Feeling Stuck? Move from hopeless to hopefull with Permaculture Design.

Because you know there has to be a better way....

Learn to live in a meaningful way that you, your community and the earth all thrive - together! It is actually possible.
Register now!

“Now is the time to stop dreaming the dream and have something materialize from it. Kym Chi is gifted in facilitating and providing gracious inspiration for a resilient lifestyle. She showed me the DOOR of practicality and empowered me to STEP IN to the possibilities awaiting me on the other side." - Dharlyn Gomez"

Full details below! Read on...

Online Permaculture Design Course with Kym Chi

Featuring special guests; Mark Lakeman, Julie Parrell, Lori Snyder and Hazel Bell Koski

“Paying attention is a form of reciprocity with the living world, receiving the gifts with open eyes and open heart.” Robin Wall Kimmerer - Braiding Sweetgrass

Image: Charlie Durrant

We are living in a time where the impact we make truly matters. Everyone is a designer of their life. Whether on a small or large scale, the choices we make and the way we design, creates the world around us. 

As a child, youth and young adult,  I could tell that the current systems were failing us. I was devastated by environmental practices and never felt truly supported by our current economic system, government and health care system and education system. 

I felt stuck, wanting to make positive change and all I could see within these systems was corruption and destruction. I felt fear, anger,  and hopeless. 

I sought to live in a world that thought and acted differently.

The only solace I could ever find was in the natural world. I wanted to run away, move into the forest and disconnnect,  never to be a part of the mainstream system again.

What stopped me?...

My love of people and the inner knowing that we could do better.

I started to try new things. Yoga, meditation, reiki, herbalism, changing my diet etc... This helped, but it did not offer the answers I was looking for to quench my desire to change the system.

Finally, one winter day in 2011,  I found what I was looking for.  Permaculture Design! 

I took a course and was hooked!

This one simple, yet complex design process held the keys to what I knew was possible. 

What was it?! A new way of living - with natures wellbeing at the core. 

So here I am - believing so much in the power of the Permaculture Design process that I know teach it to countless others.

What is Permaculture Design?

It is so much! In essence, it is a practical framework, based on nature's operating system. 

It offers tools, techniques and strategies for designing and creating resilient and regenerative lives.

It grounds itself Traditional Practices developed by Indigenous Peoples all over the world, adding in relevant new scientific technologies.     

Permaculture cares about the wellbeing of the Earth, ALL People and future generations to come.

Ultimately, we get to choose how our designs will impact our existence. Will they degenerate and degrade or will they regenerate and advance?

Design on the side of life! Become the generator of an empowered, connected and regenerative life with Permaculture!

I invite you to equip yourself through this 18 week program. 


Kym teaches with high integrity and so much grace. The online Permaculture Design Course was the best online course I've done so far. It was interactive and engaging." - Kelly Gordon - Somatic Movement Educator

Join Now!

What is included in the course?

This online course is flexible and comprehensive. You receive:

  • 18 live (online) classes with over 60 hours of content

  • 20 hours of pre recorded content including lessons with Mark Lakeman

  • 3 x live appearances with Mark Lakeman

  • 3 x live sessions with Indigenous facilitators Julie Parrell, Lori Snyder and Hazel Bell-Koski

  • As a core project, you will create a map and design for a practical project of your choice. Group mentorship is offered throughout the program.

  • Access to a user friendly platform with over 300 lessons, applied homework, demonstrations, course projects and other resources.

  • Digital information sheets that create an over 400 page book.

  • Dynamic discussions, breakout groups and interactive activities

  • Interactive virtual space for dialogue with other participants

Bonus material

To add a layer of mulch to the soil, participants will receive the following registration bonus:

  • Bonus material

    $188

    Free access to my Herbal Preparations and Plant Allies (pre recorded) program (25+ hours of content)

Image - Charlie Durrant

Join with like minded people online to learn about how nature designs itself. Discover how to become more grounded and connected with yourself, your community and the natural world. We will discover how to map and design our land and lives, plan for emergencies, grow food naturally, build community and work to build a more resilient and positively impactful life.

Kym Chi is a creative facilitator and this class caters to anyone wanting to learn regenerative design in a dynamic way and in a safe, inclusive environment.

It is a flexible course that considers the busyness of modern life. The class schedule is ideal for creatives, parents, healers, holistic practitioners, entrepreneurs, students and those with dynamic routines.

All live classes will be recorded for participants to rewatch at their convenience. Please read requirements for certification details.

We review many exciting course topics that include Foundational concepts, Design Methods, Pattern Literacy, Soils & Composting, Water, Trees & Vegetation, Animals, Design for cool/tropical/arid climates, Social systems, Native food and medicine plants and more.

This is a unique course with an exciting teaching tool kit that transforms lectures into games and group discussions and focusses on multi dimensional learning. Apply your learnings to the focus project for the program which is to start a map and design for where you live, an area or project of your choice.

Successful completion of this course offers graduates a legitimate and formal certificate through Permaculture Institute (www.permaculture.org).

Investment -

Low cost in effect to reflect our current times!

  • Full Pay - $577
  • Pay it Forward - $650 (this supports a person in need to attend at a substantially discounted rate)
  • Monthly payment plans available.
  • Additional discounts available for Indigenous folks from Turtle Island. Please inquire via email for details. kym@gigglingchitree.com
  • Some Partial & Full Scholarships are available for those in true financial need. Please email kym@gigglingchitree.com for details.

Dates:

Classes will run Saturday Mornings from 9:30am - 1pm PST
with optional classes on weekday evenings.

Full detailed schedule can be found below.

