Upcoming Courses

In this 3-day course, world-reknowned Permaculture designer Geoff Lawton will teach on-the-ground permaculture strategies in the context of a 100-acre reforestation and orchard expansion project at the MA Center in Castro Valley, CA. The course will include several of Geoff's famous slideshows and hands-on participation in creating a water-harvesting, food forest on a grassy hillside. Students will walk the landscape with Geoff and learn how to site small ponds, build swales, design keyline systems, stabilize the landscape, and take an ecological approach that transitions from "planting trees" to "designing eco-systems".  All proceeds will be donated to Amma's Greenfriend's Tree Planting projects in the US.

GEOFF LAWTON is director of the Permaculture Research Institute of Australia, a master of haresting rainwater in the landscape, and a frequent co-teacher with Bill Mollison. He has been invited by governments, NGOs, businesses, and communities in 27 different countries to teach, restore damaged ecosystems, and direct sustainable design projects. See how Geoff has used permaculture to Green the Desert.

The MA CENTER is the US headquarters for the activities of international humanitarian and spiritual leader Mata Amritananda Mayi, known as Amma. Amma's humanitarian projects include free food and clothing programs, charitable hospitals, hospices, disaster relief programs, free homes for the poor and the needy, medical camps, orphanage, schools, educational institutions, and the preservation of nature. > Learn more about Amma

GREENFRIENDS is Amma's international environmental initiative that has planted a half million trees throughout India and the world in the past decade. 

COST: Sliding Scale: $350 - $250.

 

This 10-day course is intended for students and practitioners of permaculture and sustainability to have the opportunity to increase their experience and knowledge in the area of water design while traveling and living on one of Common Vision’s vegetable-oil powered buses. This course will provide hands-on experience with and exposure to many long-time practitioners in swales, key-line design, roof catchments, pond systems, and biological strategies. This course is currently in development and is scheduled for 2009.

The long awaited return of the vegetable oil-powered mobile permaculture design course is upon us. True to Common Vision’s collaborative and dynamic program design, this course will bring to life the 72hour PDC curriculum by weaving together site examples, teachers, and projects from all across Northern California that best demonstrate aspects of sustainable design. This course is currently in development and is slated for late summer or fall of 2009.