IPDC10 date + First Evaluations of the PDC+++

You can now see 

the recording we made of this conference here.

The 10th International Permaculture Convergence  (IPC10) takes place in Jordan this year, this September, and Integral Permaculture is on the programme.   As we'll be giving an online talk, you're invited to participate:

Date:  21 September, 9am GMT/UTC

11am in Jordan, duration 50mins

(Jordan is on UTC+2 time, check map for your time)

The Integral Permaculture Curriculum

an international collaboration

The NodoEspiral of the Permaculture Academy presents an online live conference (with recording available afterwards) during the 10th International Permaculture Convergence, IPC10, that takes place in Jordan this year.

This presentation will not only be live but interactive: you can put questions & comments as we go, we'll attempt to make it as much into a live workshop as possible.

 The presentation is about our latest work and will be given in English 

(and in Spanish 11hrs later, see other page)  

Invitations will be sent out nearer the time to our list subscribers, 

please make sure you're subscribed (& check your spam folder)  

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NEWS 20aug11 - and we've just confirmed that some of the Conference & perhaps the Convergence as well will be live-streamed!  This is great news & the first time an international PC conference is made available live over the net.    Check here for details & please donate something towards this effort if you can!   

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As the first ever Certificate in Integral Permaculture (PDC+++) advances to Module 2 this month (august 2011), our very ambitious e-Book also slowly develops, class by class, in two languages.

We're delighted with our students, four of which are already facilitating study circles in their respective countries (Argentina, Spain, two in Belgium) with four others preparing to do the same:.

And judging by the evaluations after the first module, they're also delighted with the course.  

(Some of these students have already taken a PDC.  Thanks to those who wrote evaluations! we really appreciate the effort :)

A. (Spain): "For me Module 1 was an eye-opener as I was a total Troll, only knew the land-design aspect to do with growing food.   I like very much Stella & César's way of giving the classes, the dynamics & the opportunity they give us to change things to fit everyone, the style, the content & the way of focusing it all.  I also like that any time I express some doubt or query it is answered very quickly."

M. (USA): "I LOVED Module 1 - learned a lot and had plenty of insights along the way.  Thank you Stella and Cesar for the Design Portfolio! It is starting to dawn on me the beautiful work you guys do... You are like the teachers I never had, but always wished for. Your role is like that of Loving Parents guiding the lost child home... The depth you go to is the depth I longed for in my teenage years... And you are the embodiment of the self-help books I read, but that I was lost in and had no guidance with. You are REALLY going to make me do this! Thank you for holding my hand..."

D. (Belgium): "Module 1 was very inspiring for me, though I don't feel like I have grasped all of it yet.   The integral model stuff is really brilliant, I use that a lot.  Also the group exercises are neat - think/listens, vision support groups and all of that".

C (Spain):  "All of this (that is happening with the course: classes, my study circle..) is a great stimulus for me to move out of my comfort zone ... in which I am still very hidden!  Lucky this lasts one year!!

MJ (Spain):  

                                             "Well, in summary: the best cash I've spent in my life! 

I love everything I've learned, am playing with what am learning in my immediate surroundings, 

I feel enriched on a personal level 

& I thank you for letting this be a free process for each of us 

& for offering us so many tools for completing the learning to the extent that each of us wants to.

As for the content of the first module, it has been very enriching on a personal level, it has challenged some of my behaviors & explained some others, it makes me discover things about myself & it moves things about internally, making me reconsider my commitments, responsibly, I come to realize which is the path to take.  I use the e-Book a lot as well as watch the classes a second time. ...   I definitely feel cared for, I've decided to take the truth-pill. ... I love your honesty & the wonderful group we have, I think that being very varied culturally this is very enriching. ... "

Ad (Spain): 

Plus & Minus:

+ Opened mind & soul!

+ New forms of thinking & connecting

+ Joy & optimism

+ Getting to know Stella & César more

+ Knowing my fellow students on the PDC+++

+ Excellent class content, very instructional

+ Very original books & videos

+ My children ask me things about permaculture

- Not enough time ...

LH (USA)

"I am loving the classes ... 

and find it so interesting that 

we are doing this from different parts of the world.

I very much enjoy hearing different people's voices."

& a teachers evaluation after a very pioneering Module1:

This is how I always dreamed a PDC should be - it's wonderful!    Am deeply moved & very excited about the action-learning we're seeing unfolding (the lives we're seeing unfolding, even), and we're only 15 weeks into the fist ever PDC+++.      Especially I love the luxury of having so much time to really get to know everyone (the medium of learning really is relationship, on every level!), & watching empowerment happening, live.  

The whole set up with this new course (the PDC+++) is so much more rational, on every level: 

* we all get to stay close to our projects (we want to see all this applied where people live, in their homes and communities, and also all of the teachers are practicing permaculture designers, with big & demanding projects on their hands), 

* nobody spends any effort, time & resources on travel (that was the craziest thing about the 15 day PDC: to see many times more money going to the big transport multinationals, than to the permaculture projects themselves, when doing permaculture courses), and for so little real result, in comparison 

* this is very accessible for parents with young children, who are involving their sons & daughters in their action-learning in  interesting ways, as the whole course is as creative & demanding as you wish to make it, & totally flexible time-wise

* AND we get to give much better personal & individual attention to each person!  

* Forming, I hope, life-long supportive relationships between permaculture designers (which are easy to maintain online, as they started that way)

* & the results are noticeable in the level of learning also: the volume & level of dialogue and design work is already much better than anything we've ever seen (& is probably possible to see) on the shorter live courses.

Compiling the big e-book (up at www.PermaCultureScience.org) is a whole other thrill in itself.  Very demanding to do (it's clear this is just an early draft, it will take two years to get it to the level we want to see) but also very satisfying & fun to create.  And especially exciting that the students report finding it very useful & that they themselves are starting to take an interest in co-designing it.   

The whole thing amounts to a wonderful big gift we all get to leave for future generations & very rewarding experience, on many levels.  I only regret not having started this way of teaching permaculture years ago.