Bee Regenerative

Core Faciliators

Kym Chi

Kym Chi is the main facilitator for the Permaculture Program. She is a dedicated healer, grounding herself in service through earth stewardship, people care and regenerative action. As a dynamic woman, her main passions are Permaculture design, creative facilitation, visual art, holistic healing and community building. To date; Kym has received 3 certificates in Permaculture Design, completed multiple teacher trainings, taken a variety of advanced trainings, completed a Diploma in Permaculture Education and has over 2000 hours facilitation experience. She has studied and taught with Permaculture Visionaries like Rosemary Morrow, Robin Clayfield, Starhawk, Robina McCurdy, Mark Lakeman, Michael Becker, Toby Hemenway, Larry Santoyo and Scott Pitman. She is a chartered Herbalist and has completed advanced herbal studies with Susun Weed, Dina Falconi, Barbara Cotgrave, Robert A. Bartlett and Matthew Wood. With a love of learning, she continues to take courses that grow her understanding of the natural world. Through her stewardship of a deepened connection with the environment, Kym wishes to inspire connection with the natural environment, oneself and the greater community to invoke creative self expression and value centred living, enriching and creating healthy, abundant habitats and communities. With a focus on Social Permaculture, people care and life design, Kym works with empowerment models, enjoys encouraging others on their life path and focusses on ways to support organizations and communities to become more resilient. Her success is measured on the successes of her students, allies and friends. Kym is a settler on the West Coast of Turtle Island on the unceded and stolen lands of the Coast Salish Peoples. She is dedicated to the continued process of decolonizing herself and creating right relations with the land and the original people where she lives, works and visits.  Kym is a homesteader,  Permaculture Teacher, Holistic Healer, Mentor, HeArtist and is the Dean of the School of Permaculture Design at Pacific Rim College

Mark Lakeman

Mark Lakeman teaches multiple pre recorded sessions in the Online Permaculture Program and also offers multiple live Q&A sessions. Mark is the co-founder of the non-profit placemaking organization The City Repair Project, and principal of the community architecture and planning firm Communitecture. He is the founder of The Planet Repair Institute’s Urban Permaculture Design Course in Portland which has run annually since 2011. The program was adopted by City Repair in 2019. Mark was the lead instructor of the program until 2020. Mr. Lakeman is also an urban place-maker and permaculture designer, community design facilitator, and an inspiring catalyst in his very active commitment to the emergence of sustainable cultural landscapes everywhere. Every design project he is involved with furthers the development of a beneficial vision for human and ecological communities. Whether this involves urban design and placemaking, ecological building, encourages community interaction, or assists those who typically do not have access to design services, Mark’s leadership has benefited communities across the North American continent. These include cities such as Los Angeles, Seattle, and Ottawa where City Repair Projects are underway.Stories of Mr. Lakeman’s projects have been told widely, including in such publications as Dwell, Architecture Magazine, New Village Journal, Yes magazine, The Utne Reader, Permaculture Activist and many more. With City Repair, in 2003 Mark was awarded the National Lewis Mumford Award by the international organization Architects & Planners for Social Responsibility for his work with Dignity Village, one of the United States’ first self-developed, permanent communities by and for previously homeless people.

Kym Chi

Kym Chi is the main facilitator for the Permaculture Program. She is a dedicated healer, grounding herself in service through earth stewardship, people care and regenerative action. As a dynamic woman, her main passions are Permaculture design, creative facilitation, visual art, holistic healing and community building. To date; Kym has received 3 certificates in Permaculture Design, completed multiple teacher trainings, taken a variety of advanced trainings, completed a Diploma in Permaculture Education and has over 2000 hours facilitation experience. She has studied and taught with Permaculture Visionaries like Rosemary Morrow, Robin Clayfield, Starhawk, Robina McCurdy, Mark Lakeman, Michael Becker, Toby Hemenway, Larry Santoyo and Scott Pitman. She is a chartered Herbalist and has completed advanced herbal studies with Susun Weed, Dina Falconi, Barbara Cotgrave, Robert A. Bartlett and Matthew Wood. With a love of learning, she continues to take courses that grow her understanding of the natural world. Through her stewardship of a deepened connection with the environment, Kym wishes to inspire connection with the natural environment, oneself and the greater community to invoke creative self expression and value centred living, enriching and creating healthy, abundant habitats and communities. With a focus on Social Permaculture, people care and life design, Kym works with empowerment models, enjoys encouraging others on their life path and focusses on ways to support organizations and communities to become more resilient. Her success is measured on the successes of her students, allies and friends. Kym is a settler on the West Coast of Turtle Island on the unceded and stolen lands of the Coast Salish Peoples. She is dedicated to the continued process of decolonizing herself and creating right relations with the land and the original people where she lives, works and visits.  Kym is a homesteader,  Permaculture Teacher, Holistic Healer, Mentor, HeArtist and is the Dean of the School of Permaculture Design at Pacific Rim College

Mark Lakeman

Mark Lakeman teaches multiple pre recorded sessions in the Online Permaculture Program and also offers multiple live Q&A sessions. Mark is the co-founder of the non-profit placemaking organization The City Repair Project, and principal of the community architecture and planning firm Communitecture. He is the founder of The Planet Repair Institute’s Urban Permaculture Design Course in Portland which has run annually since 2011. The program was adopted by City Repair in 2019. Mark was the lead instructor of the program until 2020. Mr. Lakeman is also an urban place-maker and permaculture designer, community design facilitator, and an inspiring catalyst in his very active commitment to the emergence of sustainable cultural landscapes everywhere. Every design project he is involved with furthers the development of a beneficial vision for human and ecological communities. Whether this involves urban design and placemaking, ecological building, encourages community interaction, or assists those who typically do not have access to design services, Mark’s leadership has benefited communities across the North American continent. These include cities such as Los Angeles, Seattle, and Ottawa where City Repair Projects are underway.Stories of Mr. Lakeman’s projects have been told widely, including in such publications as Dwell, Architecture Magazine, New Village Journal, Yes magazine, The Utne Reader, Permaculture Activist and many more. With City Repair, in 2003 Mark was awarded the National Lewis Mumford Award by the international organization Architects & Planners for Social Responsibility for his work with Dignity Village, one of the United States’ first self-developed, permanent communities by and for previously homeless people.

