Permaculture Design and EcoVillage Living for Global Regeneration

Permaculture is a design system that uses the patterns found in nature to improve the sustainability of existing systems and create sustainable, productive, holistic human environments. Permaculture addresses imbalances people have imposed upon nature, such as soil depletion, desertification, water shortages, peak oil, and global warming. It incorporates practical techniques, indigenous approaches, and appropriate technologies such as trapping solar heat in winter, local and abundant agriculture, poly-cultural companion planting, catching rainwater for garden irrigation, and more. Permaculture is a vision for a culture of beneficial human integration with the natural systems that support our lives. We will address permaculture core ethics, principles and tools for regenerative design.

Ecovillages are campuses for sustainability education. Ecovillages are communities striving to create cooperative lifestyles in harmony with their local environments. From appropriate technologies to holistic health; from sustainable agriculture to group facilitation, from ecological awareness to carbon sequestration, local economies and right livelihood, ecovillages are integrating solutions within human-scale communities and creating new cultures and "stories" in which we can live well - and lightly. In the process, they are developing real-world models of sustainable development that make ideal "campuses" where students can learn about sustainability while striving to live it. We will address an overview of the growing, global eco-village movement along with the possibilities and challenges of using these communities as contexts for education and social change.

This full day workshop on Friday May 1st will give you information about opportunities available in these expanding and essential fields of research and practice.

Kay Cafasso

Kay is a certified permaculture instructor, designer, and natural builder. She is inspired by the ability to regenerate natural systems with thoughtful and holistic design of landscapes, dwellings, and communities. She received her permaculture design certification through Naropa University in 2002 and has since been involved with teaching permaculture 72-hour design certification courses across the country, in dryland, tropical, and temperate climates. She has experienced community life at the Isle of Erraid, a sister to the Findhorn Community in Scotland and has helped to start up Co-op Power, a member-owned cooperative for renewable energy in the northeastern US. Kay holds certificates in solar home design and natural building construction from Solar Energy International and is a seasonal earth plasterer of straw bale and natural homes. Her enthusiasm and ability to inspire others is remarkable. www.sowingsolutions.net

Daniel Greenberg

Daniel Greenberg, Ph.D. has studied and directed community-based educational programs for over 20 years. He wrote his thesis on children and education in community, and later spent a year at Findhorn in Scotland working with children and families there. He is founder and Executive Director of Living Routes, which develops accredited ecovillage-based education programs that promote sustainability. He lives at the Sirius Community in Shutesbury, Massachusetts USA with his wife, Monique and their two daughters, Simone and Pema. www.livingroutes.org

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