Green 101: Upcoming Permaculture/Sustainability Classes & Events in the North Country and Beyond

Being subscribed to about a million and one Permaculture mailing lists, I’ve been seeing a overabundance of interesting workshops on the horizon for end of winter – summer in the North Country, Northeast, and beyond. I’ve listed the courses in chronological order as best as I could, but there’s a lot here, so get comfortable:

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Carbon Farming Course
A series of workshops in Regenerative Agriculture taking place just outside of New York City from January 17 – February 5th, 2012. There is an incredible lineup of teachers and topics, including Joel Salatin, Wes Jackson, Elaine Ingham, Darren Doherty, Dave Jacke, and more!

Get all the course information, early registration discount details,and fresh Regenerative Agriculture news on the website: www.CarbonFarmingCourse.com

Carbon Farming combats climate change and creates vibrant local economies. You can sign up for a single workshop or get a discount and take the whole thing. Here’s the full line-up of topics and teachers:

• Jan 17-19: Holistic Management: Dr. Ann Adams, Holistic Management International
• Jan 20-22: Keyline Farming: Darren Doherty, Regen Ag
• Jan 24-26: Perennial Agriculture: Dr. Wes Jackson, The Land Institute & Dave Jacke, Edible Forest Gardens
• Jan 27-29: Tree Crops & Agroforestry: Eric Toensmeier,Perennial Solutions
• Jan 31 – Feb 1: Living Soils: Dr. Elaine Ingham, Soil Foodweb International
• Feb 2: BioChar Colloquium: Jason Aramburu, Re: Char, Northeast Biochar, & many more!
• Feb 4: Financing Regenerative Agriculture Conference
• Feb 5: Local Food Systems: Joel Salatin, Polyface Farms

The whole event is sponsored by The Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture, The Northeast Organic Farming Associations of NY and NJ (NOFA-NY, NOFA-NJ), The New England Farmers Union, Terra Genesis International, Food Forest Farm, A Growing Culture, Chronogram, and Gaia University International.

$1795 all workshops, $495 individual workshops, $110 individual workshops.

You can email info@carbonfarmingcourse.comor clickhere to connect on Facebook with any questions — see you at the course!

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COMMUNITY TRAINING IN ECOLOGICAL DESIGN IN SYRACUSE
presented by Finger LakesPermaculture Institute (FingerLakesPermaculture.org)
with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Onondaga County (ExtendOnondaga.org)
and TheAlchemical Nursery (AlchemicalNursery.org)

February 4 & 5 (10 a.m. – 5 p.m.)
then Thursday evenings, February 9 through April 5 (6:00–8:30 p.m.)

This class gives gardeners, landowners, farmers,and anyone interested in sustainable living tools to get started on a wide range of projects to improve food production, conserve resources, and save money.

We will meet once a week throughout the winter to discuss the principles and techniques of permaculture and ecology that helpus make better choices for our land, families, and communities.

2/4 & 2/5: Permaculture & Ecology

2/9: Plants & Niches

2/16: Build a Guild

2/23: Soi l& Compost

3/1: Water

3/8: Earthworks

3/15: Trees & Forests

3/22: Community Design

3/29: DesignLab

4/5: Share Design Work

4/14: Rahma Health Clinic garden perma-blitz.

*curriculumsubjectto changes

Class workwill include a self-selected design project; you can design your backyard, garden space, or an entire neighborhood. Examples and applications will be given in both an urban and rural context.Class will be a balance of lecture and hands-on learning.

Instructors include Steve Gabriel, MichaelBurns, Kayleigh Burgess, Frank Cetera and regional guests.

Tuition: $200- $400 (based onwhat you can afford)
Scholarshipsmay available from generous localorganizations.

Visit http://FingerLakesPermaculture.orgfor information and registration.
Phone:607.527.0607
Email: info@fingerlakespermaculture.org

NOTE: This is not a Permaculture Design Certification course. However, your tuition to this series of classes can be applied to our summer PDC course tuition.