Kym Chi

Kym Chi is the main facilitator for the Permaculture Program. She is a dedicated healer, grounding herself in service through earth stewardship, people care and regenerative action. As a dynamic woman, her main passions are Permaculture design, creative facilitation, visual art, holistic healing and community building. To date; Kym has received 3 certificates in Permaculture Design, completed multiple teacher trainings, taken a variety of advanced trainings, completed a Diploma in Permaculture Education and has over 2000 hours facilitation experience. She has studied and taught with Permaculture Visionaries like Rosemary Morrow, Robin Clayfield, Starhawk, Robina McCurdy, Mark Lakeman, Michael Becker, Toby Hemenway, Larry Santoyo and Scott Pitman. She is a chartered Herbalist and has completed advanced herbal studies with Susun Weed, Dina Falconi, Barbara Cotgrave, Robert A. Bartlett and Matthew Wood. With a love of learning, she continues to take courses that grow her understanding of the natural world. Through her stewardship of a deepened connection with the environment, Kym wishes to inspire connection with the natural environment, oneself and the greater community to invoke creative self expression and value centred living, enriching and creating healthy, abundant habitats and communities. With a focus on Social Permaculture, people care and life design, Kym works with empowerment models, enjoys encouraging others on their life path and focusses on ways to support organizations and communities to become more resilient. Her success is measured on the successes of her students, allies and friends. Kym is a settler on the West Coast of Turtle Island on the unceded and stolen lands of the Coast Salish Peoples. She is dedicated to the continued process of decolonizing herself and creating right relations with the land and the original people where she lives, works and visits.  Kym is a homesteader,  Permaculture Teacher, Holistic Healer, Mentor, HeArtist and is the Dean of the School of Permaculture Design at Pacific Rim College

Mark Lakeman

Mark Lakeman teaches multiple pre recorded sessions in the Online Permaculture Program and also offers multiple live Q&A sessions. Mark is the co-founder of the non-profit placemaking organization The City Repair Project, and principal of the community architecture and planning firm Communitecture. He is the founder of The Planet Repair Institute’s Urban Permaculture Design Course in Portland which has run annually since 2011. The program was adopted by City Repair in 2019. Mark was the lead instructor of the program until 2020. Mr. Lakeman is also an urban place-maker and permaculture designer, community design facilitator, and an inspiring catalyst in his very active commitment to the emergence of sustainable cultural landscapes everywhere. Every design project he is involved with furthers the development of a beneficial vision for human and ecological communities. Whether this involves urban design and placemaking, ecological building, encourages community interaction, or assists those who typically do not have access to design services, Mark’s leadership has benefited communities across the North American continent. These include cities such as Los Angeles, Seattle, and Ottawa where City Repair Projects are underway.Stories of Mr. Lakeman’s projects have been told widely, including in such publications as Dwell, Architecture Magazine, New Village Journal, Yes magazine, The Utne Reader, Permaculture Activist and many more. With City Repair, in 2003 Mark was awarded the National Lewis Mumford Award by the international organization Architects & Planners for Social Responsibility for his work with Dignity Village, one of the United States’ first self-developed, permanent communities by and for previously homeless people.

Special Guests

Lori Snyder

Lori Snyder teaches the Wild Weeds, Native and Medicinal Plants Class in the Online Permaculture Program. Lori is an Indigenous Metis herbalist and educator with a deep knowledge of wild, medicinal and edible plants that grow in everyday spaces. Through Lori’s eyes, our immediate surroundings take on a new life and offer a wealth of untapped nutritional and ecological resources. Through Indigenous ways of knowing and pedagogies, Lori leads people of diverse backgrounds in reconnecting to the Earth’s wisdom. Lori has collaborated with the Provincial Health Association of BC (PHABC), helping to incorporate Indigenous teachings into the curriculum. Through the Farm2School pilot project, Lori supported the development of nine Indigenous foodscapes on elementary and secondary school grounds in Vancouver. Lori has also collaborated with the Vancouver Parks Board, Douglas Community College, VanDusen Botanical Garden, Village Vancouver, and many community gardens and centres in and around Vancouver. She connected with the Vancouver TED Talk participants in 2017, and has also shared her expertise with university initiatives such as UBC Farm, SFU Embark Gardens, and the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Bra, Italy. Today, Lori stewards a medicine wheel garden at the Moberly Arts and Cultural Centre. She is currently working with the David Suzuki Foundation as a Butterfly Ranger and consulting with both the foundation and the YWCA at Evelyn Crabtree on native plants and their importance in our ecological relationship with other living beings. She is the Artist in Residence at Hastings Community Centre for 2020, offering the teachings of plant wisdom through various art mediums. Lori created Earth Awareness Realized Through Health and Company in 2013, to share First People’s perspectives on wild, edible and medicinal plants. Her practices include plant identification walks, illustration and plant medicine workshops, homemade products for the skin, consulting on garden design, as well as public speaking and team training. Lori’s vision is to continually co-create insightful dialogues, to remediate and reconcile with our Indigenous plants as we reintroduce them into our urban landscapes. By sharing and growing these practices, communities can access our true local foods and medicines, which support collective resilience and deep ecological healing for all species. https://www.lorisnyder.co/

