Shift Bristol Transition Courses
By Mike Grenville 7th April 2010
Shift Bristol is a not-for-profit organisation set up to provide training for Transition and other grass roots organisations in all things sustainable – from working with the land to working with each other. They are now taking bookings for their first programme of courses and workshops. A great opportunity to learn and share with other transitioners, permaculturists and grass-roots activists. Affordable, accessible and inclusive.
The one year Practical Sustainability Course – the UK’s first year long permaculture based course is due to start in September 2010. For more information see www.shiftbristol.org.uk
or click here for the Summer Programme
May
Tuesday 11th May – 1st June (Four Tuesday Evenings).
An Introduction to Permaculture.
Four Tuesday evenings (6.30 to 9.30pm) exploring the principles and practice of Permaculture, a holistic and commonsense approach to sustainable living. Learn to work with rather than against nature to create abundant, reslient systems in our gardens, farms, homes and communities. Talks, workshops, slideshows and observational wild walk.
Led by Sarah Pugh.
Thursday 13th May.
Principles of Ecological Living and Traditional Systems with Mike Feingold.
An evening with Mike Feingold, Permaculture tutor and international practitioner. An exploration of sustainability as practiced in traditional communities around the world. An inspirational and informative slideshow based on a lifetimes work on community led regeneration and self-suffiency. Full of valuable insights into creating healthy and vibrant local systems from the grass-roots up.
Thursday 20th May.
Reading the Landscape with Patrick Whitefield.
An evening talk and slideshow with author, permaculture teacher and designer Patrick Whitefield. A lifetime of learning about how to read the health and history of the landscape with examples from all over the UK. Patrick specialises in an intricate knowledge of the UK and offers practical solutions of how to manage and repair our soils, hedgerows, agricultural and wild spaces. A unique opportunity to see slides of the making of his new book ‘The Living Landscape’.
June
Wednesday 16th June.
Weaving the Magic.
Description: A one day course designed to help people in transition groups work more effectively, enjoy-ably & sustainably together.
Why is it needed? Many social action groups fail or are ineffective because we don’t pay enough attention to quality of our relationships with each other, our group process, conflict management, how we run our meetings, etc.
What it covers: effective meetings, conflict management, looking after ourselves & each other, roles & tasks, group purpose, collaborative communication and power, decision-making & leadership.
Understand the diverse features which create & sustain healthy groups
Identify issues your group is currently facing
Plan for how to address difficult issues
Led by Nick Osbourne.
July
Tuesday 6th July.
How to set up an ESCO (Energy Service Company).
Description: An interactive one day course about how a community can set up an Energy Service Company (ESCo) as a means of taking control of the basic energy services that would enable us to live more sustainably following permaculture principles. It will provide participants with a basic understanding of what a community run ESCo is, how it might work and what the steps are in establishing one in their community.
Course content:
Energy services as part of our life support system
Examples of community run ESCos and what they are achieving
Keeping the community in the driving seat – governance and legal models
Working in partnership with local authorities and the private sector
Financing an ESCo
Where to find support and advice
Action planning
This course will be led by Trevor Houghton
Wednesday 14th July.
Building Organisational Resilience with Nick Osborne
This one-day course is an introduction and overview to an approach to organisational resilience which suggests that ‘business as usual’ is looking like an increasingly unlikely prospect in the future and that there are no quick fixes to achieve organisational resilience in an unstable and unpredictable future. Rather we suggest that it is the way of thinking about complex organisational and social issues in simple, linear ways as if there can be a one-size-fits-all-quick-fix solution, which contributes to many of the problems which people try to solve with quick fixes. Einstein said ‘The problems that exist in the world today cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them’. This course provides an approach based on understanding organisations as complex systems which need to be understood and worked with as such.
Saturday 17th July.
Permaculture Horticultural Techniques.
Led by Mike Feingold. The day starts with a shared lunch, followed by a practical workshop at Royate Hill allotment, finishing with a slideshow on permaculture horticultural techniques. A tour of Mike’s permaculture allotment – a work in progress for over 20 years. Low impact and sustainable practice at its most radical and experimental.
To be confirmed:
A weekend of Transition Training.
The work that reconnects.
How to run an open space event.
How to start an alternative local economy.
Up and coming future events!
22nd and 23rd September.
Starhawk. Holding the Vision.
An inspired exploration of working creatively in groups by internationally renowned author and facilitator.
Times, costs and venues to be confirmed soon.
To book a place for all these events please email shiftbristol@yahoo.co.uk