These past 3 weeks have been more than I could’ve ever hoped for, full of learning and growing. I have had the chance to meet many new friends from all over the world, absorb the wisdom from 4 insanely knowledgable mentors, and to look deeper into how we interact with our earth and what we can do to make a positive impact. Taking this Permaculture Design Course with Earthcare Education Aotearoa was probably the single most empowering and life-changing experience I have ever had. I am now feeling incredibly motivated to get out there and make big changes. The permaculture movement is alive and thriving, and I can feel it in every breath I take, pulsing through my veins in a feverish, determined rush to help people and help the planet. Being fully immersed in permaculture studies has filled my mind and heart with hope for the future, and the understanding of how we can shape the way our society takes care of ourselves and our homes.
Some context for the course-
The place:
The Tui Treefield is a teaching space within the Tui Community, where PDCs, festivals, and other educational events are held.
From the top of the Tui property, overlooking Wainui Bay
The estuary, full of restoration wetland plantings by the community. This used to be a dairy farm pasture!
The main learning space
The teachers:
Robina McCurdy: A very smart woman who did her permaculture training with Bill Mollison (often deemed the father of permaculture and author of staple texts on the matter) and was encouraged by him to become a teacher due to her extreme enthusiasm. Has since taught with David Holmgren in many countries and does large scale design projects, primarily building communities in third world countries. She founded Tui Community in the 1970s and lives here with other permaculturists. She’s always an inspiration, can motivate anyone at any time, and is more in touch with the ways of the world than anyone I’ve ever met.
Courtney Brooke: From the southeast of the United States, with a background of environmental education. She lives part time in North Carolina at a permaculture institute called Earth Haven, and is based here in Golden Bay where she works with Robina. Has also spent much time learning from David Holmgren and doing design work throughout the world. She is very generous and carefree, and always there for support!
Phoenix Husthouse: From Auckland, who started off his career by working with the government to establish a flourishing community garden to help provide organic food for free to those who couldn’t access it. Now, he is a professional designer of properties throughout the country and helps convert unsustainable agriculture enterprises into healthy ones! He always has innovative suggestions for improvement and fine-tuning work and is incredibly relaxed and fun to be around.
The layout:
Our typical day started at 7 am and consisted of five 1 1/2 hour sessions, though some days were even more packed than that! Sessions were balanced between powerpoints and discussions, hands-on activities, writing exercises, community involvement through site visits, and building practicals. I’ll be making some blog posts covering the main topics we dove into along with some skills and ideas I gained through the work.