Hazel Bell-Koski

Hazel Bell-Koski facilitates the Radical Interconnection class in the Online Permaculture Program. Hazel is a self-directed multidisciplinary artist and a storyteller. She is a woman of mixed Anishinaabe, Finnish, Irish, and English heritage. Hazel was born and raised on the unceded Coast Salish Territories of the Səl̓ílwətaʔ (Tsleil-Waututh), Xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), & Sḵwx̱wú7meshsi (Squamish) First Nations. She is grateful to have been raised among mountains, ferns, eagles, bears, cedars, slugs, and barnacles. Her art practice explores the themes of kinship and the radical interconnection between all living things. She expresses herself through colour and form, painting and silk screening, textile and craft, intergenerational collaboration, and community weaving. Her art is colourful and imaginative, heartfelt and moving. Hazel is a community-weaver extraordinaire, and she works with people from all walks of life throughout North America, using art and story-telling to share community-building techniques, and foster opportunities for new ideas, new possibilities, and new connections between people. She has extensive experience working with diverse intergenerational communities. She currently workswith an organization called, IndigenEYEZ, they use land based learning and the creative arts to empower indigenous youth and adults through out British Columbia. Her first language is colour. http://www.hazelbellkoski.com/

Julie Parrell

Julie Parrell teaches the Indigenous Perspectives - Decolonizing Permaculture class in the Online Permaculture Program. Julie is a Queer Métis facilitator and healer who was raised on her traditional lands in Winnipeg, Manitoba. In August of 2006 she moved across the country alone with a few bucks and an old trunk. By August of 2007 she had signed up for a four year shamanic studies program with a Celtic Shaman. During those four years she studied everything from – traditional seasonal ceremonies to soul retrievals to passing the dead. Once she finished studying shamanism the message was clear - you must reconnect to the land. This took her to the Sunshine Coast where she studied Permaculture for a growing season and got her Permaculture Design Certificate. While working in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside she saw the disconnect between what people should be eating for their health and what people had access to. This led her to Victoria where she studied Holistic Nutrition and Herbal Medicine for almost 4 years. Today she blends her passions by running a nutrition drop in program for folxs in a non absences based recovery program and gardening with the Victoria Native Friendship center where she focuses on food security and getting traditional medicines to marginalized people. To learn more about her and her sliding scale services check out her website - https://www.inclusivewellness.ca/

Lori Snyder

Lori Snyder teaches the Wild Weeds, Native and Medicinal Plants Class in the Online Permaculture Program. Lori is an Indigenous Metis herbalist and educator with a deep knowledge of wild, medicinal and edible plants that grow in everyday spaces. Through Lori’s eyes, our immediate surroundings take on a new life and offer a wealth of untapped nutritional and ecological resources. Through Indigenous ways of knowing and pedagogies, Lori leads people of diverse backgrounds in reconnecting to the Earth’s wisdom. Lori has collaborated with the Provincial Health Association of BC (PHABC), helping to incorporate Indigenous teachings into the curriculum. Through the Farm2School pilot project, Lori supported the development of nine Indigenous foodscapes on elementary and secondary school grounds in Vancouver. Lori has also collaborated with the Vancouver Parks Board, Douglas Community College, VanDusen Botanical Garden, Village Vancouver, and many community gardens and centres in and around Vancouver. She connected with the Vancouver TED Talk participants in 2017, and has also shared her expertise with university initiatives such as UBC Farm, SFU Embark Gardens, and the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Bra, Italy. Today, Lori stewards a medicine wheel garden at the Moberly Arts and Cultural Centre. She is currently working with the David Suzuki Foundation as a Butterfly Ranger and consulting with both the foundation and the YWCA at Evelyn Crabtree on native plants and their importance in our ecological relationship with other living beings. She is the Artist in Residence at Hastings Community Centre for 2020, offering the teachings of plant wisdom through various art mediums. Lori created Earth Awareness Realized Through Health and Company in 2013, to share First People’s perspectives on wild, edible and medicinal plants. Her practices include plant identification walks, illustration and plant medicine workshops, homemade products for the skin, consulting on garden design, as well as public speaking and team training. Lori’s vision is to continually co-create insightful dialogues, to remediate and reconcile with our Indigenous plants as we reintroduce them into our urban landscapes. By sharing and growing these practices, communities can access our true local foods and medicines, which support collective resilience and deep ecological healing for all species. https://www.lorisnyder.co/

Hazel Bell-Koski

Hazel Bell-Koski facilitates the Radical Interconnection class in the Online Permaculture Program. Hazel is a self-directed multidisciplinary artist and a storyteller. She is a woman of mixed Anishinaabe, Finnish, Irish, and English heritage. Hazel was born and raised on the unceded Coast Salish Territories of the Səl̓ílwətaʔ (Tsleil-Waututh), Xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), & Sḵwx̱wú7meshsi (Squamish) First Nations. She is grateful to have been raised among mountains, ferns, eagles, bears, cedars, slugs, and barnacles. Her art practice explores the themes of kinship and the radical interconnection between all living things. She expresses herself through colour and form, painting and silk screening, textile and craft, intergenerational collaboration, and community weaving. Her art is colourful and imaginative, heartfelt and moving. Hazel is a community-weaver extraordinaire, and she works with people from all walks of life throughout North America, using art and story-telling to share community-building techniques, and foster opportunities for new ideas, new possibilities, and new connections between people. She has extensive experience working with diverse intergenerational communities. She currently workswith an organization called, IndigenEYEZ, they use land based learning and the creative arts to empower indigenous youth and adults through out British Columbia. Her first language is colour. http://www.hazelbellkoski.com/

