Supporting others who are also working towards an ecologically sustainable future is part of our work and we offer this in several different ways.
Completing the Permaculture Design Course is just the first step in the learning process. We aim to support all our former course participants on their pathway, by keeping in contact & being here to offer help and advice whenever we can.
We offer some opportunities on our courses for apprentices wishing to gain experience in teaching and convening. These support roles are both important and demanding ones; helping to keep things running smoothly, providing feedback on sessions to the main tutors and attending daily teachers' meetings. There are also opportunities to lead a few sessions and gain feedback from the main tutors.
This role falls into the 'Symmetry' criteria of the Diploma; reciprocating support to those who have gone before. Whilst the role is not a paid one, along with the experience gained, the apprentice enjoys a full revision of the course materials. Apprentices are however normally expected to cover the cost of their food and accommodation. Please note that these apprenticeships are only available to Design Course graduates.
For more details, download our guide for teaching apprentices here.
Contact us for details of courses currently offering apprenticeship opportunities.
The Diploma WorkNet provides an excellent support framework for continuing your permaculture learning after completing the Design Course. By signing up for the Diploma, you get access to tutorial support whilst following your Action Learning Pathway and putting what you have learned on the Design Course into practice. As Diploma graduates ourselves, we are very familiar with the process and are able to provide you with Action Learning, Design Support or Technical tutorials as appropriate.
The Diploma in Applied Permaculture Design is an Action Learning based course involving a minimum of two years of tutor-supported self-study. You essentially make up your own course, studying what interests you, whilst also fulfilling two essential and four complementary criteria along the way. This you map out at the beginning of your Diploma in the form of a draft Action Learning Pathway, much of which may well change as you proceed. The essence of the Diploma is to guide you through a series of design processes, learning as you go and turning you into a much more experienced designer by the end of it.
We choose venues for our courses (both as hosts & for site visits) that have ecological sustainability amongst their core visions. Hosting our courses brings them in extra income, which can make a big difference for venues & projects living in a low impact way. In turn, course participants benefit from spending time with ecologically-minded activists & by seeing permaculture principles in action.
We also know from experience, that by running courses in such pioneering places, they will attract more support in turn in the form of return working visits by former course participants & their friends. If you have any suggestions for suitable course venues, please get in touch!