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Permaculture Design Certification in NYC
Winter 2011 – Spring 2012
Center for Bioregional Living Educational Programs
Featuring Andrew Faust and Guests

Join us this coming February for a life changing course that will provide you with inspiring career paths and abundant ways of living.

Sixth Street Community Center Lower East Side Manhattan 638 E. 6th Street between Ave B and C
February 18, 19, – 25, 26 | March 3, 4 | March 10-11 | March 17 | April 1-7

This course will cover the core 72 hour Permaculture Design curriculum, including additional hours of in class and out of class activities to adapt this course to our region and to contemporary ecological issues in the United States. It is perfect for motivated individuals who wish to use the tools of Permaculture in urban and rural environs as well as for modeling sustainable and regenerative businesses.

We provide mentoring for graduates who are serious about taking their studies further. Our developing educational  center in Ellenville, NY along with our growing roster of clients can provide real world opportunities and a deeper understanding of Permaculture.

Lectures topics include: Urban redesign and retrofit, passive solar and natural building, inner-city gardening techniques, indoor and apartment gardening, indoor mushroom cultivation, fermented foods, whole foods,       Living Machines and natural waste water treatment, niche market and  cooperatively owned business ideas, rain gardens, living roofs, rooftop gardens, how to clean polluted air with plants, biogas generators,       Bioregionalism and regional self reliance, the economics of globalization, evolution of life on earth, history of agriculture, Biodynamics, natural history of Eastern woodlands, woodlot management, watershed health, the integration of animals into cultivated ecosystems, and so much more!

To receive a certificate students must attend all 11 classes and present a final Permaculture site design. Students will be given the option to  present their final design individually which is a different approach              than most PDCs. In our experience, and from what our growing number of  students say, this contributes to a more practical, professional and intellectually stimulating learning experience. As a result a number of              our student’s final presentations have gone from paper (or electronic presentations) to actualized, real-world designs.

Tuition is $1000 ($30 more if paying via Paypal) with $200 deposit to reserve space

For payment plan options please contact : contact@homebiome.com

Or pay with Paypal on our website www.homebiome.com

Andrew Faust is one of the premier Permaculture teachers and designers in North America with nearly two decades of experience in the field. His passionate and visionary presentation and curriculum has been inspiring and motivating students since his days as an alternative school teacher at Upattinas in Glenmoore, PA. Andrew lived off the grid in West Virginia for 8 years where he designed and built a Permaculture inspired homestead including a 1600 sq ft strawbale house. He moved to Brooklyn  in 2007 and has been applying his knowledge to the urban landscape culminating in a Permaculture Design Certification course many consider life changing. He is developing The Center for Bioregional Living in Ellenville, NY with his partner Adriana Magaña as a pilot campus for his students, clients and baby daughter Juniper.

Guest teachers will include: Lisa DePiano, Mark Krawczyk, Paula Hewitt Avram, Bill Young, Lars Chellberg, David Harper, Dwaine Lee, Keith Morris. For Instructor Bios please go to our website.

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Spring 2012 Online Courses for Beginning Farmers Open for Registration!

Winter is a great time for planning for your small farm future or taking courses to make your existing farm business even more successful.  This Spring we’ll be offering 4 online courses – including a new Machinery and Equipment course – to help you continue your farming education.

As always, our courses are taught by experienced Cooperative Extension educators, farmers, and other specialists. Courses run 5-8 weeks, cost $175, and include both real-time meetings (online webinars) and on-your-own time reading and activities. We do not offer any academic credit, but those who successfully complete a course will receive a certificate and are also eligible for Farm Service Agency (FSA) borrower training credit, which can improve your eligibility to receive a low-interest FSA loan.

We have four greatspring 2012 online courses that will help you build your farm business:

·BF 102: Markets and Profits – Exploring the Feasibility of Your Farming Ideas<http://nebeginningfarmers.org/online-courses/bf-102-markets-profits/> Have an idea for a farm enterprise but not sure if it’s feasible? This course will get you started exploring the potential markets and profitability of your ideas.  Starts January 19, 2012.

