Join the Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage!

Delvin, Ali Ma, Kathleen and I are having an awesome time on the PPP!!

We've just been served an organic, homegrown Thai meal - gotta go and get some of that goodness!

We invite you to join us - we are having an amazing time and would love to fill the two classes with Robin and Rosemary and support them in their amazing journey of bringing permaculture teaching methodologies to the world!!!

Delvin, Ali Ma, Tamara and Robin loving the creative processes

Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage

A once in a lifetime opportunity to do advanced study with many of the greatest teachers of permaculture. 

Australian Learning Adventure Information

Delvin and Tamara have finished Geoff Lawton’s teacher training and are enjoying Robin’s 6 day creative facilitation dynamic groups training.

We invite those dedicated to the path of teaching permaculture to join us on the next two courses being run at Crystal Waters Permaculture Village near Maleney in QLD.

Robin Clayfield - Creative Community Governance and Decision Making Workshop

Monday 21st November 2011

Crystal Waters Permaculture Village, Queensland

This one day intensive is for people involved in Community organizations and groups who would like more skills, ideas, tools and processes for making decisions and having discussions as a group. It brings in creativity, fun, team building and successful, interactive processes in a ‘Dynamic Group’ context.

Full Price $125 (Gov't/Corp/Business), Regular Price $110 (Workers), Low Income $95 (Students, Unemployed)

Robin Clayfield has taught over 30 PDC’s through the late eighties and nineties, created and taught Advanced Permaculture Creative Teachers Facilitation courses with Skye, and now co-trains the Cert IV in Training and Assessment course for Permaculture teachers and others in creative and sustainability industries. She co-wrote the book 'Teaching Permaculture Creatively'.

Contact Robin for registration and accommodation information on all Crystal Waters Courses: robin@earthcare.com.au   

www.dynamicgroups.com.au

Rosemary Morrow - Permaculture Design Certificate Teacher Training

Thursday 24th to Monday 28th November 2011

Crystal Waters Permaculture Village, Queensland

A five day course in teaching permaculture with strong emphasis on walking the talk - and the Ethics of permaculture.   It is important that participants have some idea of the scope of a PDC and what outcomes are important for their students.   After the first day it is very practical.

Course cost: $1300 full price, $650 for scholarship position.

Bunkhouse and camping options under $20.

Rosemary Morrow is a permaculture teacher now orienting herself to supporting younger permaculturists and especially in teacher training. She is convinced of everyone's right to know how to manage water and grow food when faced with climate change, and to buffer the more extreme effects.  She wrote Earth Users Guide to Permaculture as well as the companion book for Permaculture Teachers. 

Contact Robin for registration and accommodation information on all Crystal Waters Courses: robin@earthcare.com.au   

Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage organized in collaboration with Tamara Griffiths and Delvin Solkinson

Delvin@cosm.org

Tamara@moonrisepermaculture.com.au

www.gaiacraft.com

http://tamaraandduckyhaveadventures.blogspot.com/

A letter from Ducky

I've had a letter from Ducky :>

Dear Mummy,

I'm just writing to let you know how I'm going.

Mrs T took us all up to Melbourne for a few days. It worked out OK because we'd had enough time to get to know each other really well before we left.

Douglas will be turning 91 on New Year’s Day and his arthritis is pretty bad. He has to use his wings to haul himself up but I found out that he can still bite like the dinosaur he looks like. He’s got this amazing tail which I find irresistible.  


So I sneak up behind him when he’s lying down and poke into his tail.  This makes him really mad, but by the time he’s realized what’s happening and has hauled himself up on his wings and tried to turn around to get me – I’ve learnt it is expedient to make a lightening exit. 

His missus Muscovy, Donna, kind of sticks up for him!  She sometimes just stands and stares daggers at me – which is really scary.  

But maybe it is because when I first arrived I had the time of my life jumping on top of her.  She wasn’t expecting that but now she knows how attractive I find her and so she menaces me with her dark stares.  Really Mummy – she might be beautiful but she is quite scary.

After a while and a few instances of Mrs T having to come racing over to save me from Douglas Dinosaur Duck, we all kind of got used to each other and so long as I can resist Douglas’ tail – everything runs smoothly.

