as well as energy/water 
conservation measures.

Interiors
Subjects covered will include indoor environmental quality, plants as air 
cleaners, electromagnetic fields, Feng Shui, and alternative interior 
materials.

Infrastructure
This will include instruction and hands-on demonstrations in renewable 
energy and appropriate technology systems. We will learn the basics of 
sizing and designing home-scale solar water, photovoltaic, wind, and hydro 
systems, as well as composting toilets, greywater purification systems.

Green Lifestyle Choices
We will examine the ecological effects of various lifestyle choices and 
everyday decisions, from your home to food consumption to commuting to 
shopping. This will be practical information for both aspiring 
"ecovillagers" as well as people living more conventional lives to reduce 
their impact. Interactive workshops and hands-on training will lead you to 
know how to provide measures and how to implement them successfully.

Ecovillage Site Design
In this portion, we will examine how the various pieces of sustainability 
fit together in the landscape to create an ecovillage design. Site 
analysis, solar orientation, pathway design, will connect with landscape 
planning and permaculture principles to inform village design. We will look 
at how local government codes and land use planning affect Lost Valley and 
sustainable community development in general. In addition to contributing 
to a site plan for Lost Valley's future development, we discuss the 
worldwide ecovillage movement, general ecovillage principles, and design 
strategies for urban ecovillages.

The Human Community

This element examines the relationship between self, culture, human 
organizations and a community's sustainability.

Self
We will explore how to transform pain and frustration about environmental 
issues into positive, effective, and compassionate action. We will see how 
community living often provides a reflection for how we choose to live in 
the world. We intend to create a space that is open and welcoming to a 
diversity of philosophical and spiritual beliefs concerning our 
relationship with self, earth, and community.

Social Sustainability
In this portion, we will look at non-violent communication, conflict 
resolution, and other approaches to building sustainable relationships in 
community. We will also discuss larger social issues that affect 
sustainability, such as the effects of consumerism and alternatives, such 
as voluntary simplicity.

Social Organization
This element will include an overview of history and organization of 
intentional communities and ecovillages. We will discuss how to start a 
community, ownership, organizational structure, community economics, 
employment, fundraising, and legal issues. Examining various decision 
making processes, from hierarchical models to consensus, we will discuss 
general theory as well as our own experiences with different systems.

Team Design Projects
For this element, participants will form small teams to work on design 
projects at Lost Valley, using the skills they have been learning. Design 
teams will be paired with a community member with a particular interest in 
the design site, to serve as a model client.

Guest Presenters
A number of Lost Valley residents will tell us about their work and views 
on sustainable community development. We will also have a number of 
regionally and nationally known guest speakers come share their expertise 
with us. Check our website for updates.

Field Trips
We will take a variety of field trips during the course to rural and urban 
places that are implementing sustainability.

Accreditation
Permaculture
Course participants will receive a permaculture design course certificate 
upon successful completion of the course. Successful completion is 
determined by adequate attendance and participation in the course, and 
completion of make-up assignments for portions of the permaculture design 
course curriculum that are missed.

College Credit
University credit will be available for this course as independent study 
credit in the University of Oregon's Environmental Studies Program, the 
Department of Planning, Public Policy and Management and the Architecture 
Department. We can also provide course materials to other universities to 
help students set up opportunities to receive credit where they would like.





Contact and registration

In order to provide a high-quality experience, course size is limited. 
Please register early to reserve your spot.
Go to www.lostvalley.org/EPCPreg.html

Marc Tobin
Phone: (541) 937-3351 ext. 104
Email: sustainability at lostvalley.org


Lost Valley Educational Center
81868 Lost Valley Lane
Dexter, Oregon 97431
(541) 937-3351