·BF 103: Taking Care of Business – Understanding the Business, Regulatory, and Tax Implications of Your Farm<http://nebeginningfarmers.org/online-courses/bf-103-business-side-of-farming> (designed to follow BF 101) This is an intro-level course for aspiring or beginning farmers living and/or farming in NYS and seeking to learn about the commercial, legal and tax implications of farming. Starts March 2, 2012.

·BF 105: Machinery and Equipment – Evaluating What’s Right for Your Operation<http://nebeginningfarmers.org/online-courses/all-courses/bf-105-machinery-and-equipment/> Many a farm operation has been sunk by “shiny equipment syndrome”; in other words, purchasing too much brand new equipment. On the other end of the scale, many new farmers have burned out their bodies by not adequately powering their farms with machinery. This course will help you strike a happy balance, evaluating what equipment you really need for your scale of operation, whether to buy or make other arrangements, and how to keep your equipment running smoothly if you do purchase it. Starts March 5, 2012.

·BF 122: Berry Production – Getting Started with Growing and Marketing<http://nebeginningfarmers.org/online-courses/all-courses/bf-122-berry-production/> If you’re exploring the idea of adding berries and bramble fruits to your farm, this course will help you consider all the aspects of this decision, from varieties and site selection all the way through profit potential and marketing. Starts February 28, 2012

To learn more about each course, please visit http://nebeginningfarmers.org/online-courses. From this site you can visit our Annual Course Calendar, learn more about our Instructors, see answers to Frequently Asked Questions, read details for each course, and even visit a sample online course.

CONTACT: Michelle Podolec at 607-255-9911 or mls266@cornell.edu

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2012 Raising Livestock Series Starts 2/7

Looking for something to do with your land? New York’s Southern Tier is well suited for pasture-based livestock production. If you want to have animals and/or sell pasture-raised meats, this series of classes is for you. Learn from the experiences of successful farmers, and from Cornell Cooperative Extension educators.

This first series of classes will be held at CCE-Tioga County, 56 Main Street in Owego on Tuesday evenings, 6:00-8:00 pm, February 7, 21, March 6, 20, and April 3. These sessions will cover how to assess your land and choose livestock, review infrastructure requirements, and get tips on pasture/hay management.

The second part of the series will be hosted by Tioga County livestock farmers. Learn how they raise hogs (April 18), beef (May 15), sheep and goats (June 19), poultry (July 17), and horses (August 21). At the final class, September 17, you will learn how to navigate NYS regulations and sell your local meat products.

Cost per class is $10 per farm ($75 for the whole series) and includes light snacks and hand-outs. To register and for class details, call (607) 687-4020, or email <mailto:meh39@cornell.edu

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Edible Forest Gardening Classes – Rochester, NY

Edible Forest Garden Design and Theory – February 10-12
$175-225
Would you like to learn how to garden likethe forest even in urban/suburban spaces?  Using Edible Forest Gardens by Dave Jacke with Eric Toensmeier as a guide, we will explore the rationale for using these methods to produce a food forest. We will also explore the design process to create conceptual and detailed designs for the Rochester Permaculture Institute.  Beginners and experienced forest gardeners and permaculture practitioners will all benefit from this experience.  This dynamic, hands-on class will meet 6-9 pm onFriday, 9-9 on Saturday, and 9-1 on Sunday.  All classes will be held in Rochester, NY. Class size is limited.  Sliding scale $175-225 includes lunch and dinner on Saturday. To register: Send a checkpayable to Rochester Permaculture Center, PO Box 18212, Rochester, NY 14618 by January 27, 2012 along with (1) yourname, (2) your mailing address, (3) your email address, and (4) phone number.Additionally, please send a quick email to patty@barefootpermaculture.comletting me know to expect you.  Save $25if you register and pay in full by January 13, 2012.

