Permaculture Convergence: Building Resilient Communities

In the fall I attended the Northern California's Permaculture Convergence in Hopeland California. The theme of the gathering was Building Resilient Communities and it was held at he beautiful Solar Living Institute. For four days a diverse range of folks form all over Northern California gathered to address issues around restorative agriculture, social justice, grassroots organizing and much more!

Most of us camped on the land, a gorgeous sight built to model different permaculture systems. There was a large pond, solar showers, bicycle powered energy, aquaponics, medicinal gardens, biomass beds, cob houses, essentially a permi's dream!

The days were packed full with delicious meals, yoga and movement, and incredible workshops and speakers. In the evenings we gathered around the main stage for music and dancing or in one of the many beautiful cozy yurts or other structures for tea and cuddles, or around the fire to share songs.

The workshops reflected a wide range of materials. Here is a list of a few workshops below....

-“Natural” Beekeeping a Holistic Approach
-Abundant Land: Soil, Seeds, and Sovereignty
-Anti-Racism 101: Removing Blind Spots, Building Bridges
-Applied Permaculture – Forest Garden Design Charrette
-Beyond Diversity to Liberation: Intentional Communities as platforms for social justice
-Building a “Palletable” Cobin
-Aligning with Your Moon Cycle for Inner Resilience & Empowerment
-Cooking with Acorns: From Foraging to Feasting
-Creating an Herbal Apothecary
-Empowering Pregnancy & Birth
-Good Fungi, Happy Plants
-High efficiency greywater systems as a game changer for widespread adoption
-Ocean Farming & Restoration

Below are some photos I took of the event. It was truly magical and I have to say I was sad to to leave at the end. It had felt as if we had managed to create our own little utopia. That being said I also knew that it was important for all of us to return to communities and share the knowledge we had been gifted.

I encourage you all to check out next years permaculture convergence!

Building a beautiful cob bench!

A picture of the incredible folks that ran the herbal medicine clinic at the convergence

Below are pictures of my dear friend B's incredible solar oven! This afternoon he was cooking delicious solar pizza's!

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Starhawk a dear elder in our community sharing her wisdom

Pictures from the Queer Magic space that friends organized for queer folks at the gathering. A beautiful alter to queer ancestors was assembled and the space was always filled with laughter and delicious herbal teas.

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