Anyway, as I said before, Mrs T took us all up to her 10th floor apartment in South Melbourne.  Douglas and Donna travelled in their big plastic tray on the back seat of Mrs T’s car, and I was in my box beside them.  Once we arrived Douglas went into a sulk because he thinks he might get carted off to a vet or something frightening like that and even Donna couldn’t cheer him up.   


I remembered being there several years ago and found my reflection in the oven door glass window very fetching.  Mrs T put papers all over the place and barricades to keep me in, but I could see Douglas and Donna through the glass sliding door between us and it was great fun when they came over and we’d have a conversation about the weather. At least that’s what I was talking about.  Douglas might have been telling me what he thought about me.

When Mrs T tried to step into my papered barricaded area so she could get things out of her fridge, I would hurl myself at her feet and try to rip strips of flesh off. It was all in good fun really, but it meant that she didn’t hang around very long.

When Mrs T wasn’t out I was allowed to join the others on the balcony and I was able to go exploring behind the pot plants and in the kennel that Donna and Douglas’ sleep in at night.  It was awesome in there.  I also had a good look at the views across Albert Park Lake – stunning!

Then the King of the Ducks, Mr Laurie Levy came for a visit and played a little game with me.  He’d try to poke at me, but I was always too quick and would peck his hand.  He chuckled and I quacked and Donna and Douglas came over to watch and together with Mrs T we all had a good laugh.

After 3 days in town it was getting to be a bit boring, so we were all very pleased to return to Somers last night.  Mrs T. shone a torch around and I knew where I was immediately. 


Today I’ve been hanging out with the yellow plastic duckling in the pond and sitting with Donna and Douglas under the Cootamundra tree. They are also very pleased to be back at Somers.

Don’t tell Mrs T. but I am actually light years ahead of Donna and Douglas.  They really aren’t that smart.  Hanging out with them is a piece of cake now I know how to handle them.

Next week Mrs T has to go up to Morwell to sit in on a court case where two duck rescuers are being charged with dumb things like taking rubbish away from wetlands and swearing and other stuff.  


A nice duck rescuer will be here to look after me for a couple of days and then another lady will do it.  Mrs T. will be back on the 25th.  She says to send you her love and she hopes you’re learning lots and having a great time.

I have to go and check out that plastic duckling again now.

Love and endless quacks from

Ducky

Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage! Robin Clayfield at Crystal Waters

Hello beautiful people! I am on day 2 at Robin Clayfield's Creative facilitation permaculture teacher training.

I am writing from the community space at crystal waters, a lovely big verandah where we have been eating our means. The mozzies are being kept away by Delvins dub step music :) We have been having classes up at the eco centre - a purpose built building initiated and paid for by Max Lindeger, one of the grandfathers of the permaculture community village.

We have been cooked for by a wonderful Thai resident of Crystal Waters, tonight we had Pad Thai - his mother's recipe from southern Thailand.

The classes have been awesome with the group settling in and getting to know each other through a variety of "glue processes" led by Robin. Last night we had an evening of trust games - and had a great laugh learning techniques and modeling a group of people learning with each other.

This is the third time I've done one of Robin Clayfield's courses - I felt very strongly that Delvin, myself and the pilgrims would get an enormous amount from the course - especially since Geoff Lawton's course was predominately chalk and talk, small group work and presentations to the class.

The processes we've been doing is wonderfully familiar to me - and - when we touched on revision today - at 1 hour, 1 day, 1 week, 1 month and 1 year - I realised this is my one year revision from the last two courses. 


After Robin welcomed us to Crystal Waters and acknowledged the traditional custodians of this land we went into learning about our own learning styles - empowering us to take charge of our learning. There were a couple of questionaires - one on how we learned - being a visual, auditory or kinesthetic learner - I was equal between the three - apparently the best way to be - yipeeeee. Then we did 7 intelligences - I am very high on the spacial and inter and intrapersonal and low on the logic - or perhaps I didn't feel very logical when I was doing the questionaire - I do put myself down as a logical person - but I can't be that bad - I've helped organise the Pilgrimage!!!!!!

