Ashevillage Institute

On September 15th, sixty 8th graders from Evergreen Charter School came to Ashevillage for an educational tour. They listened, they learned, and they loved it! Janell Kapoor and Ash Aymond talked about closed-system design and conscious use of materials versus wasteful consumption. After touring Ashevillage, they visited the Bountiful City Community Garden at Pearson. The tour wound down at the first cob cottage in NC, where Janell started her “muddy career” teaching cob building back in 1998.

One student said “I loved feeling immersed in nature while learning cool stuff.”  Another student reported “The beauty of the place inspired me to be more aware of how I live.” One student thought “I loved the cob buildings…can you imagine sitting in one with some hot chocolate while it’s raining?”  The tour made a really profound impact. “I liked that we got to see how we are all connected, how what I do connects to someone else and now I need to readjust my choices.”

More insights from the students:

“I learned more useful stuff on that trip than most of our field trips.”
“It makes me want to create my own permaculture space.”
“We are the future, we need to know there are better alternatives.”
“I’m surprised by how much I didn’t know about how we waste stuff and how we could make it better by paying attention to our energy and water use.”
“I want to grow my own food.”
“I feel good about learning all this stuff, but I also feel a little guilty for being such a consumer and how that affects the rest of the world.”
“I loved seeing the parts of the place that were works in progress.”
“I’m really glad someone is teaching about this.”
“I want to live there.”

Please consider giving a gift to the Ashevillage Sustainability Education Fund. When you do, you are providing sustainable pathways for under-served community leaders in the Asheville area. Scholarships are given to carefully-selected, local community members who will bring sustainable living practices to a hands-on project in our community. Priority will be given to representatives from under-served community groups who would not otherwise be able to attend due to financial limitations.We thank you in advance for supporting a sustainable community for everyone!

If you would like to provide a full, or matching program scholarship, or season’s pass to someone of your choosing, or to a leader from a local community group,  school, or church, please contact us at info@ashevillage.org.

If you wish to nominate a scholarship recipient for our general fund, please email us with: 1) their name, 2) how they are a local leader, 3) which Ashevillage program will benefit them the most, 4) what they will do with what they learn, and 5) which local community groups are they associated with? Nominations may be sent to info@ashevillage.org. Scholarships are awarded based on what we have available and who will generate the biggest impact.

From text book to hands-on, in-your-bones, cellular learning!

LOCATION
Asheville, NC

DATES
February 28th – May 25th, 2011. See full schedule details below.

LIVE YOUR POTENTIAL!
Empower your life, your community’s life, and the life of the planet to live in resilience!  In the Applied Permaculture & Natural Building Apprenticeship, you will learn about solutions that can radically advance human well being and the health of our planet’s ecosystems. Discover through in-depth classes, hands-on experience, interactive design projects, field trips, slideshows, and more.

You will begin with an internationally-certified Permaculture Design Course (PDC). Topics will then be integrated through in-depth, hands-on, small group design and management projects. This will take place at the Ashevillage Institute’s demonstration site, one of the country’s leading eco-urban centers for sustainable living. The one-acre site features a 30,000-gallon rainwater, aquaponic pond system and greenhouse, and over 150 species of edible and medicinal plants. During the second part of the Apprenticeship, you will work side-by-side with 10 world renown natural building teachers — preparing for, and participating in the Natural Building Extravaganza.

SCHEDULE INCLUDES
• Most scheduled days are 10am-6pm, with a couple of exceptions
• 2-week Permaculture Design Certification Course (PDC), February 28th-March 13th
• 3-week Natural Building Extravaganza, April 24th-May 14th
• Site visits, design, and management projects, Tuesdays & Wednesdays other than during workshops
• 1-week break, March 14th-21st

PERMACULTURE PROGRAM
Permaculture Design Principles & Processes • Observation & Nature Awareness • Pattern Design & Biomimicry • Agroforestry & Forest Gardening • Perennial Agriculture • Organic Gardening • Soil Ecology & Soil Building • Mushrooms & Myco-Remediation • Rain Harvesting & Catchment • Grey Water & Bioremediation • Water in the Landscape • Swales, Keyline, & Pond Building • Renewable Energy and Appropriate Technology • Natural Building Design and Technique • Integrated Animal Systems • Urban Permaculture • Cooperative Economics, Money & Financial Systems • Eco-Social Design

NATURAL BUILDING PROGRAM
Outdoor kitchen • Highly efficient wood-fired baking oven • Earthen cook stove • Wood-fired hot tub • Rumford fireplace • Earthen Grotto • Adobe arches • Strawbale benches • Slipstraw knee walls • Cob niches •  Wattle & Daub fence • Living courtyard • Earthen relief work • Embedded mosaic • Clay plasters & paints • Bamboo “Living” Room & Hanging Garden • Timber-framing • Wall systems • Passive solar design • International Natural Building Movement • Tours of natural building

INSTRUCTOR TEAM
Permaculture Team: Keri Evjy, Zev Friedman, Brian Winslett, and others
Natural Building Team: Janell Kapoor, Kevin Rowell, Eva Rose Edleson, Steveo Brodmerkel, Chad ‘Fez’ Gaetz, Meka Bunch, Ira Friedrichs, Aaron Maret, Chirstina Ott, Mike Holmes, and others. Read more about our instructors here.

TUITION
$3,000, includes tuition and materials. Food and lodging are not included—see lodging options below.
Some limited work-trade positions may be available for skilled participants.

PAYMENT PLAN OPTIONS
After paying the $1,000 deposit to reserve your place, the remainder may be paid with NON-REFUNDABLE post-dated checks for up to six months. To discuss payment options, inquire within.

REGISTRATION
1) Email info@ashevillage.org with your name, phone, email, and address. Please include: a) How you found out about the Apprenticeship. b) What you hope to learn. c) What you intend to do with what you learn. d) List previous related Permaculture or building experience(s) — you do NOT need previous experience to attend! e) Please state that you have read the ‘refund policy’ below.
3) Please allow 3-5 days for us to confirm availability.
4) Once confirmed, a NON-REFUNDABLE registration deposit of $1,000 is required to reserve your seat. Send a check or money order to: ’Ashevillage Institute’, 80 Buchanan Avenue, Asheville, NC 28801. Write: ‘3-Month Apprenticeship’ in the memo line. Or pay online.
4) You will receive a packet with preparation details and directions by February 15th.
5) In order to keep your seat, final payment of $2,000 is due by February 15th—unless you’ve made other payment arrangements in advance.
Note: Registration is first-come, first-served until we reach maximum capacity.

REFUND POLICY
The $1,000 deposit is NON-REFUNDABLE. The remainder of your tuition is transferable (NOT refundable), less 25%, IF you notify us before February 20th, 2011. “Transferable” means you may use it as credit toward other Ashevillage Institute programs within one year of when the original program started. After February 20th, all payments are NON-REFUNDABLE and NON-TRANSFERABLE. If, for any reason, we cancel the program, the entirety of all of your payments will be returned to you in full.

LODGING OPTIONS
For information about lodging options, including camping and rooms at our guest house, email Lisa Shoemaker at gogoshoe@gmail.com.

CONTACT
info@ashevillage.org

Educational tours are available upon request for individuals and groups. Tours can be designed to last between one to three hours, depending on participant interest. A donation will be requested based on size and length of the tour.

To book a tour or for more information, contact janell@ashevillage.org.