Permaculture Advanced Design Studio in Local Food Systems- Florida, March 2017

>>Permaculture Advanced Design Studio in Local Food Systems
>>Creating the Local Food Economy
in Central West Florida
:::::  March 31-April 3, 2017  :::::
:::::  Location: Brooksville, FL ::::


Description: Located between Tampa Bay, Gainesville, and the Orlando metro area in west central Florida, Brooksville and Hernando County are an emerging food powerhouse. Join us just inland from Florida’s Nature Coast for a fun- and learning-filled adventure in community planning and design.
Combining activism and education, this advanced workshop will address the needs and opportunities of this west Florida region for a more productive, profitable, and resilient local food economy. Students will work with instructors to analyze local needs and resources, including farms, farm markets, food distributors, local consumers, restaurants, processors, and institutional buyers to design a food hub. We will put our attention both on its physical infrastructure and the organizational, social, and financial capital needed to bring it into being.
Broadly applicable across the US and Canada, the food-hub concept is taking hold with great success in many areas. Your region almost certainly needs this support for the 21st century economy. Combining food security and sovereignty, agritourism, local employment, nutrition, land repair, and waste management as main themes, we will draw together principal players from the region to gather information for the design and to strengthen connections within this nascent but resource-rich community.
Students will camp on an organic permaculture-oriented farm near Brooksville (showers, toilets, dining, and classroom space provided), or may find optional commercial lodging in town. Field trips to important local venues will be organized by the class, and we will present our design analysis and recommendations to representatives of the stakeholder communities.
Completion of the Permaculture Design Course or a demonstrated preparation and commitment to the design project content are requirements for enrollees. Those without a PDC certificate will need to give a short phone interview to one of the instructors to ensure that they will be able to benefit from and contribute to the group work.
The course is recognized by the Permaculture Institute of North America (PINA).  PDC graduates will receive a certificate attesting to their participation.

Instructors: 

Peter Bane is the author of The Permaculture Handbook: Garden Farming for Town and Country, and veteran publisher of Permaculture Activist. A Michigan resident and now also President of the Board of PINA, he holds Diplomas in five Pc specializations from three international institutes, and has trained almost 2,000 students at venues ranging from Canada to Patagonia and including Florida, Trinidad, and Hawaii. 

Koreen Brennan is the principal of Grow Permaculture and a member of the board of PINA. A veteran educator, she was founding Coordinator for the Sustainable Urban Agriculture Coalition in St. Petersburg and also started Create Clearwater, a group dedicated to local food production, water and energy conservation, and community building. Koreen consults with urban and rural landowners across the state.

Jono Neiger is a partner in Regenerative Design Group in Greenfield, Mass., faculty at the Conway School of Landscape Design, and the author of The Permaculture Promise, just released. He was founding President of the Permaculture Institute of the Northeast and holds a Diploma in Site Design from PINA. He recently completed teaching a PDC with Koreen at the course venue near Brooksville where she manages a small farm. 

Cost: $495 if paid in full by February 28, $595 after. Fee includes tuition and materials, camping and meals. Couples eligible for a $50 discount and work teams of three or more are eligible for special pricing. Contact the organizers.

Contact: Peter Bane, 812-335-0383, pcactivist@mindspring.com or Koreen Brennan, 727-424-3329, koreenbrennan@gmail.com. www.growpermaculture.com  or www.permacultureactivist.net.