In February 2013, I embarked on this journey to get my first (of several, hopefully) Permaculture Design Certificate, or PDC, with Delvin Solkinson of Gaiacraft Permaculture. We have been asked to keep a journal and write one entry after every monthly session. As a way to help motivate me to keep this journal, I have decided to post the entries right here on my blog. Hopefully they will inspire others to do a PDC and get interested in Permaculture too.
Day 1 Pre-course meetup:
I have just finished
ordering Earth
Users Guide to Permaculture Second ed by Rosemary Morrow off Amazon. This was in response to the pre-course
meet up I attended on Tuesday. Which course, you ask? Why Permaculture! Yes, I
have wanted to get my PDC (Permaculture Design Certificate) for years now and
finally I am on my way.
We were asked by our teacher to keep a journal and
write an entry for every monthly class we attend. I thought that since I
already have this blog up, I might as well share my thoughts and feelings with
other people.
The day-long meet up took place in tiny but beautiful
Roberts Creek on the sunshine coast. The place definitely has a spiritual feel
to it and is surrounded by beautiful beaches, gardens and rainforests. Our
teacher, Delvin began the day by telling us how he found Permaculture and then allowing
everyone to tell their personal story, the story that brought them to
Permaculture. Each person was given 3-5 minutes to share anything they wanted
about their lives. This was a great way to start the course since everyone was
honest and open and I found out right away that I had lots in common with most
people from a very diverse group of individuals. What I realized, to my
delight, was that an interest in Permaculture really brought out the best side
of everyone, the side that wants to help protect our ecosystems and resources
and bring back a sense of community and belonging to people's lives.
The day was quite dynamic; we moved around about every
half hour and visited a cafe, a crystal shop, a beach, a gazebo, a creek side,
our teacher's apartment, various parts of the rainforest, and finished the day
in a yoga studio. I really liked that aspect because every time we moved to a
new location I felt like we were beginning a fresh new section of the day so my
energy level stayed quite high.
After the storytelling portion of the day, which took
up until lunch time, Delvin explained to us how the course would work: one
intensive workshop-like class once a month in different locations around the
lower mainland and the Sunshine Coast, with readings and homework in between to
keep us on track. Then we gathered in a beautiful yoga studio to watch some
videos and relax a little. I feel like (and hope that) the relationships sparked
in this course will lead to friendships and working together on many
interesting projects! Can't wait till next month!
____________________________________________________________________________
Day 2:
Introduction to Permaculture
Well Rosemary Morrow's book came and I have already
read a good 6 chapters!
Last week was our second gathering of the Permaculture
course I am taking with Delvin Solkinson of Gaiacraft. I loved it! We were out
at the Sharing Farm at Terra Nova Rural Park in Richmond, Vancouver. The
weather was decent and just as we were wrapping up the day, the first, rain drops
started to fall - perfect timing!!
We spent the day visiting different areas of the farm
as Delvin told us about the Permaculture ethics - Earth Care, People Care, Fair
Share and Delvin's addition - Incorporate transition. From there he went on to
explain the main Permaculture Principles, after which he read us an amazing
children's/adults' picture book "Weslandia".
For anyone interested in Permaculture, I HIGHLY recommend it!! It touches on
the isolation felt by free-thinking people, innovation, the power of youth, and
many of the Permaculture principles!
 |
| Care of Earth - one of the 3 main Permaculture ethics, Photo: Lucie bardos |
Throughout the day we visited the gardens,
greenhouses, chicken coop, hazelnut grove, beach, hilltop, migratory bird
lakeside/wetland habitat and much more. Also, I saw a TREE-sized kale plant!
Amazing! Once we were back inside we played a visualization game with a Permaculture elements card deck. We had to put the elements of a farm/homestead together in such a way that their different functions connected and became systems. It was an interesting taste of Permaculture design and planning - one of the FUNDAMENTAL steps in designing your land usage: think before you do!
 |
| Tree or Kale?? Photo: Lucie Bardos |
Amazing! Once we were back inside we played a visualization game with a Permaculture elements card deck. We had to put the elements of a farm/homestead together in such a way that their different functions connected and became systems. It was an interesting taste of Permaculture design and planning - one of the FUNDAMENTAL steps in designing your land usage: think before you do!
 |
| Cob oven and mulched garden beds at the Sharing Farm in Richmond - a wonderful gathering place! Photo: Lucie Bardos |
I also very much enjoyed our Permie Potluck-style
lunch. Everyone brought something healthy and homemade and what resulted was a
delicious nutritious Permaculture smorgasbord!
In my post about the Pre-course meetup, I said "I
feel like (and hope that) the relationships sparked in this course will lead to
friendships and working together on many interesting projects!" Well, that
has already happened! I got very interested in the project of one of my
classmates, Jordan Bober: Seedstock Community Currency. I asked if there was
any way I could participate and now I am blogging and doing artwork for them
and enjoying myself while learning a whole bunch at the same time. Learn more
about Seedstock Community Currency, which was launched into circulation in
Vancouver earlier this year and is doing amazingly, here.
Can't wait until next month!
 |
| Sharing..... Photo: Lucie Bardos |