 I am really interested in the multiple intelligences I have a quote by Albert Einstein I love:

 Everybody is a genius. But, if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life believing that it is stupid. 

Robin used a special card game we reviewed teaching techniques that relate to each of the 7 intelligences:

nature (added by Robin)

- nature journal

-- natural collage

- outdoor activities

- pick your own lunch

spiritual (added by Robin)

- meditation

- ritual

- sacred space

- symbols

logical

- lineage diagrams

- research

- make lists

- key word cards

- cross words

linguistic

- write a story

- write a letter

- read

- rewrite notes

- diary

- journal

- write and give a speech

interpersonal

- discussion

- field trip

- study groups

- tea breaks

- small group work

- personal stories

intrapersonal

- private study

- individual research

- ask yourself

- questionaires

- meditation

spatial

- flow charts

- diagrams

- models

- mind maps

- video adventures

- plans

- art sculpture

physical

- hands on

- models

- games

- visualize acting out

- field trip

- role play

- cush ball

Its incredible how many different teaching techniques, strategies and methods Robin as already used in the course. Incredible!

Introduced to concepts in course design we explore target groups, training objectives and competency needs, as well as program design and details. Delvin, Ali Ma and I got into a group and selected three

teaching techniques to guide our process : " Ritual, Sandbox and Treasure Hunt".

I've settled in well here, though I did skin my knee last night on the walk back to the bunkhouses. I also had a wonderful swim with friends in the creek tonight and I feel really anchored in to this beautiful place.

More news and pics soon! xxxxxxxxxx

Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage - Day 5

Friday!!

Talks to the class were planned for the day - it was much cooler and I had slept really well after a beautiful bath at a B & B near the Terania Creek. I took a moment in the bath to think about the last few years, the difficulties around leaving Bunyip, the sadness that stayed with me for so long and thought about whether my reason for leaving - to devote myself more fully to Permaculture education had come to pass. With some tears in the warm water I was clear that my journey was the one I had anticipated - I had learned so much in many situations, climates and with a huge variety of animals and people.

The link between my past and the future - in my 10 minute presentation to the class was me talking about the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires being a trigger for me leaving my wonderful life with Andrew and the animals. I spoke about the horror of nearly 200 people dying in bushfires across Victoria inspiring me to learn more about fire sector design and really drum it home to the class when doing cool humid climates. For a spot of humour I told a story about my family and sheep in iceland - sheep in tundra are in the designers manual - I'm not naming names but it includes a green pair of undies and a sheep thinking that the green was a tasty bit of grass :)

I'd like to say thanks to everyone who took part in the class, to all the teachers, cooks, assistants, workers and WOOFers at PRI (including the real woofers Blue Dog and Jackie).

What an amazing week and place to jump of onto the rest of the PILGRIMAGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So here's some pics from my time at PRI:

Delvin enjoying the day

Carol gave an AMAZING talk on patterns. You rock Carol!

Sam and Alex firing up the rocket stove that heats our showers!

more pics coming soon!!!!!!!!

planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage - Day 3 to 4

Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage - Day 3 to 4

Hello beautiful people!

My camera is on the blink so this blog is mainly words... but Delvin has been taking pics - and day 5 will be almost entirely pics!

The afternoon of day 3 saw everybody giving a 5 minute presentation. I chose animals - birds, insects, mammals etc. We broke into small groups shared out the topics. The people who were newer to permaculture chose first and then Alex and I took the rest. I had animal husbandry, animals essential to diversity and I tried really hard to stick to Geoff's suggestion of breaking it down minute by minute to hit a start, a mid point and a close, and to make people laugh once, get serious once, and tell a story. I told a story about Smithy, the boar I looked after last year at Bill and Lisa Mollison's farm, a very friendly large black pig who fathered the piglets I also looked after and who used to push me into the electric fence when wanting a scratch.

Day 4 started with Geoff excitedly telling us that our blog was up on PRI website, Delvin and I were so stoked!

Geoff showed us the World Wide Permaculture Network - connecting permies everywhere. It showed us projects, people, climates. I felt strongly that it was time to put a larger profile up of myself and the places I have done projects after asking the appropriate permissions.