Edible Forest Gardening In A Nutshell: An Introduction – Saturday, April 7
9am – 1 pm $45-60
Edible Forest Gardening (EFG) is aneffective way to design home scale gardens in our climate that mimic forestecosystem structure and function, but grow food, fuel, fiber, fodder,fertilizer, “farmaceuticals,” and fun while we consciously apply theprinciples of ecology and permaculture.  Join us for a hands-onskill-building experience in edible forest gardening.  Learn to transformtraditional lawn landscapes into abundant food-producing perennial forestgardens.  Participants will learn the skills needed to get started attheir own home or expand the abilities of a gardening business.  We willget our hands dirty while we install and establish a brand new forestgarden.  Have you wanted to:

•     learn about Permaculture and/or EdibleForest Gardening?

•     learn how to grow more food in less space with less weeding and watering?

•     learn how to use organic gardening methods to produce healthier food for yourfamily?

•     learn how to build healthy soil?

•     learn how to incorporate healthy nuts, fruits, and perennial vegetables intoyour garden space?

This dynamic, hands-on class will meetfrom 9 am-1 pm in Rochester, NY.  Class size is limited. Sliding scale $45-60.  Optional brown bag lunch after class.  Preregistrationis required.

To register: Send a check payable to Rochester Permaculture Center, POBox 18212, Rochester, NY 14618 by March 23,2012  along with (1) your name, (2) your mailing address, (3)your email address, and (4) phone number. Additionally, please send a quickemail to patty@barefootpermaculture.com letting me know to expect you.  Save $10 if you register and pay in full by March 9,2012.

Edible Forest Garden Installation and Caretake – April 20-22
$175-225
Join us as we begin installing and caretaking polycultures of multi-purpose plants at the new RochesterPermaculture Institute a local urban/suburban space. Using Edible Forest Gardens by Dave Jacke with Eric Toensmeier as a guide, we wil ldiscuss and experience methods and practices to design, plant, and maintain a food forest. Beginners and experienced forest gardeners and permaculture practitioners will all benefit from this experience. This dynamic, hands-on class will meet 6-9 pm on Friday, 9-9 on Saturday, and 9-1 on Sunday.  Al lclasses will be held in Rochester, NY.  Class size islimited.  Sliding scale $175-225 includes lunch and dinner on Saturday. To register: Send a checkpayable to Rochester Permaculture Center, PO Box 18212, Rochester, NY 14618 by April 6, 2012 along with (1) your name,(2) your mailing address, (3) your email address, and (4) phone number.Additionally, please send a quick email to patty@barefootpermaculture.comletting me know to expect you.  Save $25if you register and pay in full by March 23, 2012.

Edible Forest Garden Caretake and Harvest – August 17-19
$175-225
Join us as we caretake and install new polycultures of multi-purpose plants at the new Rochester Permaculture Institute a local urban/suburban space. We’ll gather, harvest, and eat,too. Using EdibleForest Gardensby Dave Jacke with Eric Toensmeieras a guide, we will discuss and experience methods and practices to manage a food forest. Beginners and experienced forest gardeners and permaculture practitioners will all benefit from this experience. This dynamic, hands-on class will meet 6-9 pm on Friday, 9-9 on Saturday, and 9-1 on Sunday.  All classes will be held in Rochester, NY.  Class size is limited. Sliding scale $175-225 includes lunch and dinner on Saturday. To register: Send a check payable to Rochester Permaculture Center, PO Box 18212, Rochester, NY 14618 by August 3, 2012 along with (1) your name,(2) your mailing address, (3) your email address, and (4) phone number. Additionally, please send a quick email to patty@barefootpermaculture.comletting me know to expect you.  Save $25 if you register and pay in full by July 20, 2012.

Register or more information at patty@barefootpermaculture.comor or 585.506.6505
All fees are sliding scale at the discretion of the student.
Some work-trade arrangements are available, if arranged in advance.
All classes are stand-alone experiences and may be taken individually or as a series.

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Home Fruit Production Series
This 2-part workshop series will cover tree and berry fruits, and how to get started growing them at home!  Participants may take one or both workshops. These classes are geared for the serious home gardener or beginning farmerexploring fruit growing options.

Tree fruit will be covered on Tuesday,2/28 and berries will be discussed on 3/14.
Both classes will be taught by Molly Shaw, Cooperative Extension Fruit & Vegetable Specialist.

