Community Events Calendar

AT HUMMINGBIRD COMMUNITY Permaculture designer, teacher, consultant, planner and land restoration expert Richard Zook is uniquely equipped and experienced to create designs and projects that engender efficient and productive relationships between people and nature. The results of his more than two decades of work have been empowering to communities on two continents, restorative of natural habitats and ecosystems, and inspiring to environmentalists, his students and colleagues.

Earn your Permaculture design certificate with Dancing Green during our summer residential immersive! Dancing Green offers the whole Permaculture design course curriculum as an immersion in educational experiences of integration, collaboration, consensus, and self-empowerment within the context of Permaculture land-use design. The 17-day residential immersive allows you two levels of enhanced focus: (1) the routines of daily life are set aside, freeing & enhancing your attention, & (2) the process is predominately collaborative. Course facilitator is Dawn Shiner. Dawn’s website is www.sustainableagriculture.org. Tuition is $1500. Financial aid is available.

Whether you are creating an intentional community or already living in one, it is likely that you will find the information in the experience-based “Introduction to Pleasurable Group Living” interesting and useful. Drawing on their 40-year experience of successfully living as a group in one of the oldest intentional communities in the nation, members of the Lafayette Morehouse community will address such topics as • How to ensure fair treatment of everyone in the group, • Create affordable housing, • Provide better child and elder care, • Reduce expenses • Create more security. Got Questions??? Bring ‘em. This will be a highly interactive evening. The more questions, the more fascinating and fun it will be. Friday, May 15th 7:30 – 10:30pm Oakland Morehouse (call Oceana or Julianne at 510-836-0622 or email registrar@oaklandmorehouse.com for specific location) $40 at the door

If you are looking for new possibilities of growth and expansion, if you want to explore your Shamanic Self then….. Journey to the Heart is offering this option for individuals who embrace Dance and Shamanism as a form of inner expression, individuals that are ready to embark on a magical and mystical journey of the Self through Sacred Dance, Movement, Shamanic Ritual, Soul Retrieval, Power Animal Retrieval and more… This program is designed to engage the serious spiritual seeker, the one who knows he/she has a greater mission in life, the one who knows that by deeply healing his/her self will make a difference in the world. Piracanga is the place where you can rest and let go, here your spirit gets free, as you embrace the vastness and beauty of the jungle and the pristine beaches, this is the place where where WE can forget our human worries and where dreams come back to reality….

"The Opening" is a workshop in practical spirituality, designed to maximize your ability to apply spiritual principles in a grounded way. It includes presentations of life principles with experiential activities to deepen understanding & apply theory in experience. Included are discussions and various processes for personal deepening. Rich and Mary Ann Kenny, facilitators, are committed to freedom and creativity. They have offered this workshop for over ten years in the Unities States, Canada, Mexico, South Africa and England. For further information visit our website.

The UBC/UW Summer Institute in Sustainability is designed for those taking a leadership role in developing policy, creating plans and implementing sustainability projects in large businesses, colleges, universities, and local, state and provincial governments. This intensive professional development program provides participants with the perspectives and practical skills necessary to make sustainability the foundation of an organization’s on-going operations. The program consists of seminars by sustainability experts and practitioners, applied case studies and guided field excursions to sustainability projects; applied workshops focusing on sustainability planning, open space sessions that allow participants to address their own issues and ideas, and opportunities for networking. Please visit our website for more information and to register.

This is a trip and Tour- hotels and food included- that has been scheduled to visit the location where a raw vegan focussed community and farm will be built. There isn't a website yet. Email is JoeGalaxy@trillionstars.com or 888-978-6111 ext.1 The goal is a 1000 person community on 400 acres. Near the 5th largest lake in the world in Nicaragua. There will be a healing center (to help the body cure diabetes and cancer through organic food.)There will be classes on a wide variety of healing topics. A raw vegan cafe will be built that will be open to the public. Future plans are for outreach, and sustainable practices.

