Permaculture Course: Jan 15 & 16

Hey everyone, this is really late notice but there is an excellent permaculture course that is going to be offered here in the city. I took my permaculture design certificate with this same instructor (Jesse Lemieux) last August and was blown away by his wealth of knowledge. A student of both Geoff Lawton and Bill Mollison, in my opinion, Jesse is the who's-who of Canadian permaculture. The early-bird cost has passed but I still think that $275 is a pretty good deal, especially considering that Bill Mollison's book is included, $100 value. Here's the write up from idlehands.ca (host of the course):

Permaculture is a holistic, systems approach to designing sustainable
human habitat that meets the needs of humans while enhancing local
ecosystems. It is a positive, enabling approach to designing for our
current and future realities.

This 12-hour course will cover the basics of Permaculture design. A
combination of theory and creative design exercises will introduce you
to:

  * ethics and principles of Permaculture
  * eco-friendly house placement and design
  * renewable energy systems
  * organic food production
  * waste management
  * water harvesting and flow
  * drought-proofing
  * soil rehabilitation
  * ...and much more!

Date: January 15 & 16, 2010
9am-5pm each day
Location: Stanley Milner Library, Edmonton
Cost: Early-bird $250 (received prior to January 1, 2010); $275
thereafter.
Registration deadline: January 14, 2010

Includes Bill Mollison's "Introduction to Permaculture" textbook,
snacks and a vegetarian lunch both days.

Space is limited! Please register early to avoid disappointment.

Instructor: Jesse Lemieux
pacificpermaculture.ca
Jesse holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of
Victoria. His training in Permaculture includes two permaculture
design certificates (PDCs), under the instruction of both Geoff Lawton
and Bill Mollison. Jesse had taught PDCs and Intro courses in Western
Canada, has worked on aid projects in the Middle East, and was
employed at the Permaculture Research Institute in Australia.

Register For Course

Guerrilla Gardening Talk

I apologize for the short notice but Edmonton Guerrilla Gardeners has been asked to do a talk tomorrow for YEP-Edmonton. I'll be doing a little talk on the progression of Guerrilla Gardening in Edmonton up to the present; discussing some of the things we've done and have learnt over the past few years. I'll also be getting into some of the ideas we have for the 2010 year. The following was taken from an YEP email promoting the event:

Guerrilla Gardening is a rapidly growing social and environmental movement aimed at redefining the ways in which we use our public spaces. Guerilla Gardening touches on issues of beautification, naturalization, biodiversity, and food security. Guerrilla Gardeners typically target parking/vacant lots, unused public space, empty or unloved flower beds, and generally unsightly locations around their community by means of anonymous guerrilla gardening. 

Growing up in rural Alberta, Dustin Bajer became interested in pursuing different ways of combining urban and rural life; in particular, the creation of resilient communities more in tune to natural processes that sustain them. As an educator and permaculture designer, Dustin has taken to the act of guerrilla gardening to help achieve some of these goals.

Dustin will be joining YEP-Edmonton to answer all your questions about the Guerilla Gardening movement in Edmonton! 

When: Wednesday, January 13, 5:30 p.m.

Where: Remedy Cafe, 8631 109 Street, Edmonton 

The Hands Create Window Farming

I was chatting with some Guerrilla Gardening friends of mine when they began telling be about their window farm. Originating online at WindowFarms.org, window farms are..."

"...vertical, hydroponic, modular, low-energy, high-yield edible window gardens built using low-impact or recycled local materials".

To see more from Dan & Chads check out their great blog, The Hands Create.