Beginning Tree Fruit – Tuesday, February 28
6:00-8:00 pm at 4-H Acres, 418 Lower Creek Road, Ithaca, New York 14850 Learn how to evaluate your land for fruit production, and how to prepare the soil before planting.  Learn how to choose tree fruit varieties for winter hardiness, disease resistance and adequate pollination.  We’ll go over a yearly calendar of tasks like fertilizing and pruning, as well as potential difficulties you canencounter.   Bring a sample of your soil to get pH-tested at the end of the class. Fee: $5/person or $8/couple for 1 class;$10/person or $15/couple for both classes.  Please call CornellCooperative Extension of Tompkins County at (607) 272-2292 to signup!

Beginning Berries – Wednesday, March 14
6:00-8:00 pm at 4-H Acres, 418 Lower Creek Road, Ithaca, New York 14850 In this class you will learn how to choose, plant, and maintainberries.  We will review criteria for a good fruit production site and before-planting soil preparations.  We will discuss variety choices, planting guidelines, and maintenance of the berryplanting.  Bring a sample of your soil to get pH-tested at the endof the class.  Fee: $5/person or $8/couple for 1 class;$10/person or $15/couple for both classes.  Please call Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County at (607) 272-2292 to signup!

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Four Seasons Permaculture Design Certification 72 hour course
$900-1000 (sliding scale)
2012: March 10-11, April 8, May 13,June 10, July 8, August 12, September 9, October 14, November 11, December 9;
2013:  January 13, February 10
This course is structured in one introductory weekend followed by monthly Sunday sessions, allowing full-timeworkers, students, and people with families more flexibility to participate. This dynamic, hands-on class will meet from 9 am-5 pm.  All classes will be held in Rochester, NY. Class size is limited. Pre-registration is required.

To register: Send a check payable to Rochester Permaculture Center, PO Box 18212, Rochester, NY 14618 by February 24, 2012  along with (1) your name, (2) your mailing address, (3)your email address, and (4) phone number. Additionally, please send a quickemail to patty@barefootpermaculture.com letting me know to expect you.  Save $100 if you register and pay in full by February10, 2012.

PDC Description: In our permaculture design certification courses, you will learn how to observe and use the same principles that make ecological systems self-sustaining and apply them to integrated homes and gardens. In addition, you will learn how to apply these principles to energy systems and water supplies, healthy communities, meaningful and fulfilling work, ecological economies, and global political movements for change.

Throughout it all, you’ll be engaged in learning an dexperiencing an empowering way of living in the world, surrounded and supported by like-minded people and instructors. Our goal is to make you a part of Rochester Permaculture Institute’s community, incorporating our seasonal activities into your permaculture experience as time permits. Activities may include spring and fall pruning, seed planting, plant propagation, bed preparation, compost pile making, water harvesting techniques, natural building, and other activities.

Each of our permaculture design certification courses includes the following:

■Permaculture principles and ethics

■Reading the landscape

■Pattern and pattern application

■Water harvesting

■Swale building

■Zone and sector analysis

■Climate and micro climate

■Mapping

■Waste composting and treatment

■Urban permaculture

■Land access

■Community building

■Plant guilds

■Forestgardening

■Aquaculture & Animals

■The design process, principles, strategies andtechniques

■Soil building and sheet mulching

■Pond management and ecology

■Earthworks, green roofs, and natural building

■Grey water systems

■Bioremediation

■Renewable energy systems

■Forest management

■Watershed management

■Group work on a conceptual design project for RPC

■Individual work on a conceptual designproject for RPC

This 72-hour permaculture design certificate course will give participants a comprehensive understanding of permaculture principle s& ethics; design processes, methodologies & tools; and how they can be applied to create regenerative human systems including food, housing, personal relationships, communities, and economies.  Successful completion of this course will earn participants an internationally recognized Permaculture Design Certificate.

