Sustainability Education in the DC/Baltimore/York Area

[gardenbetty@earthlink.net]

Sustainability Education - 1999 Calendar of Events

Hosted by The Greater Baltimore Permaculture Group • 410-343-DIRT

Sponsored by Heathcote Community, Cromwell Valley Park, and River Pearl Farm

PERMACULTURE EDUCATION
•Introduction to Permaculture
Flexible scheduling. Please call.
This two-hour presentation and slide show is an excellent introduction to
permaculture principles and techniques for people who are interested in
learning about a proven, holistic method for dealing with today’s
environmental and social challenges.

We will gladly bring the Introduction to Permaculture presentation to your
group of 10 or more people. We would expect your group to cover the travel
expenses of our presenter. Additional donations will also be accepted. Please
call to set up an appointment.

•1999 Permaculture Design Course
Heathcote Center
July 10–25
$775 (tuition assistance available)
Our 5th annual Design Course at Heathcote Center is a comprehensive 16-day
residential program emphasizing hands-on learning and community living. The
course culminates in the presentation of a student created design. This is the
ideal format for individuals who are convinced of the effectiveness of the
permaculture approach, and seek to rapidly expand their knowledge and
experience base.

Topics will include: principles of Permaculture; ecosystem dynamics; mapping
and tool usage; building and protecting soils; conserving and managing water;
forest agriculture and edible landscaping; integrating livestock and wildlife;
local useful wild plants; waste and nutrient cycling; sustainable building
techniques; and creating and sustaining community.

HOLD EVENTS
Hands-On Living Demonstrations (HOLD) is a project of the Greater Baltimore
Permaculture Group (GBPG). Its emphasis is organizing informal workdays at
local sites for implementing creative solutions to ecological challenges that
will serve as living examples to future visitors. All HOLD Events take place
on Saturdays from 10am until 4pm unless otherwise indicated. Please bring a
vegetarian lunch dish to share.

•Organic Gardening the Permaculture Way
Cromwell Valley Park
April 10 • 10am–4pm, potluck lunch
$15-$50 (sliding scale, you decide)
Topics will include: site assessment; bed and pathway design; no dig
gardening/sheet mulching; managing water; seed saving and biodiversity; “pest”
control; soil health and soil creation; making and using micro-climate niches;
using “dynamic accumulators and “green manures;” and establishing garden guilds.

•Spring Planting: Preparing for Abundance
River Pearl Farm
April 17 • 10am–4pm, potluck lunch
FREE (Donations accepted)
Activities will include: “herb spiral” construction; orchard planting and
mulching; creating dry hummocks for planting (semi-dry chinampas); and
riparian plantings.

•This Old Barn - Building Restoration
Heathcote Center
May 8 • 10am–4pm, potluck lunch
FREE (Donations accepted)
Activities will include: evaluating our old barn functionally and
aesthetically; jacking and pulling the barn back into shape; foundations; sill
repair and replacement; timber joint repair; roof work; metal roof painting;
siding repair and replacement; and organizing the barn interior.

•Water Catchment Systems
Cromwell Valley Park
June 20 • 10am–4pm, potluck lunch
FREE (Donations accepted)
Activities will include construction and installation of simple roof water
catchment systems for watering gardens and greenhouses.

•Summer Preparation for Winter Food
River Pearl Farm
August 22 • 10am–4pm, potluck lunch
FREE (Donations accepted)
Activities will include: hoop house and pond building preparation and working
with dried flowers.

•Preserving the Harvest
Heathcote Center
Sept. 25 • 10am–4pm, potluck lunch
FREE (Donations accepted)
Activities will include learning and practicing various techniques for putting
up food for the winter (blanching, freezing, drying, etc.).

•Building a Solar Greenhouse
Heathcote Center
Oct. 23–24 • 9am Sat.–2pm Sun.
$30–$100 (sliding scale, you decide)
$10 lodging
Activities will include: siting; assessing solar angles and exposure; building
techniques; insulation approaches; and integrating the greenhouse with the
home and garden.

HEARTSONG WORKSHOPS
Heartsong Workshops focus on the psycho-social aspect of human sustainability
and seek to offer unique and creative solutions to the spiritual and
interpersonal challenges we face in creating a healthy culture.  

