Courses

Our Permaculture Design Courses provide essential skills for understanding and implementation of good Permaculture design. An intensive, on-farm course - theory and practical experience as a comprehensive introduction to Permaculture principles in context.

In a world out of balance, we are all looking for solutions. Solutions to effective ways of growing healthy, organic food in urban environments. Solutions to ways of farming that can both feed a family, earn an income and build soil fertility. Solutions to ways of retrofitting an existing house or property that results in lower energy costs and better health for its inhabitants. Solutions that use intelligent, thoughtful design principles to build sustainable lives, and sustainable communities in a world of Peak Everything.

Permaculture principles can be applied across any biosphere, any property, any landscape, any city. Permaculture is a network of well-grounded theories and techniques that, over time, result in sustainable and productive systems. Systems for living, architecture, food production, land management and community. No chemicals and no excuses. Just good, thoughtful, innovative and effective design for the needs of our species.

"Though the problems of the world are increasingly complex, the solutions remain embarrassingly simple"
Bill Mollison (co-founder of the Permaculture movement)

"What Permaculturists are doing is the most important activity that any group is doing on the planet."
Dr. David Suzuki (venerated ecologist, geneticist, author + broadcaster)

What is a Permaculture Design Certificate Course?

The Permaculture Design Certificate Course (PDC) have been delivered since the early 1980's to possibly millions of people across the globe. All manner of people have done a PDC to equip themselves with an ability to confront constant cultural & environmental change & to become more sustainable, low energy-use and truly useful members of a community.

The PDC is an efficient & cost effective means of gaining the knowledge of Permaculture Ethics & Principles together with amassing skills, techniques & a knowledge base for designing & developing sustainable human settlements - from a small home to a broad acre farm. The 2 week residential format combines all of this to make for a totally empowering experience that is very likely to change your life…not to mention the connections and friends you will make for life too!

Why take this Permaculture Design Certificate Course?

Milkwood Permaculture provides the PDC course in an intensive residential format, with small class sizes for each course. This means more time for questions, discussion, demonstration and for lots of hands-on practical sessions - something that cannot normally be offered by a 'classroom style' PDC with 30+ students.

Milkwood Permaculture is currently transforming a 20-acre chunk of sunburnt, clapped-out sheep country into a fertile, sustainable small-holding incorporating food forest systems, innovative water catchment systems, Keyline techniques, passive-solar structures and small-scale livestock rotation systems, all using Permaculture principles and practice.

In addition to the PDC course curriculum, this course therefore involves students in Permaculture in the making, with many elements to the system being actively built and established as part of our on-site courses.

The 72-hour Permaculture Design Course is accepted by many Universities as equivalent to one university/college subject of one semester. This course can also serve as the foundation for further study and is a prerequisite for a Diploma in Permaculture Design, awarded by The Permaculture Institute.

About the course curriculum:

Milkwood Permaculture's PDC course covers the following Permaculture principles, with additional workshops, practical on-farm sessions and films:

• Permaculture ethics
• Concepts and themes in Permaculture Design
• Methods of good design
• Pattern Understanding
• Climatic factors of design
• Trees, water and energy cycling
• Soils
• Earthworking + earth resources
• Aquaculture
• Design for different biospheres: tropics / drylands / cool climates
• Future scenarios + strategies

This PDC accreditation can lead to further training, teaching, international aid work, local design work or just implementation of Permaculture principles within your own life and surrounds, depending on your own personal trajectory.

About the teacher:

Nick Ritar is at the forefront of the new generation of Permaculture teachers working on the edge of what Permaculture can do to restore landscapes and create abundance in almost any environment on earth. Nick works and teaches extensively with a wide range of bioregions, farms, watersheds and city environments, and is a leading educator and advocate on how Permaculture principles can provide food security through sustainable farming practices both in country and city environments.

Nick divides his time between Permaculture teaching, Permaculture Design projects, Permaculture consultancy for both the urban and rural sectors, and the ongoing establishment of Milkwood Permaculture Farm.

Included in your course fee:

The Milkwood Permaculture PDC course fee is all-inclusive for the duration of your stay at Milkwood Farm, including all meals and accommodation on-site. Meals are organic country cooking with omnivore or vegetarian options, with a high ratio of yummy organic produce coming from Milkwood Farm itself. See our Staying at Milkwood page for full info on accommodation and facilities.

During the course:

Class starts on the morning of Sunday 21st February and concludes in the afternoon of Saturday 6th March, with a day off in the middle on Saturday 27th. Students are welcome to arrive the afternoon before the course, and head off the morning after the course's completion.

Classes run in a rough 9am - 5pm format, depending on the material of the day. Outside class hours, students are welcome to interact with the farm and its daily chores, go for a swim, go for a bushwalk or make use of the extensive library provided.

Booking into the course

To secure your spot in the Milkwood Autumn PDC course pay the full course fee of $1500. Click the green button at right to pay via PayPal or your credit card.

Once you've booked into this course, we will contact you via email regarding food preferences, what to bring along with you, and any further info you might need or request regarding camping and transport to/from Milkwood Farm.