15th Tamera Summeruniversity - 29th July - 7th August 09 in Portugal : "Global Grace Village - Creating Models for a Future without War" Do we know what a small group of people following a clear vision of the future can change? Those who want to end war need a vision for peace. After three years of peace research of the Monte Cerro Peace Experiment, Tamera Peace Research Center invites to a summer of vision building. Stay tuned for speakers. We call this vision of peace Global Grace Village. We assume that when the first planetary peace model is fully realized in all its depths, it will be a decisive contribution to a future without war. Warm Welcome ! Tamera Team event url : http://summeruniversity.tamera.org/su09/

Come celebrate the last days before school starts in the little piece of paradise we call home, The Farm in Summertown, Tennessee. Stay for 5 days or just for the weekend. Get in on some maximum fun, Farm style! We'll spend the week swimming, hiking, listening to and playing music, enjoying really great food and each others company. I've designed the week to give you maximum rest and relaxation, with a full complement of adult and kid activities, something for everyone. Visit our web site to see a schedule of activities and workshops.

Since 1997 every year 8.-14.august and 28.12.-1.1. we invite ecovillages, communities, founders and people with interest... on a wondeful spiritual place near Frankfurt/Main.

During this 15 day course, we will experience the whole process of transforming inhabited wild landscape into an anthropocentric ecology in the midst of conserved Oregon Coastal Rainforest. Learn about water supply and storage, drainage, access, food forest design, soil building, tool use, perennial multi-story horticulture, solar and hydro power, siting, natural building, forest complexity restoration, commercial ecoforestry and more! Join us as we continue to design and implement the rest of our 12 year old, 3.5 acre homestead. The 400 acre site is home to both Mountain Homestead Intentional Community and Cob Cottage Co., who began their Natural Building School here in 2001. vegetarian/vegan meals and camping w/showers provided. Graduates are welcome to stay after the course on a work trade basis to continue projects.

Empower Yourself to Advocate for Change Through Whole Systems Design and Teaching! In this dynamic and interactive course, you will learn significant teaching techniques to communicate Permaculture principles and strategies in a wide variety of settings. We are committed to encouraging and inspiring your unique strengths and talents by demonstrating diverse teaching modalities such as lecture, facilitating class discussions, storytelling, and using visual aids. In this setting of active learning, you will experience essential hands-on practice by preparing and co-teaching several presentations. As a final course project the class will organize, promote and present a workshop to the public: An Introduction to Permaculture. This event will be sponsored by the Cottage Grove Permaculture Guild. This is a Certificate Course offered by the Cascadia Permaculture Institute in Collaboration with Permaculture Institute USA Prerequisite: Permaculture Design Course Certificate Tuition: $700-$775

* Learn practical skills for cultivating peace of mind and living sustainably. * Observe and learn to work with patterns in nature from a place of balance and center. Primary instructors: JULIA AND CHARLES YELTON, formerly of Crystal Waters Crystal Waters Permaculture Village in Australia, have been traveling, teaching and living Permaculture for the last 15 years. Among numerous other projects, they developed Humustacia Home and Gardens in Whitefield, ME and are currently Co-Directors of Permaculture Education at the New Forest Institute in Brooks, ME. Topics covered in this course include: soils and composting; water conservation, storage and grey-water systems; four season gardening, edible food forests; alternative energy systems and building techniques; mapping, topography, property design, project management, and more. Program Highlights: * Daily Yoga, meditation, and kirtan * Hands-on learning projects

Twin Oaks Communities Conference: August 14 - 16 Ecovillages, communes, coops, CoHousing, and more. A weekend of workshops, community-building, and culture creation. We'll explore topics such as group decision-making, intentional relationships, and sustainable living. $85 (sliding scale) includes food and tenting. We welcome community seekers and members alike. ---- Communities Conference, 138 Twin Oaks Rd, Louisa, VA 23093 ----

Cob is a mixture of clay, sand, and straw, and is used to build in applications where high thermal mass is appropriate. This workshop includes a description of ingredients and the function that each one provides; the benefits and challenges; establishing a basic recipe; how to test site soil for clay content; mixing techniques; and hands-on experience building with cob. Workshop facilitator Sigi Koko founded Down to Earth in 1997 to provide sustainable design and consulting services in the Mid-Atlantic region. She works exclusively on projects that are ecological, sensible, and that are on the forefront of "sustainable design". Her design work focuses on creating healthy living spaces that function in synchronicity with their environment. Her primary areas of expertise are in healthy and sustainable building materials, strawbale construction and other natural building techniques, energy and water conservation strategies, and passive solar design.