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Ecological Greenhouse Design and Management Workshop
March 17 and 18
at Three Sisters Farm in Western Pennsylvania   www.bioshelter.com

Join Darrell Frey, author of Bioshelter Market Garden, as he shares the tips, tricks, and strategies he has learned in his 25+ years experience as farm owner and permaculture instructor at Three Sisters Farm.

This two day intensive workshop will focus on energy efficient greenhouse design and strategies and techniques for organic pest control and greenhouse management.

• Tour Three Sisters’ Bioshelter
• Learn about bioshelter design
• Explore bioshelter crops through the seasons, fertility, and plant care techniques
• Get an in-depth look at greenhouse pests and discover ways to manage them organically and provide beneficial insect habitat
• Discuss business strategies

Cost of the workshop is $250, including lunch on both days. Limited to 15 participants.

To register or for more information, contact Three Sisters Farm at (724) 376-2797 or threesisters@bioshelter.com.

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Teaching Permaculture Creatively
A Nine-Day Intensive Professional Permaculture Teacher Training Course
March 23 through April 1
Kimberton Waldorf School, Phoenixville, PA

Consider this proposition: Events make the best teachers.  The most significant learnings of our lives mostly come from situations we have experienced, and even when people lecture well, they make their presentation an event from which we learn.  If events make the best teachers, it would follow that effective educators focus their energy on designing effective learning events. How does this apply to teaching permaculture?

This nine-day intensive PermacultureTeacher Training explores how to create permaculture learning events, applying ecological principles and processes to the design of permaculture workshops, courses,and other experiences.  Learn howto quickly assess students’ learning modalities, eight intelligences, and otherniche characteristics; create effective learning environments; design multifunctional, functionally interconnected courses where the whole experience is far greater than the sum of the sessions!

Each trainee in this course will design and run short classes and exercises, speak in public, plan and budget an event, and co-teach a public one-day permaculture workshop at course end.  What do whole learning systems look, feel and sound like?  Come find out!  The best way to learn is to do, and to have fun doing it! Join us!

Limited to 27 certified permaculture design course graduates; pre-course preparation required.

Course Staff:

Dave Jacke, primary author of Edible Forest Gardens, has taught innumerable workshops and courses across the country using the principles you will learn in this training.  This is the fifth teacher training he will lead.

Farmer, educator, and designer Chris Jackson works with at-risk youth and livestock at a school inPlainfield, VT, and homesteads there. He took this training with Dave and Jono Neiger in 2007, and has taught three trainings with Dave since.

Kim Almeida hailsf rom the south shore of Boston, where she farms organic annual and perennialvegetables, workshops, and social systems. This will be her second time assisting with this training, which she took in 2009.

Costs:

• A $25 nonrefundable application fee applies to course costif accepted.  You may register andpay the application fee at: http://permacultureteachertraining.eventbrite.com

• Cost for tuition, meals, lodging: $1,300-$1,700 sliding scale.  Early application discount: $1,250 if completed applications are received before February1!  Commuters (no breakfast or lodging included): $1,050-$1,450 sliding scale, $1,000 if completed application received by February 1.

• An additional nonrefundable deposit of $275 is required to hold your place once accepted into the program.  Full payment is required by March 1, 2010.

• Partial scholarships will be available—and your completed scholarship application will help us raise funds!

For more information, downloadthe brochure, Student Outcomes, and the course application (includes scholarshipapplication) at http://www.meetup.com/permie/files/.

CONTACT: The Eastern PennsylvaniaPermaculture Guild, c/o Melissa Miles,
101 Abbey Drive, Linfield, PA 19468, 
(484) 949-1600
easternpennpermacultureguild@gmail.com

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Regenerati​ve Leadership and Urban Permacultu​re

What are you doing to change the world this summer? Join an unforgettable program in leadership, permaculture and sustainable design and change the world!  The upcoming Regenerative Leadership and Permaculture Design course will change your life with nature connection, leadership, permaculture and more.  Details @ http://commoncircle.com

Who: Common Circle Education, the nation’s leadership, sustainable living and permaculture school.
What:   Regenerative Leadership & Urban Permaculture Design
Dates:  April 14 – 22nd – Eugene, Oregon  &  August 11 – 19th – Eugene, Oregon

