Drylands Permaculture Design Course (Updated 06-26-2021)

 

Photo of drylands restored using permaculture

Drylands Permaculture Course

With Michael Pilarski, Penny Livingston & guest teachers!

October 4-13th, 2021

Skalitude Retreat Center

Methow Valley, Eastern Washington

 

Drylands occupy 40% of the world’s land surface and they are growing. Most of these dryland ecosystems have been degrading for hundreds to thousands of years.  Time to turn things around! Regeneration instead of degradation! The need is so great! This course explores how to regenerate the world’s drylands.  It will be useful for farmers, land-owners, land managers, policy-makers, restorationists and others keen on this topic.

This in-person Drylands Permaculture Course will include:

  • An overview of dryland strategies and techniques from arid and semi-arid regions around the world, from ancient to modern, with a particular focus on indigenous and traditional methods.
  • Permaculture design principles and methodology.
  • This is a specialized, advanced permaculture course.  PDC is not required to take this course.
  • There will be a variety of hands-on activities throughout the course.
  • Field trips: We will visit diverse dryland ecosystems and farms.
  • Students self-select into design teams for specific projects and give reports.
  • Each student is encouraged to read and review a pertinent book
  • An on-line course will be offered at a later date.
  • Course fee is $1,400.  This includes all classes, field trips, instructional materials, 3 great meals a day for 10 days and camping!
  • Worktrade and scholarships are available
  • Participants have the choice of indoor accommodations at an additional cost.

About the Venue


Situated in the foothills of the North Cascade mountains, Skalitude’s 160 acres are nestled in a secluded basin in the renowned Methow Valley. Surrounded by thousands of acres of National Forest wildlands, the power of the land nourishes and rejuvenates.

Lodging
Camping is included! If you need other accommodation, you can rent the Bermhouse for an additional $200 fee per person. The Bermhouse has 3 suites. Each of these suites is divided into 2 sleeping areas, with a half-bathroom (composting toilet and a sink) between them. Each sleeping area has 2 single beds.

About the Instructors:

Michael “Skeeter” Pilarski has lived and farmed in the semi-arid Inland Northwest since 1972.  He took his first Permaculture Design Course in 1982. In 1986 he helped organize and graduated from the 1st Drylands Permaculture Design Course taught by Bill Mollison who was one of the leading drylands experts in the world. In 1988, he published a Resource Guide to Sustainable Land Use in Arid and Semi-Arid Lands. 1988 was also the year he started teaching permaculture design courses. In the ensuing two decades he taught 40 permaculture design courses in various climates.  He has accumulated a lot of dryland knowledge over the years and wants to pass it on.

Penny Livingston has been teaching internationally and working professionally in the permaculture,  land management & regenerative design and sustainable development field for 30 years and has extensive experience in all phases of ecologically sound design and construction as well as the use of natural non-toxic building materials.  She specializes in site planning & design of resource rich landscapes integrating, rainwater collection, agroforestry systems, edible and medicinal planting, spring development, pond and water systems management, habitat development and watershed restoration for homes, farms, co-housing communities and businesses. She is currently teaching online courses with Ecoversity and the Permaculture Skills Center.

Guest Speakers: 

We will bring in some of the world’s leading dryland experts via Zoom to give presentations and answer questions.


Precious Phiri
Website: https://regenerationinternational.org

Precious Phiri is a member of the Regeneration International (RI) steering committee and also serves as RI’s Africa coordinator. She is a training and development specialist in regenerative environmental issues and community organizing. She recently founded an organization called EarthWisdom a network, which she formed immediately after her full time nine-year career with Savory hub in Zimbabwe. Her vast experience in education and mobilizing communal populations and implementing institutions in Zimbabwe and Africa in restorative farming programs using Holistic Land and Livestock Management (HLLM) is the force behind her network. Her work currently focuses on training rural communities and collaborating with networks in Africa to reduce poverty, rebuild soils, and restore food and water security for people, livestock and wildlife.


Walter Jehne
Healthy Soils Australia
https://www.healthysoils.com.au/


John D. Liu
Ecosystems Restoration Camps Foundation.


Andrew Millison 
Permaculture Rising and Oregon State University.
https://www.permaculturerising.com/andrew-millison

Registration is Open

Tags: 

MICHAEL “SKEETER” PILARSKI is a life-long student of plants and earth repair. His farming career started in 2nd grade and his organic farming career began in 1972 at age 25. Michael founded Friends of the Trees Society in 1978 and took his first permaculture design course in 1982. Since 1988 he has taught 36 permaculture design courses in the US and abroad. His specialties include earth repair, agriculture, seed collecting, nursery sales, tree planting, fruit picking, permaculture, agroforestry, forestry, ethnobotany, medicinal herb growing, hoeing and wildcrafting. He has hands-on experience with over 1000 species of plants. He is a prolific gathering organizer and likes group singing.