Findhorn Permaculture Design Certificate Course (PDC)
A comprehensive two-week course blending theory, practical skills, and community wisdom.
Join us at The Park Ecovillage, Findhorn, one of the biggest and oldest ecovillages in Europe, for a hands-on two-week certificate course on permaculture principles and design practices, with a focus on permaculture in community and methods that will engage the heart, head and hands.
- Training in Permaculture Design, covering the full Permaculture Association curriculum (which is based upon Bill Mollison’s curriculum, with updates bringing it to the modern day), tailored to the unique people and place of our course;
- Guest speakers;
- Diverse learning methods: including facilitated group discussion, practicals (e.g. gardening, fermenting), meditation, song, site visits, students sharing their knowledge, group design projects and more – covering holistic learning through eyes, heart, hands and head;
- Observing permaculture principles in action, and experiencing how these processes influence systems and site development.
The Ecovillage Findhorn PDC runs fromJuly 28th to August 10th, 2025, in The Park, Findhorn, Scotland.
Face to Face Programmes
Training of Trainers
ToT
What is the ToT Course?
Gaia Education’s Training of Trainers course is designed for those committed to instigating change and dissatisfied with conventional teaching approaches. The course aims to enhance competence in participatory facilitation, fostering collaboration and engagement within a community of learners. It helps participants discern their true calling in teaching and emphasizes the crucial role of participatory methods in various communities and the future of life on Earth.
This course equips facilitators with essential skills and confidence to lead participatory learning journeys that empower participants internally and externally. Aspiring facilitators are expected to have knowledge in their chosen subjects, and the course prepares them to teach this content in a way that fosters community and collaboration. Participants engage in hands-on facilitation experiments, and principle clarification, creating a holistic educational experience. Ample time is dedicated to facilitation practice, building confidence in using participatory tools by leading assigned sessions.
The course aims to refine and train facilitation skills for guiding various groups, regardless of prior experience with Gaia’s programs. Many participants find a heightened sense of purpose and meaning, influencing positive change within their communities and shaping their life’s trajectory. Some undergo profound transformations, gaining insights and knowledge that make them more effective contributors to global well-being. Recognizing the urgency of implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) locally, the course includes a session using Gaia’s SDG Flashcards, inspired by holistic systems thinking. It also introduces Edge Work, fostering an understanding of the edges between communities with diverse modes of operation, power structures, cultures, physical environments, and worldviews.
Upcoming
Ecovillage Design Education
EDE
Ecovillage Design Education programmes, often referred to as ‘EDEs’, provide participants of all ages with the knowledge and practical skills to design a society which uses energy and materials with greater efficiency, distributes wealth fairly and strives to eliminate the concept of waste.
Our immersive Face-to-Face programmes are known to have transformed lives. Previous participants have become agents of positive culture change in their communities and regional economies, they’ve co-created social enterprises and cooperatives, started community projects and became trainers for sustainability themselves – to name only a few paths you can take afterwards. The course will equip you with skills and knowledge you will be able to put into action in any field or sector you are involved with.
Participants become change agents and sustainability designers, taking active roles in transitioning their existing communities, institutions and neighbourhoods, to more sustainable patterns of production and consumption, as well as leading more joyful, more meaningful and healthier lives.
Upcoming events
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Monday, February 3 · 7am EST (1h)View more
After the first She-Ede held in Magliano Sabina in 2023 and a series of She-Ede of a week each held in Italy and Portugal in …
Read moreAfter the first She-Ede held in Magliano Sabina in 2023 and a series of She-Ede of a week each held in Italy and Portugal in 2024 that are still happening and will run cyclicly, now, SHE-EDE goes to South America.
SHE-EDE NASHIRA COLOMBIA- FEBRUARY 3 – MARCH 5, 2025GAIA EDUCATION ECOVILLAGE DESIGN EDUCATION HELD IN A MODERN MATRIARCHAL COMMUNITY IN COLOMBIA
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Friday, March 7 · 2am EST (1h)View more
Ecovillage Design Education course
- Community Building
- Practical Sustainability & Permaculture
- Holistic Health, Spiritual…
Ecovillage Design Education course
- Community Building
- Practical Sustainability & Permaculture
- Holistic Health, Spirituality & Mental Wellbeing
- Green Entrepreneurship
- Design businesses, gardens, activities, NGOs and anything else in your life
In partnership with LOS and Gaia Education.
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Upcoming EDEs
Mini-EDE
For many people, it is not possible to take time off work/family/school for a four-week immersive EDE programme. Our new mini-EDEs offer the possibility of experiencing the taste of a full EDE, maintaining the core values and following the 4D mandala, but in a shorter version.
Mini-EDEs are for everybody and particularly suited to young people. They can be held as youth camps or school clubs. Check out below some examples of mini-EDEs around the world!