Find out details @ http://www.commoncircle.com/pdc
Read reviews @ http://www.commoncircle.com/reviews

During the workshop, we will talk about:

* Smart nature-inspired design principles
* Rainwater catchment and storage
* Greywater – smart water re-use with plant filters
* Food forest design for abundance
* Eco-psychology and Regenerative Leadership
* Intentional community design and dynamics
* Bio-remediation and toxic waste cleanup
* Natural building design – cob, strawbale and more
* Soil biology and regeneration
* Sustainable transportation and fuels
* Green business and sustainable economics
* Natural patterns and principles
* Everything you ever wanted to know about plants and soil!

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The Permacultu​re and Sustainabi​lity Across America 2012 Bicycle Tour

Come ride your bicycle with us across the country learning about and promoting sustainability and permaculture. Our most powerful program yet – a supported cross-country tour (support vehicle, meals and lodging included) to farms and sustainability sites, integrated with our award-winning permaculture design and regenerative leadership certification and much more — this program will change your life.

This three-month intensive course combines our Urban Permaculture and Regenerative Leadership Certificate training, followed by a Wilderness First Aid training before we head on the road cycling from Eugene, Oregon all the way across America to Washington DC (we’ll be roughly following the TransAM bike route – about 4200 miles), promoting and learning about sustainable living and intentional communities. The stunning places you will visit on this program and the extraordinary people you will meet will challenge and inspire you..

Who: You and your neighbors who care about a sustainable future for America.  As always, all of our programs are designed for beginner and intermediate cyclists.

Where: Eugene, Oregon to Washington, DC

When:  June 1 – August 31, 2012

More details @ http://commoncircle.com/cross-country-bicycle-tour

This program is about sustainable community living – through the extensive training and preparation, the group will form a self-contained community on wheels that will cycle across the nation learning and promoting sustainable living. Because all of our programs are always designed for beginner and intermediate cyclists, we will teach you how to fix your own flats, fundamentals of bicycle mechanics, wilderness first aid, many safe bicycle touring skills, and provide you with the best possible routes. The permaculture training at the start of the course will give you a very thorough foundation in sustainable community design. Our experienced program co-facilitators will help facilitate the entire program, holding the community container and sharing their experience and guidance along the way — but otherwise serving primarily as members of the community.

Here are some quick facts about this program:

–> Includes our Urban Permaculture Design and Regenerative     Leadership Certification training –> Includes our Oregon Sustainability in Motion Bike Tour –> Includes a Wilderness First Aid certification training! –> We will be following the TransAM route – roughly 4000 miles. –> Average of 60 miles per day (~4-8 hours per day) with     rest/service days roughly once per week –> This is a supported tour – a vehicle carries all the gear. –> Meals are included – organic and vegan ingredients and     menu will be provided, group members take turns cooking –> Experienced and knowledgeable tour support staff team     will cycle with the group. –> Camping accommodations for most of the program

Aside from the amazing places you will visit on this course, the most inspiring and transformational aspect of this program is undoubtedly the incredible community that will form throughout the course. The depth and richness of dialogue of each of our programs naturally leads to friendships and relationships that last well past the expedition itself. We’ve often heard comments from participants who mention that they have never experienced community the way that they have during a Common Circle Education program.

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8th Northeaste​rn Permacultu​re Convergenc​e

8th Northeastern Permaculture Convergence to be held in Eastern Massachusetts

July 13-15, 2012

http://northeastconvergence.wordpress.com/ https://twitter.com/#!/NEConvergence http://www.facebook.com/pages/Northeastern-Permaculture-Convergence/190816097619717

If you are part of the Eastern Massachusetts community, if you are interested in helping coordinate, please e-mail neconvergence@gmail.com.

Please share widely in your circles!  Thanks!

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Whew! Well, I hope you see something here that interests you to learn more about Permaculture, sustainability or even just starting your own garden. If there’s an event that I’ve missed, feel free to post it in the comments section.

Image from Gaia University