Geoff spoke about the master plan sites – that become a PRI in that area. Two of the people in the course are setting up a site together in Victoria, about an hour from Melbourne. One thing that struck me about this is that I hope they and the local Melbourne permaculture network could get to know each other in a positive way, and a wish that it was possible to build a bridge between all the different styles of people within the movement.

We looked at curriculum in the afternoon. Geoff went through all the different teachers notes he's used over time - he showed us Scott Pitman's notes – who is at PRI USA - which come from the 1983 teacher notes that Bill Mollison wrote. They are wonderfully simplified, a distillation written just beforet the designers manual came out.

Geoff told us he'd mind-mapped the whole manual - these things are on the resources page on the pri website. He also told us about a class he taught with men who in a refugee camp and he needed to write on butchers paper and put them all up on the wall. He also said that when he is teaching an into to Permaculture he uses the chapters from Intro to permaculture. That afternoon we again broke into groups to brainstorm curriculum and put all of that info into a 90 minute timeframe for a class. I didn’t hear what we were supposed to do and Geoff was unavailable for me to ask questions so we slightly buggered up – but we still got to apportion the time for each topic area into percentage. 

It was really really hot that day - a precursor to a storm coming - so Delvin and I stayed in a B & B that night - so we didn't have to pack up in the rain and a treat for us to get through the first week. Thanks Delvin!

Love to all out there - and more soon xxx

Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage - Day 3!

Hi Folks!

No watching ourselves on film tonight so I'm able to blog this evening! Its been a great day, lots of good stuff and some bug pics coming later. Some of us are hanging out in the student common room skyping or emailing, Delvin and I blogging the PPP- and doing some collaboration for the PRI web page - and the frogs are croaking right outside the window.

So today - some highlights - Nadia came in to talk to us about teaching in the middle east - cross cultural issues - and gender. In the past Nadia has run women's courses but has also translated when Geoff was teaching - with mixed students. In the muslim culture, the women prefer to sit behind the men - where they can not be stared at or oggled, sometimes they even prefer to be behind a curtain. Some will speak up, others will pass questions forward on paper. I had lots of questions about gender and teaching - being a woman teacher myself and expecting to have mixed classes, though I'd love to teach women only classes too.

The awesome Nadia Lawton - bedouin woman and permaculture teacher extraordinaire

The afternoon was taken up with student presentations - this time a five minute one on topics from the PDC - using Geoff's must hit points. Geoff stressed the beginning, hitting the mid point and getting a good close. We divided up into chosen topics - Soil, Climatic factors, Plants, Animals and Trees and forests. I chose animals and gave my talk on animal husbandry, animal input/output and animals being essential to diversity. I felt much more relaxed today, I even sat down to write on the board - about pigs, oak trees, bugs and guilds. People have improved out of site, and it was like a mini PDC with all the 5 minute presentations covering the topics above.

Delvin with Latifa and Blue Dog, both desperate to get in for a swim.

Dinner was very welcome after the hot afternoon here in the tropics, I enjoyed my food sitting talking with Delvin and others on the decking for the dam. It turns out both our dads are hard core athiests and I shared my stories about my dad inviting Jehova Witnesses in to try and convert them to athiests. A few of my classmates jumped in to the lovely warm water, fully clothed for modesty and had a great time. We stood around enjoying the frivolity and splashing and I found out that Helene had seen Ducky on this blogs last year and did this pose for him :)

This ones for you Ducky!

I took the opportunity of my camera working to go for a walk around the zone 1 and 2 gardens and food forest. I headed over to say Hi to the ducks - and a small one came up - to tell me that she and her friend had missed out on being put away for the night - so I let them in and had a chat to the ducks for a while.  I noticed some cool lichen growing on a citrus tree and notice a mother bug laying her eggs. She let me take a few pics, but the light really wasn't good enough for really good pics - you'll have to bear with me - some are a bit fuzzy but they have some awesome info in them.

It was quite an animal day today - lunch I spotted a brown snake in the grass and tonight the yellow tailed black cockies squarked in the trees near the camp ground - and I heard some baby birds among the adults. I also got an email of Ducky enjoying himself down with Lynn, my wonderful ducksitter.

