Benjamin Weiss has completed an apprenticeship in natural building and ecological design, an internship in community development, and the PDC at the Ecovillage Training Center on the Farm in Summertown, Tennessee, where he studied with Albert bates, Matthew & Jennifer English, & Cliff Davis. Ben also earned a permaculture teacher's certificate at Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute with Peter Bane, Sandy Cruz, & Goodheart Brown. Additionally, Ben has studied at Growing Power in Milwaukee, and locally in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, with the Susquehanna Permaculture guild. He has designed and managed 3 small farms, including CSA's and an urban agriculture site.
Ben was introduced to permaculture in the early 2000s by his aunt & uncle who live at the Farm community in Tennessee, and through the work of the Dig It! project in his hometown of Lancaster. He has been highly influenced by the teachings and writings of Masanobu Fukuoka, Stephen Harrod Buhner, Emelia Hazelip, David Holmgren, and Thich Nhat Hanh. Ben studies and experiments with herbalism, native science, shamanic techniques, bushcraft, aikido, bio-intensive agriculture, and ecology.
Currently Ben teaches permaculture, including the PDC, for Ngozi Inc's "Let's Get Dirty" urban ag program in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and as a resident teacher at the Pendle Hill Quaker Community near Philadelphia. He is participating in the design and implementation of an urban ag education center with Ngozi, as well a privately owned forest garden in Lancaster City, among other projects. Ben is available as a teacher, workshop leader, designer, and laborer.