Australia

The program gets underway at Linnaeus Estate, a sustainable 280-acre property with a pristine beachfront on Seven Mile Beach. Here you will camp near the beach and have two days of orientation to help you settle in and learn about your upcoming adventures.

On day trips around Byron Bay and Melbourne, you will visit prominent permaculture properties and demonstration sites that have been designed based on best practice sustainability principles. There will be hands-on activities guided by leading permaculture practitioners and educators. You will also visit the Byron farmers market and experience the vibrant sustainability communities dedicated to food localization and building resilience.

With more than half of the world’s population living in urban areas, cities are a vital element in the study of sustainability, environmental politics, and climate leadership. On the field trip to Melbourne, one of the world’s great cities, you will attend stimulating lectures and go on excursions to see examples of sustainability initiatives in urban and semi-urban settings.

In this one-day workshop, you will be introduced to a range of philosophical perspectives on the natural environment, from economic rationalism to deep ecology and ecofeminism, as well as explore ways to remain resilient in the face of serious environmental crises. You will develop an understanding of your own and others’ environmental philosophies.

Explore how land is central to the identity of Indigenous peoples in workshops and excursions led by local Aboriginal elders. Examine different ways Indigenous peoples view and relate to their environments and deconstruct dominant western worldviews as you develop an understanding of radically different perspectives. You will critically analyze your own relationship with the environment and reflect on what contemporary western societies can learn from Indigenous cultures that might help in efforts to become more sustainable.

Through a series of hands-on workshops and exercises you will gain a range of practical skills like mending, hand stitching, upcycling, natural dyeing and sustainable garment making, to help address environmental issues caused by fast fashion. Those who choose this practicum will also design and create their own garment or accessory using central slow fashion principles.

In this workshop, you’ll examine models of social change, and the types and scales of changes needed to solve our major environmental problems. You’ll look at examples of successful environmental campaigns and be introduced to a wide range of environmental issues. You’ll gain practical tools for effective environmental action at different levels: personal, community, and structural/political. As you identify skills you already possess, you’ll explore ideas for projects you can undertake when you return home.