How can we create comfortable homes that will continue to support us and all the living beings around us? How does your home stack up? What alterations, modifications or changes can you make that will make a difference? This 2 1/2-week course in a 20-year-old community in Oregon offers a broad overview of the elements of home building and design with a focus on sustainability & permaculture principles. The course covers topics such as foundations, wall structures, ventilation, heating, lighting, roofs, water systems and energy systems, presenting a variety of alternatives & ecological elements through a combination of classroom & hands-on activities. All levels of experience are welcome. Participants will create their own customized eco-home design plan. Learn more & register online.

This program offers a unique view into the nature of our current metamorphic journey, combining the wisdom offerings of the founders and teachers of Hummingbird Living School. In this workshop, you will receive the necessary understandings and tools with which to successfully live in these transformational times. View Rich and Katharine’s bios here: www.hummingbirdlivingschool.org/about.htm

A visit to any one Cohousing community offers you an experience that no photo, website or book can offer. Our tours give participants the unparalleled experience of visiting a wide variety of communities in one day, with the expert guidance of an experienced cohouser, and in the company of 40 to 50 other Cohousing enthusiasts. On August 22nd, the Northern California tour will take you to visit six Cohousing communities in San Francisco's East Bay. As you travel between locations on a comfortable bus, your tour leader, a resident of a local Cohousing community, will give you general information about Cohousing, answer your questions, provide fact sheets and site plans, and otherwise prepare you for your visit to each community.

The Tennessee Carbon Farming Course Series Broadacre Permaculture and Holistic Management for Carbon Negative Agriculture Exploring Soil, Water, Carbon, Energy & the Economy August 25th- September 16th, 2009 Hosted by the Ecovillage Training Center at the Farm in Summerfield, TN What: The Tennessee Carbon Farming Course Series will launch the nation’s first holistic curriculum for carbon negative agriculture, and will be the first event in a national campaign to spread this cutting edge curriculum throughout the United States. Taught by leading global experts in sustainable agriculture and carbon sequestration, this professional training course will encompass all of the design elements needed to create a carbon sequestering agricultural system—returning carbon to the soil while increasing food production. Who: The audience for the upcoming Holistic Carbon Farming Course Series will include dozens of farmers, biologists, policy makers, grounds keepers, land-owners etc. interested

All courses of study are in German and require this Start Up Intensive. The first three days can be taken as a stand-alone module to learn about the basics of Gaia University and action learning elements. The following six day programme deepens the overview and enables prospective associates to develop their course of study collaboratively with Gaia University mentors Kathleen Battke & Katharina Weber. Das deutsche Zentrum von Gaia University startet 2009 wieder folgende Programme im Lebensgarten Steyerberg: "Mein Projekt – Open Topics" - Für alle, die auf strategischem Niveau als WeltwandlerInnen arbeiten und ein eigenes angemessenes Projekt mitbringen; "BildungsDesign für ÖkoSoziale Innovation" - Für erfahrene BildungsmanagerInnen. Schwerpunkt: Aufbau eines Gaia University Zentrums in einem europäischen oder afrikanischen Land. "Gestaltung nachhaltiger Geldsysteme" - Maßgeschneidert für engagierte Fachleute im Bereich komplementärer Geldsysteme, die sich in den letzten Jahren für die

Nonviolent Communication (NVC) is sometimes referred to as compassionate communication. It involves both communication skills that foster compassionate relating and consciousness of the interdependence of our well being, and using power with others to work together to meet the needs of all concerned. In this workshop you will: learn basic theory of Nonviolent Communication; use personal examples from your life to learn with; experience a safe, intimate, learning community; and participate in a balance of exercises, group discussion, meditation, role play, and direct instruction. Course facilitator is Jason Kelley. Jason’s website is www.nvccoaching.org. Tuition is $225.

There is arising a new spirituality, experienced as a form of evolutionary consciousness. This consciousness is three-fold: Backward, Inward, and Forward. It reaches backward in time and identifies itself as the whole process of creation, recognizing that within our atoms, molecules, cells, organs, brain is the whole story of creation. At the same time, this evolutionary consciousness looks inward to Source, to Pure Awareness, to Oneness and holds that as its center. And then it looks forward, yearning to express the creative impulse within, in spirit-motivated action on behalf of the evolution of the self and the world. Evolutionary spirituality opens up the path of the cocreator. It is not a new religion. It is a new person. Its purpose and practices are to incarnate the Great Creating Process, to discover deeper life purpose, and to express that purpose through joining with others in the cocreation of a new world. See more about Barbara and Evolutionary Spirituality at

