Lifestyle Design for the 21st Century that meets the challenges of peak oil, peak food, climate instability, and economic irrationality.
Presents. . .
Kitchen Permaculture Online Workshop
How to use permaculture design to create ecological, economical, resilient, and socially just household food systems.
Permaculture is the art and science of designing human habitations and systems that care for the earth, care for people, and incorporate voluntary limits and boundaries so that there is justice in the distribution of the surplus.
How the workshop works.
The online workshop uses a moderated private listserv and a resource CD and continues for eight weeks of participation, with a two week Easter break in the middle, for a total of ten calendar weeks. There are two weeks of post-course follow-up, one to continue peer reviews of submitted designs, and one for discussion of instructor reviews of student designs. Depending on the number of instructor reviews, the two design review weeks may not be consecutive. Upon the request of a majority of the students, a review week may be inserted between Week 7 and 8 during which any topic brought up thus far in the workshop may be discussed. Also at the option of the students, we could add a "Final Feast" as a capstone event, depending on the geographic distribution of the workshop participants.
Each week of the workshop (which corresponds to a calendar week) has topics for discussion in five categories: Design Issues, Foods, Food Preparation, Food Techniques, and Food Sources (except for Week 8 during which design reports are submitted). Assignments, reports, questions, and comments are posted to the workshop listserv, The student will write a design document describing their present household food system, the goals of their household regarding its food systems, the specific steps they will accomplish to get from "here" to "there", and how they will stage their work. Since permaculture is a holistic design system, we also consider how the household's food systems fit into the rest of the household's activities.
The workshop uses readings, assignments, activities, and reports as learning experiences to advance your knowledge and experience in design as well as a selection of practical kitchen skills. Readings for which I own the copyright or have permission to reproduce or are in the public domain are on the workshop CD, others are linked to on-line copies. The workshop resource CD also includes a complete copy of the permaculture design for my central Oklahoma City home.
While in general the workshop will stick to the schedule of topics, at the discretion of the instructor, topics which generate "extra" discussion and interest may be carried over to the next week.
My goal in presenting this workshop is to help students learn the basics of permaculture design and to apply those principles and strategies to their household food systems. The workshop is not a typical academic class, but rather an experiential/existential learning community incorporating an ortho-praxis ("right-action") of observation, evaluation, design, staging, and implementation. It incorporates art, beauty, wisdom, intuition, science, and rationality.
The workshop begins March 7, 2010.
There are three ways to participate in the workshop:
Participating Student, with Instructor Design Review (Level 1)
Students receive the workshop CD, participate in the workshop listserv, complete and post their assignments, write a design which is reviewed in detail by the instructor, with a written report for the student. The design may also be reviewed by the other workshop students. Members of the immediate household of Level 1 students may monitor the workshop and use the student's CD at no extra charge.
Participating Student, Peer Review only (Level 2)
Students receive the workshop CD, participate in the workshop listserv, complete and post the assignments, and write a design. They may post the design for peer review by other students, but do not receive a detailed written review of their design by the instructor. Members of the immediate household of Level 2 students may monitor the workshop and use the student's CD at no extra charge.
Monitor
Monitors receive the workshop CD and all of the messages from the workshop listserv, but they do not post messages or assignments.
There are different tuition prices for these levels of participation. The tuition schedule is at the end of this document.
NB: All students agree to complete the readings and the assignments and participate in the workshop discussion and design work, to stay on topic each week, follow workshop format requirements when submitting work, and to respect any copyrights of workshop materials. We must receive the signed student agreement for enrollment to be final and the student admitted to participation. Monitors agree to respect any copyrights of workshop materials. Your enrollment as a student or monitor constitutes your agreement to these requirements. (In other words, if you don't want to participate in the discussion, you should enroll as a monitor.)
Workshop Topic Outline
Before the course:
Week 1: Orientation - Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.
Week 2: Introduction to Design - If you always do what you always do, you will always get what you always get.
Week 3: Frugality - A small leak will sink a large ship.
Week 4: Health and Nutrition - An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
Week 5: Resilience - The time to build a cellar is before the tornado hits.
Week 6: Social and Distributive Justice - If you want peace, work for justice and care for Creation.
Week 7: Community - The future depends on what you do in the present.
Week 8: Education and Design Review - It takes a village to raise a child.
Post Course Follow-up:
Summary of Workshop Topics
Orientation:
Design:
Foods:
Preparation:
Techniques:
Food Sources:
Standing Weekly Assignments:
These begin with Week 2. Unless otherwise specified, assignments are due on Sunday or Monday of the week.
Reports and FAQs:
The following reports are to be prepared by each student and submitted to the workshop listserv for discussion. Unless otherwise specified, reports and FAQs are due on Sunday or Monday of the which in which they are presented.
FORMAT
The required format for emails and reports is detailed in a document on the workshop resource CD.
TUITION
For the special discount for high school or college students, send a copy of your student ID or other proof of student status to 1524 NW 21, OKC 73106, or scan the document and email it to bwaldrop@cox.net , The student discount is not available on the coop order.
The immediate family of any participating student may monitor the workshop for no additional charge. No additional workshop CD will be provided but "immediate family of student" monitors may use the student's workshop CD.
Tuition may be paid by check, money order, coop order, or by PayPal.
ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR
Bob Waldrop is a native, fourth generation Oklahoman. He is the president of the Oklahoma Food Coop (http://www.oklahomafood.coop ) , which only sells food and non-food items grown/made in Oklahoma, the founder of the Oscar Romero Catholic Worker House community, which works in food security, and the director of music at Epiphany Church in Oklahoma City. He holds a certificate in Permaculture Design from Dan Hemenway of Barking Frogs Permaculture in Florida, and has been a discussion leader with the BFPC Online Permaculture Design Course for 3 years. Previously he served as a member of the Oklahoma Food Policy Council, the board of directors of the Oklahoma Sustainability Network, and the Migrants and Refugees Advisory Council of Catholic Charities, Oklahoma City. More information about his urban permaculture site, including a video of a documentary filmed by OETA about his house, is online at http://www.energyconservationinfo.org/gatewood.htm .