Kinstone Academy of Applied Permaculture is offering two PDCs in 2013. One in May and one in August. You can register at www.kinstonecircle.com.
The course description is the same for them both with the exception of the special event to create a cob oven occurring during this May PDC.
The Permaculture Design Certificate course is a training program that utilizes the teachings of Bill Mollison’s Permaculture Design System. The goal is to achieve a basic working understanding in ecologically-based planning, site design and management. This course provides a comprehensive introduction to Permaculture principles, applications and design practices as first set out by Permaculture founder, Bill Mollison. The PDC meets a common international standard as a foundational course for Permaculture practitioners and teachers. Special attention in our Permaculture training is given to climatic zones represented by course participants.
The PDC is an essential prerequisite for:
Permaculture design work in the field
All Advanced Programs offered at KAAP
Teaching Permaculture
An exciting event will occur during the May 2013 PDC – students will have an opportunity to “get their hands dirty” while learning about cob as a building material as we create a cob oven from scratch. Cob consists of clay, sand, and straw. It is fireproof and relatively inexpensive. We are looking forward to making our own unique and wonderful wood-fired oven from cob.
Organization: The PDCs at Kinstone include the standard 72-hour international PDC curriculum, addressing all major climatic zones (temperate, subtropic, tropical & arid) and the breadth of Permaculture applications for sustainable urban, suburban, rural, and bioregional design and development.
Instructors: Wayne Weiseman, Kate Heiber-Cobb, Milton Dixon, Jarad Barkeim
Course Texts: All participants receive a copy of a Permaculture PDC Handbook with over 150 pages of notes and resources as a valuable reference material students use throughout the course and keep for future study.
PDC Preparatory Reading:
Introduction to Permaculture, Bill Mollison,
Earth users Guide to Permaculture, Rosemary Morrow,
Gaia’s Garden, Toby Hemenway
Course Topics:
Permaculture principles
Concepts and themes in design
The local ecosystem
Forms of eco-gardening and farming
Broad scale site design
The application of specific methods, laws and principles to design
Pattern understanding
Climatic factors
Plants and trees and their energy interactions
Water, soils, earth-working and earth resources
Zone and sector analysis
Food forests and small animal husbandry
Harvest and natural forests
Aquaculture
Planning the homestead
Structures
Craftwork and chores
Equipment, tools and vehicles
Renewable energy and energy conservation
Waste management and recycling
Permaculture strategies for different climates
Urban and suburban Permaculture
Small farm and garden management and marketing
Strategies of an alternative global nation
Practical work on design