This event at Lothlorien Nature Sanctuary is one of our two major annual fund-raisers (the other is ELF-Fest in May). Proceeds benefit Lothlorien Nature Sanctuary and Elvin HOME, Inc. This event includes primitive camping, community fire pits w/firewood provided, fellowship, showers, musical and theatrical performances, kids' activities, seasonal rites and ceremonies, workshops and discussion circles, drumming and dancing, etc. There will be vendors selling their wares and food available from our Cauldron Cafe. All are welcome. Camping/vending sites are on a first come, first served basis. There is very limited space for small RVs. Parking is along Rinsa Road (our north road inside Lothlorien). *Gate hours: 8:00 AM-11:00 PM. (We'll be closed for admission on Sunday.) Please visit us on-line for complete details, updates and for maps to get here.

The best overview of the sustainable life, providing the inspiration you need to fulfill your life goals and live your dreams. We touch on a bit of everything, from alternative education to alternative energy, midwifery to natural building, vegetarian and vegan cooking to starting a small business and yoga. Friday evening starts with a welcoming circle and dinner, followed by a slide show depicting our history and present structure. Saturday night features a community dinner plus music and entertainment. Our 6th Year!

"Enable the symbioses of mutual effects, letting nature work, reestablishing natural cycles". The essential areas of Holzer's Permaculture are the development of water landscapes for the ecological renaturation of the land, and the evolution of many mutually-supportive communities of plant and biotopes, which also create a self-sufficient supply of food for the people living there. In addition to dealing with these basic topics, each seminar has its own focus in such a way that the seminars can be attended individually, or as a series that complement each other.

"From Eden to Ecotopia" -- The 36th annual Communal Studies Association conference will be held in Aurora, Oregon, on October 1-3, 2009, sponsored by the Aurora Colony Historical Society. Papers and panels on any aspect of communalism are welcome. Deadline for submission of paper and session proposals is May 1, 2009. Send your presentation title, a 150-word maximum abstract, and a brief (100 word) biography and contact information to: Jim Kopp, Watzek Library, Lewis & Clark College, 0615 SW Palatine Hill Road, Portland, OR 97219-7899, kopp@lclark.edu

Transition Town Training: There will be a two day training on the principles of building resilient communities based on the work of Rob Hopkins in the Transitional Handbook at The Wabi community (Healing Heart Herbals) in Meigs County on Oct. 3rd & 4th . Registration before Sept. 15th is $235 for the weekend and includes food and class materials. Camping and some inside lodging is available on site. Other local lodging options sent upon request. Sponsorship options are available for businesses and organizations. If interested, please contact Cindy Parker at 740-742-8901.

Amidst the hills and hollows, tribes and councils new and old will gather to share and collaborate finding ways to re-inhabit mother earth. What: Founded 25 years ago, Continental Congresses have brought together earth natives from all generations in sacred celebration and deep connection with the earth and our diverse human family. The 10th Continental Bioregional Congress (CBCX) will be a landmark event focused on unifying and strengthening the global effort to preserve, restore and enhance life. Individuals and organizations participating in the Congress will envision, exchange and spark realistic, restorative strategies for living in the bioregions of the Americas. Who: Hundreds of people from diverse bioregions and fields such as policy, agriculture, restoration, art, education, business, and healing will participate in this year’s Congress as delegates. Thousands more will tune in to the proceedings of the Congress online, expanding the ripple effects of the inspiration and

Learn about sustainable living in a 20-year-old community in Oregon. This course explores sustainable living as individuals, as a society, & as communities. The permaculture curriculum includes: ethics, principles, philosophy; reading the landscape; recognizing patterns; waste=resources; using rainwater, greywater; growing soil; natural building & retrofitting; appropriate tech; ultra-local food; social & economic sustainability; rural, urban, & suburban applications. The program also explores the question, “What is sustainable community?” through 4 aspects of life: social, economic, ecological, & worldview. Students explore the permaculture of the “inner landscape” and of relationships through workshops on personal growth & communication. Throughout the course students work on group on-site design projects—a great opportunity to integrate course material. Learn more & register online.

Since 1993 we invite people for Workshops in german language in which we help to find out the best community for each guest from more than 10000 communities in the world. And we help people do found new communities with infos: how to get or to build houses, how to get money and how to share it, communication/mediation in communities...