PPP Blog day 2

PPP Day 2 blog

Blogging this morning begins with the yellow tail black cockatoos calling and waiting for the breakfast coffee to come out…

Day two started with Geoff, Nadia, Tim and the interns killing an 8 month old calf. I didn’t attend, I’ve seen sheep killed and I always cry. That was in 2007 in Tassie when Geoff and Nadia did a practical fortnight down at Bill and Lisa Mollison’s farm in Tassie. I felt embarrassed that I was crying, as no one else was, but geoff and bill both pulled me aside privately and told me that whenever indigenous people kill an animal they shed a tear of reverence for its life. That made me feel better.  The interns felt much the same as me – that if we eat meat we have a responsibility to know where that meat comes from and to know that it has had an ethical life and the best death we can give it. It was in stark contrast to what was exposed on the Four Corners program earlier this year – where cattle exported to Indonesia watched while the cow in front of them was slaughtered, without stunning before their throats were cut and other horrific violence. The Live Export trade ceased briefly due to the public outcry but it was resumed with new rules that are designed to supposedly protect the cattle from this. I don’t think it goes far enough and want live export banned – something I continue to work on.

Ethical treatment of animals is one of the reasons I practice and teach permaculture. A chicken deserves to be used for its natural labour – scratching, poo-ing, collecting bugs and basically doing the work of the gardener in a chicken tractor vegie bed system. Ethical eggs and potentially ethical meat is better than a short life in battery cages or a barn full of chickens with no access even to sunlight outside.

So – there are things I am against – but permaculture is about positive action – and so I act in a positive way to stop the cruelty of the factory farming of animals of unthinking consumption. 

The Hex - our classroom, made of strawbale and designed for the sub tropics!

Ok, on to the classes! Geoff took us through teaching techniques in the morning – beginning at the end of the PDC with the final night party – where students do a performance for their classmates. It is a raucous occasion, I’ve been to one and I love it. It is an emotional and transformational night but demonstrates that we can still be self sufficient in fun.

Hooray!! Coffee has just arrived!!!!! With pikelets – Yummy. Blog will be getting better directly!

Geoff has “must touch points” on each topic over a 90 minute lecture. He tells 2 stories, 2 analogies, 2 laughs and 2 almost tears moments. He also ran us through some blackboard diagram and timing techniques – and developing a repotoire of symbols for explaining concepts and designs. He reminded us of mapping and sunside depending which hemisphere we are in, and drawing contours and plans. He explained an interactive game he used to do with students using a zone map, plasticine animals and building a design.  

Then! We found out we had to do a 3 minute presentation from one of the chapters in the Designers Manual. I am pretty good at thinking on my feet but I chose a familiar topic – arid strategies - using my childhood home as an example of sites. I went ok, but I had a big pause in the middle – but picked it up again. People did much better at their presentations than yesterday, I had improved too, getting more eye contact in. In the evening we looked over the film with our classmates again. I have to say I felt very supported after what I had considered a bomb! They liked the hook of my stories but would have preferred just one topic in the 3 minutes. This morning Geoff said I was ok, but wanted me to round out the topic more – rather than being site specific. We have a 5 minute presentation today and I'm hoping to make some improvements using the comments from every one.

The pilgrimage begins!

Hello beautiful people!!!!

Today is day 2 of our teacher trainings here at Zayunta farm with Geoff Lawton, and we blog this morning as we spent last night looking at videos of ourselves presenting to the class for one minute, critiquing ourselves and allowing feedback from our class mates. What I thought would be unpleasant turned out to be a fun and positive experience sharing with our new future teachers. This is our group having lunch :)

The class we have joined is mainly interns for the 10 week program they run here. I have to say we have all gelled together really nicely - I think the one minute presentation of a topic we're passionate about being filmed brought us together in a caring and supportive environment. So of course I introduced the wonderful Ducky - who else am I so passionate about? My critique - I need to make proper eye contact, not just scan the room!