•The Choreography of Cursive: 
Poetry in Nature Immersion
Heathcote Center
April 3 • 10am–2pm, “poetic” lunch
$25–$50 (sliding scale, you decide)
Led by poet/filmmaker Dana Bloomfield, this workshop will cover basic writing
do’s and don’ts, and help aspiring writers connect with outdoor spirituality
through the universal language of symbols.

•Body Attunement with Jette Goldman
Heathcote Center
Sunday, May 23 • 10am–4pm, potluck lunch
$10–$25 (sliding scale, you decide)
A day of retreat from daily busy-ness to turn inward, to be present and quiet
with our bodies, and follow our inner source! Activities will include:
grounding, movement, voicing, intuitive expression, visualization.

•Introduction to Formal Consensus: 
A workshop on cooperative decision-making.  Facilitated by C.T. Butler
Heathcote Center
June 12 • 10am–4pm, potluck lunch
$25–$50 (sliding scale, you decide)
This workshop will provide the information necessary to conduct a meeting
using the Formal Consensus process. Topics include: agenda planning,
facilitation techniques, small group discussion, and evaluation. 

C.T. Butler is a national organizer for Food Not Bombs and the author of /On
Conflict and Consensus/, a handbook on consensus decision-making. His
knowledge of group dynamics and cooperative decision-making comes from over
fifteen years of experience as a nonviolent political activist and grassroots
community organizer. C.T. Butler’s book /On Conflict and Consensus/ is
available for $10.  

ABOUT THE SITES
Heathcote Center  •  410-343-DIRT
Located 30 miles north of Baltimore, MD, and 20 miles south of York, PA, the
Heathcote Center is nestled in a narrow valley on a 44-acre community land
trust that offers forest, stream, and hiking trails, as well as abundant
gardens and historic buildings. Heathcote Community is committed to providing
a working model of cooperative, sustainable living. 

Cromwell Valley Park  •  410-825-3891
Cromwell Valley Park is a Baltimore County park whose mission is to
demonstrate and teach about sustainable agriculture. Located minutes from the
Baltimore Beltway near Towson, Cromwell Valley is a mixture of woodland,
pasture, stream, and historic structures, including ten acres devoted to a
Community Supported Agriculture project. 

River Pearl Farm  •  717-227-2783
River Pearl Farm is the homestead of Val and Tom Hopkins. It is located five
miles north of the Mason-Dixon line in Glen Rock, Pennsylvania (just 30
minutes north of the Baltimore Beltway). River Pearl is a 24-acre farm with
three distinct eco-zones: floodplain field, southwest-facing hillside, and a
part-sun valley area. Codorus Creek runs through the property, and the North
Central Rail (NCR) Trail passes nearby. 

WHO IS GBPG?
The Greater Baltimore Permaculture Group is an organization that seeks to
demonstrate sustainable living and to educate the public and ourselves. We are
volunteers who serve as co-teachers for Permaculture education events. Our
main demonstration site is at the Heathcote Center. Our group is developing
demonstration sites at Cromwell Valley Park in Towson, Maryland, and at River
Pearl Farm in Glen Rock, Pennsylvania.

1999 SUSTAINABILITY EDUCATION REGISTRATION

Name_______________________________________________

Phone_______________________________________________

E-mail_______________________________________________

Address_______________________________________________

o	I will attend the _______________________ (date) FREE HOLD Event.           
 
o	Please send me more information about the 1999 Permaculture Design Course.
o	I’m interested in scheduling an Introduction to Permaculture presentation
for my group of ten or more people. Please call me.

_______ Organic Gardening the Permaculture Way  $15–$50 (sliding scale)
_______ Greenhouse Building  $30–$100 (sliding scale)  plus $10 lodging
_______ Introduction to Formal Consensus with C.T. Butler  $25–$50 (sliding scale)
_______ /On Conflict and Consensus/ by C.T. Butler  $10
_______ Body Attunement with Jette Goldman  $10–$25 (sliding scale)
_______ Poetry Workshop with Dana Bloomfield  $25–$50 (sliding scale)
_______ My donation to help make sustainability education accessible to more people
_______ Total (Please make checks payable to GBPG.)

send to:
Heathcote Center
21300 Heathcote Road
Freeland, MD 21053
heathcote@jhu.edu
http://welch.jhu.edu/~lfelch/heathcote.html
(our server seems to be down currently, but please check again!)