Julie Parrell

Julie Parrell teaches the Indigenous Perspectives - Decolonizing Permaculture class in the Online Permaculture Program. Julie is a Queer Métis facilitator and healer who was raised on her traditional lands in Winnipeg, Manitoba. In August of 2006 she moved across the country alone with a few bucks and an old trunk. By August of 2007 she had signed up for a four year shamanic studies program with a Celtic Shaman. During those four years she studied everything from – traditional seasonal ceremonies to soul retrievals to passing the dead. Once she finished studying shamanism the message was clear - you must reconnect to the land. This took her to the Sunshine Coast where she studied Permaculture for a growing season and got her Permaculture Design Certificate. While working in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside she saw the disconnect between what people should be eating for their health and what people had access to. This led her to Victoria where she studied Holistic Nutrition and Herbal Medicine for almost 4 years. Today she blends her passions by running a nutrition drop in program for folxs in a non absences based recovery program and gardening with the Victoria Native Friendship center where she focuses on food security and getting traditional medicines to marginalized people. To learn more about her and her sliding scale services check out her website - https://www.inclusivewellness.ca/

Lori Snyder

Lori Snyder teaches the Wild Weeds, Native and Medicinal Plants Class in the Online Permaculture Program. Lori is an Indigenous Metis herbalist and educator with a deep knowledge of wild, medicinal and edible plants that grow in everyday spaces. Through Lori’s eyes, our immediate surroundings take on a new life and offer a wealth of untapped nutritional and ecological resources. Through Indigenous ways of knowing and pedagogies, Lori leads people of diverse backgrounds in reconnecting to the Earth’s wisdom. Lori has collaborated with the Provincial Health Association of BC (PHABC), helping to incorporate Indigenous teachings into the curriculum. Through the Farm2School pilot project, Lori supported the development of nine Indigenous foodscapes on elementary and secondary school grounds in Vancouver. Lori has also collaborated with the Vancouver Parks Board, Douglas Community College, VanDusen Botanical Garden, Village Vancouver, and many community gardens and centres in and around Vancouver. She connected with the Vancouver TED Talk participants in 2017, and has also shared her expertise with university initiatives such as UBC Farm, SFU Embark Gardens, and the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Bra, Italy. Today, Lori stewards a medicine wheel garden at the Moberly Arts and Cultural Centre. She is currently working with the David Suzuki Foundation as a Butterfly Ranger and consulting with both the foundation and the YWCA at Evelyn Crabtree on native plants and their importance in our ecological relationship with other living beings. She is the Artist in Residence at Hastings Community Centre for 2020, offering the teachings of plant wisdom through various art mediums. Lori created Earth Awareness Realized Through Health and Company in 2013, to share First People’s perspectives on wild, edible and medicinal plants. Her practices include plant identification walks, illustration and plant medicine workshops, homemade products for the skin, consulting on garden design, as well as public speaking and team training. Lori’s vision is to continually co-create insightful dialogues, to remediate and reconcile with our Indigenous plants as we reintroduce them into our urban landscapes. By sharing and growing these practices, communities can access our true local foods and medicines, which support collective resilience and deep ecological healing for all species. https://www.lorisnyder.co/

Who is This Course For?

This program is for you if you:

  • Want to create more resilience and abundance in all areas of your life.
  • Are new to or experienced in Permaculture strategies and techniques (all levels are welcomed!)
  • Are seeking positive change for yourself and the world.
  • Looking for new ways of living that are more in alignment with your values and with the natural world.
  • Want to become more empowered as a designer of your life, livelihood, garden and community!
  • Would like to learn how to observe, design and maintain a garden and grow your own food.
  • Desire to better understand the natural world around you.
  • Are looking for ways to save time, energy and money while also conserving the environment.
  • Want to apply Permaculture to your existing profession, create a regenerative business or gain employment in regenerative design.
  • Would like to build a more  connected and resilient community.
  • Enjoy learning in a dynamic, inclusive and creative environment that honours people for who they are.
  • Dream of a better world that you believe is possible and desire to move away from degenerative ways of life.
  • Are hoping to meet like minded people and contribute to positive change.
  • Seek a , high quality and unique program.

Bee a Revolutionary! Register Now!

Please click on the appropriate pricing for you. Join now and until September 30th to save with the early bird pricing options. Monthly payment plans available. If you are a person of means, you may consider the pay it forward pricing which helps someone in financial need attend at discounted rate.

Testemonials


"This course was very enjoyable and informative. Kym is a supportive and engaging teacher. I highly recommend this course to anyone with an interest in permaculture." - Meg

"Even if you have all the knowledge in the world, there is a profound learning to be gained from this quietly impactful facilitator. Kym Chi offers more than just a Permaculture Design Course, it is an experience that will leave you seeing new colour in everything you look at."
- Rose

"I feel so lucky that I was able to take this class! It opened up so many ideas for me to integrate into different facets of my life."
- Kat

"I loved this course and would recommend it to everyone interested in making a difference. Kym is so knowledgable and shares what she knows in an inspiring way. Permaculture is now within me and I will follow is path always." - Teresa

"Kym Chi is an excellent teacher, her coursework is very thorough and draws from a variety of experts and methodologies in the field of Permaculture. Kym is compassionate and brings out the best in her students. I highly recommend her Permaculture course."
- George Thomas

"Co-create, Open heartedly, Vision, Inspired, Do-ocracy.  This course has a wealth of information and practical ideas for retooling our culture so we can collectively heal and regenerate ourselves, our communities and our common Earth home. Kym masterfully facilitates a learning, inclusive class space. Through the evolving lens of permaculture , all our neighbourhoods can be revitalized and enriched. Thanks to Kym and all my classmates, I carry a seed of hope growing deeper roots. "
- Denise Lagasse, Xwilkway, Halfmoon Bay, BC

