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Permaculture Design Certificate

Earn a Permaculture Design Certificate on one of New Zealand's best permaculture farms.

Our programme is unique in the world of permaculture in that it combines best practice teaching and learning along with best practice regenerative land management.


The programme balances content, process and reflection, while nurturing systems thinking skills. It’s about developing a way of thinking that recognizes the connections between diverse elements on the farm and how they interact, along with the hands-on skills required to work effectively with cultivated ecologies.
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The Facts
Kaitiaki Farm is a  5.1 hectare (13 acre) property located 2 km outside Whanganui, New Zealand. We operate as a mixed-use operation leveraging niche markets for annual crops, perennial crops, nursery trees and animals. 

Our primary interests lie in holistic land management, regenerative agriculture, market gardening, appropriate technology, renewable energy and human-scale solutions, as well as home building and renovation. 

Interns come from all over the world for eight to twelve weeks primarily during summer months. They are usually engaged two days @ 5-6 hours and three days @ 3-4 hours per week. Animal care is a daily requirement.

The living arrangement is familial - you are truly a part of our family while you are here with us (and for ever after!). We dine every evening as a family and our energetic children are a large part of family life. 


The Curriculum
We spend a lot of time teaching and talking. This slows down our work but makes the experience what it is – an endless series of ‘teachable moments’. It is also the best way to earn a PDC. This type of learning experience is extremely rare anywhere in the world and would not come from a book or standard PDC course. That said, we have a huge library of books and lots of connections locally and nationwide of practicing permaculturists.

It is internationally recognised that 'Permaculture: a Designers' Manual' by Bill Mollison is the basis for the PDC curriculum. Our curriculum builds on the Designers' Manual and extends the scope to address topics specific to New Zealand and relevant to our specific farm and current events and developments in the field. It is inline with the curriculum discussed by the Permaculture NZ education working group in late 2016.

A great benefit of the experiential model of this course is that it provides the opportunity for students to explore in great depth, topics that are of particular interest to them. It also will give you plenty of opportunity to re-visit topics in a practical setting and get immediate feedback. But perhaps the greatest benefit is living on a permaculture farm that provides a wide range of design strategies across a diverse landscape. So-called ‘teachable moments’ are the heart and soul of this style of PDC, and what makes it unlike any other. 
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The challenge of this model is that it requires learners to be self-directed to a certain extent in order to ensure that all topics are covered in the time period allotted. Each learner has a copy of the curriculum and can check off topics as they are covered. 

Kaitiaki Farm and it’s holistic management strategy provide inspiration and motivation to immerse oneself in a living four dimensional permaculture design. 

Dates:
11th October, 2022 - 8 WEEKS WITH A WEEK OFF IN THE MIDDLE.  FULL
CLIMATE RESILIENCE PDC

IMMERSE YOURSELF IN ECO-DESIGN FOR CLIMATE RESILIENCE - WORKING WITH NATURE INSTEAD OF AGAINST IT. THIS PDC FOCUSES ON ECOLOGICAL LAND MANAGEMENT, REGENERATIVE FARMING, WATER MANAGEMENT, ECO HOUSING, APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY, HUMAN-SCALE APPROACHES,AND TRANSPORT ALONG WITH THE FULL PDC CURRICULUM. 

3rd January, 2023 - 8 WEEKS WITH A WEEK OFF IN THE MIDDLE.  FuLL
CLIMATE RESILIENCE PDC

IMMERSE YOURSELF IN ECO-DESIGN FOR CLIMATE RESILIENCE - WORKING WITH NATURE INSTEAD OF AGAINST IT. THIS PDC FOCUSES ON ECOLOGICAL LAND MANAGEMENT, REGENERATIVE FARMING, WATER MANAGEMENT, ECO HOUSING, APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY, HUMAN-SCALE APPROACHES,AND TRANSPORT ALONG WITH THE FULL PDC CURRICULUM. 

7th MARCH, 2023 - 8 WEEKS WITH A WEEK OFF IN THE MIDDLE. FULL
ABUNDANCE PDC
AUTUMN IS A GREAT TIME TO BE ON THE FARM WITH HEAPS OF FRESH KAI FROM THE ORCHARD, GARDENS AND ANIMALS. THIS PDC FOCUSES ON GROWING, processing AND PRESERVING KAI ALONG WITH animal care, bush restoration, and SOME ECO-BUILDING PROJECTS. 

INSPIRATION THROUGH PERSPIRATION
WORDS FROM PREVIOUS INTERNS. 

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"I AM DEEPLY GRATEFUL FOR EVERYTHING I LEARNED AT THE ECO SCHOOL, AND FIND IT SERENDIPITOUS JUST HOW INCREDIBLY RELEVANT SO MANY OF THE LESSONS I GATHERED THERE ARE TO MY CURRENT AND FUTURE LIFE. I JUST WANTED TO SHARE THIS UPDATE AND LET YOU KNOW HOW DEEPLY YOU HAVE INFORMED AND IMPACTED MY CHOICES RECENTLY, AND MOVING FORWARD." - KAT

"I've just completed my 2 month PDC at the Eco School and have had an absolutely sensational time. If you want to learn how to become a permaculture home-steader FOR REAL, skip the two weeks of PowerPoint presentations offered elsewhere, and come get fully immersed in the lifestyle. Dani and Nelson have got the art of sustainable living down pat, and both are an absolute gold-mine of knowledge to be tapped. I left knowing how to do everything from preparing and planting garden beds; to raising livestock; milking and cheese-making; harvesting and preserving; butchering, baking (no candle-stick making...); DIY and carpentry. Essentially, we covered in incredible depth the art and science of ecology and land regeneration, as well as all the principles of design and analysis vital to making permaculture work properly. It was like being back at uni, except this time I was learning something useful (and deeply fascinating)."  - Harry

"I HAD THE UNIQUE EXPERIENCE OF REVISITING KAITIAKI FARM ALMOST TWO YEARS AFTER BEGINNING MY PDC. BEING ONE OF THE FIRST TWO INTERNS TO COMPLETE THE CERTIFICATION WITH THE ECO SCHOOL, I SAW QUITE THE TRANSFORMATION."  - LIZ

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  • Home
  • About Us
    • Who We Are
    • What We Do
    • Contact
  • Permaculture
  • Forest Schooling
  • Healthy Homes
  • Blog
  • Upcoming Events
  • Friends of The ECO School