Permaculture Design Course: Starhawk at O.U.R. Ecovillage

One United Resource, (O.U.R.) Eco Village in Shawnigan Lake, BC hosts a wide range of events and workshops centered around permaculture and sustainable ideology.  This summer Mike & I traveled to this incredible community governed project to attend a permaculture design course lead by author, activist, and permaculturist – Starhawk.

O.U.R. Ecovillage is a sustainable learning community and demonstration site committed to a path of resiliency, compassionate action, and healthy interdependence.  This is a place for learning a new way to live with one another that honors the earth, personal and community development, inclusiveness, balance, and prosperity.

O.U.R. Ecovillage hosts the onsite ecological education school called TOPIA where they offer training in green/natural building, Permaculture design certification, sustainable food production, eco-psychology, and council/community-building.  Contrary to conventional schools, the courses at O.U.R. often overlap and share common space and ideology.  Experiential learning is key. Themes of interdependency and community bridge gaps – as natural builders, permaculturists, biodynamic gardeners, outdoor leaders, and communitarians all unite to co-design, co-build and co-manage a dynamic and diverse demonstration site intended to serve generations to come.

Shawnigan Lake, BC

Incorporating Starhawk’s Earth Activist PDC was a sure fit for this beautiful and inspiring Village at Shawnigan Lake.  Starhawk’s curriculum focuses on earth based spirituality, organization, and action.  During her course we were led in regular ceremonies honoring the earth and our contributions to it.  We combined logic with creativity, explored possibilities, and modeled the relationships and actions necessary for building truly resilient systems.  We learned tangible skills in soil science, waste-water management, urban design/architecture, animal systems, natural building, horticulture/gardening, organization, activism (among other things)…..but perhaps most important was wrapping our mind around a whole-systems way of thinking.

Learn more about Starhawk’s Earth Activist PDC Training, here.

Learn more about O.U.R. EcoVillage and their diverse offers, here.