PDC to run 25 September to 4 October

* Languages: English with Arabic translation

* A fantastic opportunity to learn Permaculture Design at Marda’s demonstration site and to experience Palestinian culture at its richest.

* Marda is an ancient, peaceful stone village nestled in the mountains one hour from Jerusalem and surrounded by olive groves.

* The mild climate and rich soil support a great diversity of flora and fauna and being close to the soil here in the Holy Land is a life changing experience.

* The course includes 14 nights board in a comfortable house (camping if you prefer) with internet, showers, washing machine etc..

* Everyone is welcome to this 14 day event, please contact us to book and for help with travel advice.

Program Outline

What is permaculture?

Permaculture history, ethics and principles.

Palestine—cultural overview, history, land use history.  Traditional agriculture—what we can learn from the ancestors.

Climate change.

Reading the landscape.

Site analysis.

Patterns in nature and their application to design.

Zones and sectors

Microclimate

Water:

Water harvesting: swales, ponds, keyline

A-frames and bunyips—finding contour

Rain catchment and storage

Graywater

Sewage solutions—black water treatment, rock and reed beds, living machines, compost toilets

Soil:

Soil structure and biology

Soil building

Compost

Compost tea

Sheet mulch

Cover crops and green manures

Soil, water and carbon cycles

Bioremediation of soil and water

Mycoremediation and mushrooms

Rotational grazing and keyline

Plants:

Plant guilds

Polycultures

Seed saving

Food forests

Orchard planning and tree care

Trees and sustainable forestry, woodland management

Coppice and pollarding

Wind breaks

Animals in the system:

Bees and beekeeping

Chickens and poultry

Sheep and goats—holistic management grazing systems

Aquaponics

Energy systems:

Energy conservation

Alternative energy—renewables

Solar—passive, active, hot water

Wind

Savonius rotor systems

Rocket and masonry stoves

Natural Building:

Traditions of the Middle East

Cob, adobe, mudbrick, strawclay

Group dynamics and decision-making:

Conflict transformation

Way of council

Open space

World cafe

Economics:

Money, debt and true wealth

Alternative currencies

Crowd funding

Microlending

Organizing for a permacultural vision:

Bioregionalism

Design:

Mapping

Site assessment

Design process and tools

Design project and presentation

Instructors

Starhawk is one of the most respected voices in modern earth-based spirituality. She is also well known as a global justice activist and organizer, whose work and writings have inspired many to action. She is the author or coauthor of twelve books including The Fifth Sacred Thing, The Earth Path and The Empowerment Manual: A Guide for Collaborative Groups.  She holds an MA in Psychology from Antioch West University, and received her Permaculture Design Certificate in 1996 from Penny Livingston-Stark.  Since 2000, she has been teaching and directing Earth Activist Trainings, which offer training in permaculture with a grounding in spirit and a focus on organizing and activism, with a mission to bring the tools and insights of regenerative design to communities with the greatest need.  EAT has trained hundreds of students over the past thirteen years, as well as providing support for social justice mobilizations and encampments, disaster aid and bioremediation in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, and ongoing training for at-risk youth, community gardens and job training programs in inner city San Francisco.   Starhawk has a special interest in the people-care aspects of social permaculture, in conflict resolution and group decision-making, and in urban permaculture. Together with EAT teacher Charles Williams, she is also developing model permaculture systems for Mediterranean climates on her Sonoma County, CA ranch, integrating olives, lavender, food forests, chickens and a holistic management rotational grazing program for sheep.  She also has a deep love for soil biology and the roll soil building can play in mitigating climate change.

Since his first PDC in 1997 in California, Alfred Decker has been involved with social movements and projects throughout Europe and the Americas. He's currently working on a master's degree in sustainable architecture and renewable energy, founding a new local group, Permacultura Barcelona, and organising a forest gardens project at Can Masdeu. He has taught in the U.S., Spain, France, Germany, Portugal, and Greece.

Murad Al Khuffash is Marda Permaculture Farm founder and permaculture specialist. In 2006, after studying permaculture at the Farm Ecovillage Training Center in Summertown, Tennessee, Murad Alkhfash founded Marda Permaculture Farm. He is creating a teaching center and model farm in Marda for local farmers and international permaculture students.

Price

International students: $1600                                                            

Local students: $400 (a limited number of scholarships might be available)

 

For registration and more information

Email: mardapermaculture@gmail.com

Facebook: Marda Permacuture Farm, Palestine

Website: http://mardafarm.wordpress.com/