"I can't think of a more versatile and empowering course for our current times. Learning specific regenerative skills and strategies with a like-minded group, clear and empathic instruction and above all, a hopeful outlook was invaluable to my life right now." - Mireille

"What a wonderful class and wonderful people to share, learn and grow with. Opened my eyes to a new way of living!"- Colleen

"Kym teaches with high integrity and so much grace. The online Permaculture Design Course was the best online course I've done so far. It was interactive and engaging. The materials provided on the course platform helped my learning and I appreciate how I can review the recordings from our class anytime. Kym helped me feel safe, seen and acknowledged. She kept on time and respected the space. As well, her knowledge of Permaculture is clearly extensive and deep. I learned so much! Thank you Kym! I'm sure I will study with you again!" - Kelly Gordon

"Kym was such an open-hearted teacher. I felt like everyone in the course was made to feel comfortable and heard. The content of the course was presented in a very approachable way and while it was a large volume of information, it never felt like the class moved too quickly. Everything was given the time it needed to be spoken about. So many of the lessons in this program felt applicable to a variety of aspects of my life and I feel like I am more capable in both my abilities as a gardener and a person." - Katherine

“Now is the time to stop dreaming the dream and have something materialize from it.” Kym Chi, as my teacher is gifted in facilitating and providing gracious inspiration for a resilient lifestyle. She took me and showed me the DOOR of practicality and empowers me, so I can STEP IN to the possibilities awaiting for me to be discovered, explored and realize our potential as positive agent of change individually and collectively.
With all the disruption to our “normal” way of life in 2020, there has never been a better time (and greater need/urgency) to start living the permaculture dream... that’s why we got into permaculture... that’s why we want that ecologically resilient homestead, that self-sufficient permaculture farm, that abundant food forest." -  Dharlyn

"This was the second time taking a permaculture course with Kym Chi and from both classes it has been life changing. I highly recommend others taking a permaculture design course during their life time as it is a mind opener and will really help one be more connected within themselves and all living life forms! Thank you Kym Chi!"
- Amanda

"I had been thinking about taking Kym's Permaculture Design Certification Course at a friend's recommendation for quite some time, and this time around, things finally fell into place and it happened. Despite the challenges of teaching and learning virtually, Kym gave an informative, engaging, and meaningful course. She is a welcoming, compassionate, knowledgeable, and kind teacher who is able to draw on her own experiences and ideas as well as others'. This was my first exposure to Permaculture in a formal setting, and I am very fortunate and grateful that it was such a positive one (although, after working with Kym, I'm not at all surprised that was the case). I hope to learn from and work with her again!" - Dave L


Thank you for offering this course. I absolutely loved it. It was a supported and informative course. I found the class time just flew by. I really enjoyed all the course content and I look forward to hearing what you are offering next. I’m really excited to continue on this permaculture journey.

My granddaughter was also positively impacted and she is looking at her gardens at home different, she is 6. So amazing I could share this with her. - Kelli


I highly recommend this class to everyone. I live in an apartment, so no land, only a community garden and patio. But the principles and techniques I learned have taught me how Permaculture can solve all of our world's problems, including building community. Kym is an engaging, knowledgeable and big-hearted instructor. I learned so much more than I expected to. The course literally changed how I look at the world, plus solutions that will regenerate nature and our connection to her. - Teresa


"This is a great course, Kym Chi is an inspiring teacher who cares passionately about the course content and about engaging her students to learn and absorb the material. She makes it fun on many different levels." - Jacqueline

"Kym Chi is an exceptional guide in learning Permaculture Design! Permaculture is so much more than gardening principles. Who knew!? This course provides a framework for moving towards positive change, spiritually, emotionally, communally, ecologically. It’s about action that is doable and effects our collective health and future! Kym Chi has lovingly crafted an offering of abundant knowledge that is so nourishing and inclusive. I luv, love, LOVED this course! Thank you!!! - Anna“Kym shares so much knowledge and heart in this PDC, It is impossible not to fall for Permaculture. I found so many ways to integrate Permaculture into my life on a small scale immediately, and plan and dream of Permaculture possibilities for the future. I am eternally grateful” - Paige Inglis

“Kym is a very gifted teacher and facilitator who brings a huge amount of knowledge, skill and experience and mixes in a great dose of love and laughs to the course an amazing experience.” - Donna M“

Kym Chi provided us with an awesome learning experience - teaching us foundational concepts, design principles of Permaculture that we can now use to create a beautiful, productive sustainable life and world. - Margaret R.

“This program goes far beyond simply designing an organic and sustainable landscape. Learning about plant allies, regeneration of the land and building earth- loving social structures is the keystone of an integrated life centred on the principles of Permaculture. Kym Chi is an energetic & passionate steward for the earth and supports rounded learning. “ - Stephanie W“

An excellent course for anyone new or experienced in Permaculture to gain further in depth knowledge and experience. Kym is a beautiful facilitator with a warm heart and so much knowledge to share” - Doug“

Kym Chi offers a delightful exploration of permaculture that will equip you with practical knowledge and get you fired up about the tremendous possibilities that exist in our time. - Kacy

“This has been one of the most enjoyable and informative programs I have been a part of. What I learned will serve me well and guide me in better serving others and the earth. I am grateful for the teachings and for the community it introduced me to. Thank you. - Kathy Duncan

“The Permaculture course opened my eyes to how everything is connected and how we all must work together as a community to care for the earth, the people and the future. Kym Chi is a wonderful, passionate teacher who loves and lives what she teaches. She is gentle, yet spicy and keeps the class momentum going strong” - anonymous

“Learning with Kym as a facilitator was one of the most creative, fun, professional and profound experiences. She planted the seed of Permaculture in me and I can’t wait to let it grow. - Elke H.

