Monestevole's
Permaculture Design Course
DUE TO PERSONAL REASONS, THIS COURSE IS POSTPONED TO SPRING 2021. SPECIFIC DATES WILL FOLLOW IN OCTOBER.
Permaculture Design Course - 18th of October to 1st of November 2020
The Permaculture Design Course (PDC) is a 72-hour internationally recognised training engaging participants' head, heart and hands to discover the principles and techniques of Permaculture Design.
At Tribewanted Monestevole in Umbria, Italy, we bring learning about Permaculture into its right context. You could say it is our up-market PDC. By joining the course you will not only become an accredited Permaculture Designer, but you'll be able to put the theories into practice on the 40 acres of available permaculture gardens, orchards, with the animals and in the local kitchen, all while enjoying the Italian hospitality and delicious organic and locally sourced foods.
The 2020 course will be our third Permaculture Design Course held at Monestevole and we are looking forward to building on the design insights and land restoration techniques applied in previous years.
Umbria is known as the green heart of Italy, with lush, sustainably managed landscapes and woodlands.
Course Content
The Permaculture Design Course (PDC) is a 72-hour internationally recognised training engaging head, heart and hands of participants to discover the principles and techniques of Permaculture. It explores the patterns of our predominant consumerist culture and compares them to the sustainable and regenerative patterns of the natural world. Permaculture offers us practical tools for creating change in our own lives and the wider world around us.
The curriculum explores the whole field of sustainability and the regeneration of land and culture. Topics covered include:
Ethics & principles of Permaculture
Observation techniques for connecting to & understanding ecology, climate & landscape
Permaculture design methods and tools
Mapping & design exercises
Soil science, soil food web & natural soil improvement
Organic food production & integrated animal systems
Water management including harvesting, conservation, & management
Land regeneration
Agroforestry & forest gardening
Appropriate technologies & renewable energy systems
Urban permaculture including techniques & design strategies
People & permaculture: personal patterns & the art of collaboration
The course caters for all learning styles, including demonstrations, practical exercises, group work, lectures and slide shows. As part of the course participants will work in groups on a design project to put their learning into practice.
"This course wrapped up a year of travels and awakening to the environmental challenges we are facing nowadays. It made us [my partner and me] realize what really mattered. It got us back to the source: working for life not living to work. At home we abolished plastic, decided to by bulk only, we created a worm compost, started growing our own vegetables... At work, I realized how important it was to bring my entire self in order to invite others to do the same. To be inclusive and patient. To see the work place as an a eco-system, a garden, where many different plants may grow at a different pace and have different needs...It got me inspired.”
- Julie, previous course participant
More About the Certificate
Participants will receive an internationally recognised Permaculture Design Course Certificate awarded by the UK Permaculture Association.
This certificate is the standard within the Permaculture movement and is required if you would like to go on and study for the Diploma in Applied Permaculture Design.
Permaculture opens doors to a new vision for our planet. Joining the Permaculture movement can lead on to developing a passion into work. It allows you to build the practices into the work you are currently doing or discover new strands of work such as land regeneration, ecological consultancy, community gardening, garden and landscape design, renewable energy and appropriate technology consultant and more.
Your Tutor
Michel Thill
Lead tutor on the course will be Michel Thill. Michel is based in London where he is running a permaculture project, called Social Landscapes, exploring predominantly urban regeneration. In this work he engages the community in learning about permaculture and recreating a village identity. He is actively involved in other local groups such as the Open Orchard Project, planting fruit trees in public spaces, and Transition Town Brixton, supporting the move away from fossil fuel to a more sustainable and communal future.
He has previously worked at the Panya Project, a Permaculture education centre in Thailand, completed is Diploma in Applied Permaculture Design with the UK Permaculture Association and studied Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning in Germany. In his thesis at University he explored the socio-ecological dimension of large scale ecosystem restoration projects.
Michel is a registered certified Permaculture teacher with the UK Permaculture Association and has thought in the UK, Thailand, Greece and Spain.
The Venue - Monestevole
Eco-lux living in the green heart of Italy
"Our goal at Tribewanted Monestevole is to show that it is possible to live sustainably, not just in remote locations and developing countries, but also in our own back yard. We want to provide a replicable model for sustainable lifestyles where it is needed the most, to be an example of how our society can live in the years to come.
In Italy, we also aspire to preserve and enhance local artisanal skills and inspire the Italian youth to return to the countryside, whilst at the same time providing our guests with an accessible location to learn, get their hands dirty and bring the lessons home."
Read more about Monestevole here.
Prices & Registration
Prices start at 1000 euros and include 14 nights’ accommodation, all meals and house wine and the PDC certification course.
Please register your interest below or send queries to Michel from Social Landscapes by sending an email to michel@sociallandscapes.co.uk.
To sign up to the course you'll be asked to pay a 30 percent deposit to Social Landscapes to secure your place on the course. The balance can then be paid closer to the start of the course.