So arriving here on sunday, after nearly missing my flight out of melbourne (thanks mum for getting me there!) and then traveling by taxi - who got stuck on a driveway drain as he was reversing out of the place we asked directions from - we put up our tents, met lots of new people and had dinner at the local tavern. And then an early night - the sun goes down early here - 8pm - which was good as I was ready to hit the sack at 7.30! 

Day one started early with a meeting at 7.30am for the new people, while the interns went about their morning tasks of looking after animals and doing some gardening and their projects. Wellington boots are essential for all morning work here - the condensation is thick every night as we are so close to the sea.

In the morning we covered the types of students we're likely to have and some of the personality types were likely, which was confronting as I could find myself in that list.

There were a couple of highlights of the day - the first one was to Chile - a desert location 2400 above sea level and the driest place on earth - Geoff did a live cross to the PDC being taught there and answered lots of questions they had. He also did some teaching - there are specific pages in the designers manual that are applicable to the desert - permaculture 2 has good desert stuff too. We did a skype call so we could see each other - I've put a pic above of the students - fuzzy but it was a great connection.

The second highlight was the milk and cream straight from the cows here. Real fresh cream on our scones - and it appears I'm not allergic to real, raw milk like I am to the commercial stuff.

Real cream on our scones!!!!!! And me enjoying those scones!!!!!!

The final highlight was for Delvin and I to hang out with Nadia, Geoff and Latifa - their baby girl at the end of the day, catching up with our lives. Latifa is a gorgeous girl - she had been so sick last year but now she is almost walking and a happier baby I have never met. What an amazing first day!

We even bugged Geoff for a pic :)

Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage!

 There are still places in the courses with 
Robin Clayfield and Rosemary Morrow

Robin Clayfield - Dynamic groups, Dynamic Learning

Monday 14th to Saturday 19th November 2011

Crystal Waters Permaculture Village, Queensland

Robin Clayfield - Creative Community Governance and Decision Making Workshop

Monday 21st November 2011

Crystal Waters Permaculture Village, Queensland

Rosemary Morrow - Permaculture Design Certificate Teacher Training

Thursday 24th to Monday 28th November 2011

Crystal Waters Permaculture Village, Queensland

Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage

A once in a lifetime opportunity to do advanced study with many of the greatest teachers of permaculture. 

Join a group of advanced students and teachers to pilgrimage to Australia to learn from the Grandmothers and Grandfathers of Permaculture. Whether you are a new permaculture designer or already have a seasoned practice, here is the opportunity of a lifetime to study with the masters and maestras of the movement. The range of the teachers’ experiences, techniques and philosophies bring an amazing diversity to the courses. 

As we turn a corner into a new chapter of life on the planet, the potentials and possibilities of permaculture become ever more important in supporting the creation and stewardship of revitalized global ecology and sustainable World Culture. Join with us to receive the messages from the elders and bring them back to our communities and teaching practices. 

Planetary Permaculture Pilgrimage organized in collaboration with Tamara Griffiths and Delvin Solkinson

Contact 

tamara@moonrisepermaculture.com.au or delvin@cosm.org

for more details

www.gaiacraft.com

http://tamaraandduckyhaveadventures.blogspot.com/

Tamara and Ducky back in Melbourne... for a while at least :)

I wrote this one a while ago - and thought I'd publish it now! Better late than never!



Hi Folks!

Having finally settled back into life in Melbourne, Ducky and I have finally found some time to continue our blog.

So - whats been happening? We finished up at Bill and Lisa' Tagari farm in September then spent a few months wandering around South Australia doing some education, permaculture design and implementation as far afield as Whyalla, Peterborough and Goolwa. We were pretty worn out (and extremely broke!) when we arrived back in Melbourne on New Years Day. Since then I've started back at my Certificate 4 in Training and Assesment - doing assignments and am going to do some more study in the Accredited Permaculture Training field - some recognition of prior learning, some coursework! My aim is to teach a PDC at the end of the year.

We've also started our tiny business - Duck Gardening - which is basically Ducky comes with me to do gardening for people and he gets the slugs and snails while I work with the humans :)

Since we're going to be around for a year or so I've been able to add a new option - long term garden coaching and permaculture training - on a fortnightly, monthly or quarterly basis!

I'd also like to start teaching observation - reading landscape, understanding nature through observation.