“I loved the variety of visual aids, cards, medicine making and visiting diverse landscapes with examples of systems. So many inspiring moments and learnings. This was a perfect format to delve in and understand how to overcome my own fears and limitations to find solutions everywhere. - Alison R

"Delvin and Kym are amazing, talented and incredibly honouring and delightful people. Our world is safe and more alive and caring in their hands, thanks to their presence, creativity and commitment." - Robin Clayfield

Schedule


  • Saturday May 6th, 2023 - 9:30am - 1pm PDT- Introduction to Design

  • Date TBA -  Decolonizing Permaculture - Indigenous Perspectives with Julie Parrell

  • Saturday May 13th, 2023 - 9:30am - 1pm PDT- Foundational Concepts

  • Saturday May 20th, 2023 - 9:30am - 1pm PDT- Design Methods

  • Date TBA - Wild Weeds, Native and Medicinal Plants

  • Saturday May 27th, 2023 - 9:30am - 1pm PDT - Patterns

  • Saturday June 10th, 2023 - 9:30am - 1pm PDT - Soil

  • Date TBA - Radical Interconnection with Hazel Bell Koski

  • Saturday June 17th, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Trees

  • Date TBA - Q&A with Mark Lakeman  

  • Saturday July 8th, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Animals

  • Saturday July 15th, 2023 - 9:30am - 1pm PDT - Water Part 1

  • Saturday July 22nd, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Water Part 2

  • Saturday July 29th, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Climate

  • Saturday August 5th, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Cool Climate Design

  • Date TBA - Q&A with Mark Lakeman

  • Saturday August 12th, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Tropical Design

  • Saturday August 19th, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Drylands Design

  • Saturday August 26th-  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Social Permaculture 1

  • Saturday September 2, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Social Permaculture 2

  • Date TBA- Q&A with Mark Lakeman

  • Saturday September 9th, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Social Permaculture 3

  • Saturday September 16th, 2023 -  9:30am - 3pm PDT - Design Presentations

  • Saturday September 23rd, 2023 -  9:30am - 1pm PDT - Design Futures


Course curriculum

  1. Initiation

  2. Course Requirements for Certification

  3. Introduction to Design

  4. Foundational Concepts

  5. Design Methods

  6. Mapping Examples - Land Based

About this course

  • $577.00
  • 333 lessons
  • 21.5 hours of video content

Syllabus (Topics & Learning Outcomes)

Module 1: Introduction to Design

  • Group introductions
  • Course orientation & requirements
  • Group goals and guidelines
  • Communication (NVC and conflict resolution)
  • Indigenous learning principles, learning styles & multiple intelligences

    Learning Goals
  • Set a course culture of safety, respect and organization
  • Create a positive & effective learning environment
  • Encourage active listening in groups
  • Value different ways of communicating
  • Orient participants to course content


Module 2: Foundations of Permaculture

  • Definitions
  • History of Permaculture
  • Ethics
  • Principles

    Learning Goals:
  • Know the Permaculture ethics and the Transition ethic and how to apply them to conscious decision making
  • Gain a strong understanding of nature’s principles and how they are at the foundation of design decisions and application
  • Provide awareness of the world’s problems and the current situation
  • Shift from a place of problems to positive solution based thinking

Feel confident in defining Permaculture clearly to others

Module 3a: Design Methods

  • Needs, Functions and Outputs
  • Zones
  • Sectors
  • Mapping

    Learning Goals:
  • Understand how to do a needs & yields analysis
  • Gain a base understanding of closed loop systems
  • Observe a site, document and recognize available resources and design constraints based on analysis.
  • Identify energies or influences that effect a design site
  • Be able to create a base map including zones & sector analysis for a site

Know the basic elements included in mapping a site


Module 3b: Design, Media & Participatory Design Presentation with Mark Lakeman 

This presentation will walk through numerous examples of design process media. Each example will be presented as a case study, with the images shown in sequence in terms of the evolution of the design. Design project examples will range in scale from modest homesteads, to larger regenerative farm projects, to urban ecovillages and cohousing as well as numerous activist projects.


Module 4: Pattern Literacy

  • Physical patterns, emergent patterns, fractal patterns
  • Functions of patterns
  • Patterns in time
  • Behavioural patterns
  • Application of patterns in design
  • Guilds

    Learning Goals:
  • Pattern recognition in nature and technology
  • Understand the functions of patterns in nature and how to apply that knowledge to effective design
  • Gain Pattern literacy and understand how to replace dysfunctional patterns with functional ones.
  • Know the functions of and feel confident designing guilds
  • Recognize that pattern literacy is fundamental in becoming good designers

    Module 5: Design for Soil
  • Soil biology
  • Soil classification and testing
  • Biodynamics
  • Soil remediation
  • Composting
  • Soil indicators

    Learning Goals :
  • Have a base understanding of the components of healthy soil and know the value of building soil.
  • Know different ways to test soil
  • Recognize different plant indicators and what they tell about soil health.
  • Understand a multitude of different ways to remediate and build soil.
  • Apply different composting techniques in appropriate situations.
  • Identify key plants that bring nutrient to the soil.

    Module 6: Design for Trees
  • Ecological function of trees in relation to earth, water, air and energy
  • Succession
  • Polycultures
  • Forest gardens and food forests
  • Plants as soil indicators
  • Design for trees

    Learning Goals :
  • Understand the ecological functions of trees and recognize them as a keystone species in the ecosystem
  • Learn the stages of succession and how to intervene at appropriate times.
  • Know the layers in a forest garden and different plants for each layer that grow locally
  • Be able to integrate trees adequately and appropriately in design.