This event is a fund-raiser for Lothlorien Nature Sanctuary and Elvin HOME, Inc. This community Samhain event includes primitive camping, showers, community fire pits w/firewood provided, seasonal rites and ceremonies, fellowship, kids' activities, drumming and dancing, etc. *Gate hours: 8:00 AM-9:00 PM. Parking is along Rinsa Road (our north road inside Lothlorien). Visit us on-line for complete details, updates and maps to get here.

Date: Sunday, October 25th, 2009 Time: Event runs from 4pm-6pm. Location: To be announced on website at www.weinviteyou.org More details and online community: To join our online community with Member Profiles, Discussion Forum, Event Listings, Photos & Slideshows, Custom Video Players, Real-time Activity Stream and much more please click here: http://www.peacecommunities.ning.com This event is completely free of charge. If you are interested in building and living in ecovillages, housing co-ops, landtrusts, affordable student housing, tent cities, educational housing, hostels or any type of shared housing group, please join us at this event! We will have a free table area for people to place their flyers. If you are in an ecovillage or community group (formed, forming or reforming) and would like to make a 10 minute presentation please contact us. It is a Finger-food (snack food) Potluck style meeting. Open to all. As we are an ecovillage group, please bring your own cups,

A visit to any one Cohousing community offers you an experience that no photo, website or book can offer. Our tours give participants the unparalleled experience of visiting a wide variety of communities in one day, with the expert guidance of an experienced cohouser, and in the company of 40 to 50 other Cohousing enthusiasts. On October 31st, the Northern California tour will take you to visit six Cohousing communities in San Francisco's East Bay. As you travel between locations on a comfortable bus, your tour leader, a resident of a local Cohousing community, will give you general information about Cohousing, answer your questions, provide fact sheets and site plans, and otherwise prepare you for your visit to each community.

Explore the question, “What is sustainable community?” in a 20-year-old ecologically-focused community in Oregon. The course examines the question through 4 aspects of life: social, economic, ecological, & worldview, corresponding with the Global Ecovillage Network’s Ecovillage Design Education curriculum. The course covers how to join, start, and maintain ecovillages and other communities. The program’s exploration of all of these topics is informed deeply by permaculture. For a month-long course on permaculture and other aspects of sustainable living, as well as a longer community experience, students can take Creating Community in conjunction with Lost Valley’s fall permaculture course, Permaculture & Community: Permaculture Design Course & Ecovillage Living Practicum (10/6 – 11/3). Learn more and register online.

Learn about sustainable living for 2 weeks in a 20-year-old community in Oregon. This course explores what it means to live sustainably on different scales: as individuals, as a society, & as communities. The course explores permaculture & sustainable living through different formats, including lectures, discussions, hands-on projects, & field trips. Throughout the course students work on group on-site design projects—a great opportunity to integrate what students are learning. The curriculum includes: * permaculture ethics, principles, philosophy * reading the landscape * recognizing patterns * waste as resources * water on the land: catching, storing, & using rainwater * growing soil * natural building & retrofitting * appropriate technology * transportation & sustainability * producing & harvesting food in our yards/ communities * sustainable economics * invisible structures & social sustainability * rural, urban, & suburban applications. Learn more & register online.

"Enable the symbioses of mutual effects, letting nature work, reestablishing natural cycles" The essential areas of Holzer's Permaculture are the development of water landscapes for the ecological renaturation of the land, and the evolution of many mutually-supportive communities of plant and biotopes, which also create a self-sufficient supply of food for the people living there. In addition to dealing with these basic topics, each seminar has its own focus in such a way that the seminars can be attended individually, or as a series that complement each other.

As out-work closes for year. In-door activities Re-vive. -motto: Collect water and seed, be with them who do, set tasks for boys and girls, make rooms for flocks and birds, and Strangers Too. - WE will be forming events for Spring-time also. However, we become quite quickly aware that community, as relationship, exaggerates tensions that we feel: the tension between our autonomy and the demands of community organization; the ever-present tension between competing commitments; the impact of community dynamics on marriage, family, child-rearing - are just some of the stresses that begin to shape our lives as members. We are hoping to bring together individuals from many groupings to share in good conversation. - Cost: $30 ? no, nothing. come if you can come. cost is you time and ideas. -