    Module 7: Design for Animals
  • Design for wild and domestic animals
  • Animal care
  • Integrated pest management

    Learning Goals :
  • Recognize the intrinsic characteristics, functions and outputs of animals
  • How to meet the needs of animals on site
  • Learn techniques for integrating animal systems
  • Understand effective and healthy ways to handle pests
  • Know how to safely and ethically live with wildlife

    Module 8a: Design for Water, Aquaculture & Earthworks

  • Water facts
  • Water conservation
  • Water strategies & techniques
  • Waste water treatment
  • Water harvesting & storage
  • Earthworks
  • Aquaculture

    Learning Goals :
  • Understand how global water issues can affect us on a local level.
  • Be able to do a water audit.
  • Recognize multiple ways in which to conserve water.
  • Feel confident in applying strategies and techniques to capture, store, treat and release water safely and appropriately.
  • Know how to calculate roof water catchment amounts.

    Module 8b: Water with Mark Lakeman

  • This presentation and dialogue will focus on doable, localized systems that reconnect people to their place. We will examine ways that people are typically disconnected from the source and story of their water, and in contrast we will look at easy ways to gather, store, use and reuse water that is simply falling upon us from the sky. Gravity fed systems will be emphasized, including how water related designs are integrated with other permaculture systems.

    Module 9a: Climate

  • Climatic factors
  • Microclimate
  • Climate design strategies
  • World climate

    Learning Goals :
  • Understand climate on a global scale 
  • Learn how to design in order to moderate and utilize climatic factors
  • Be able to identify, create and design microclimates

    Module 9b: Energy with Mark Lakeman

  • With a guiding urge to "get back into a groove with the universe", this presentation and dialogue will focus on passive, carbon negative solutions to meeting needs at the community scale. We will review the forces that we already have free access to in the world, and explore how to design and implement solutions that minimize our impact while maximizing our beneficial contributions.

    Module 9c: Natural Building with Mark Lakeman

    Module 10: Cool Climate Design

  • Cool climate characteristics
  • Cool climate design challenges and strategies
  • Cool climate design elements, techniques and technologies

    Learning Goals :
  • Learn how to effectively design homes, gardens, farms and communities in the Cool Climate.

    Module 11: Tropical Design

  • Tropical climate characteristics
  • Tropical climate design challenges and strategies
  • Tropical climate design elements, techniques and technologies

    Learning Goals :
  • Learn how to effectively design homes, gardens, farms and communities in the wet, wet dry and monsoon tropics

    Module 12: Dryland Design

  • Dryland climate characteristics
  • Dryland climate design challenges and strategies
  • Dryland climate design elements, techniques and technologies

    Learning Goals :
  • Learn how to effectively design homes, gardens, farms and communities in the drylands

    Module 13: Social Permaculture

  • Client interview & designer checklist
  • Community building including group processes
  • Governance 
  • Land access
  • Right livelihood
  • Legal structures
  • Bioregionalism

    Learning Goals : 
  • Gain confidence in the consultation and design process for clients.
  • Be able to map assets and resources and identify community needs.
  • Understand different models of decision making and how to apply them.
  • Learn tools to provide for healthy group dynamics and efficient process.
  • Recognize opportunities for land access locally.
  • Become aware of ethical and effective business models and legal structures that support the local economy
  • Know ways to relocalize and create resilient communities.

    Module 14a: OS Permaculture

  • Resiliency
  • Permaculture economics 
  • Urban renewal strategies and design

    Learning Goals :
  • Be able to identify risks and mitigate disaster using Permaculture design tools and techniques
  • Know the steps in building an emergency preparedness plan and engaging local community in the process
  • Learn a variety of different economic strategies and the value of utilizing multiple currencies and tools
  • Feel confident in utilizing place-making tools, techniques and Permaculture strategies in urban environments

    Module 14b: Village Design with Mark Lakeman

  • This presentation will be emphatic on a few core points as we explore numerous exhilarating design examples: That people thrive most when they enjoy interactive relationships within community, and they have access to participation in all systems and scales that affect their own lives. For a point of departure we will review the antithetical systems of colonialism that we presently inhabit, and look at ways that people are retrofitting and revolutionizing the colonial grid in order to find connection and empowerment while they heal themselves and the world.

    Module 14c: Legal and Prelegal Approaches with Mark Lakeman

  • Like Mark's previous presentations, this subject will be approached from a strong social and economic justice perspective, but especially so this time. Though it has not been officially identified as an issue per se, in fact access to design services, funding, and the where with all to complete projects is of course a huge impediment for most low income and working class families. This list really starts with houseless people. So, in this presentation we will explore the many ways that people work to meet their needs, including people who have the resources to proceed with code-approved and funded projects, people who either need to skirt regulations in order to innovate, or else people who simply must build without authorization in order to survive through the night.

    Module 15: Design Futures

  • Next steps (setting up a permaculture practice, further education, community involvement, goal sharing)
  • Education (accessibility, open source, alternative education)
  • Mapping and design presentations
  • Talent show
  • Certificates

    Demonstrations and optional activities throughout the course:

  • Design Charrettes
  • Earthworks demonstration
  • Integrative games
  • Compost building
  • Soil analysis

  • Additional Topics:
  • Medicinal plants & preparations
  • Homesteading
  • Plant Identification
  • Fermentation
  • Non-violent communication
  • Placemaking

    Completion Requirements :
  • The certification from The Permaculture Institute granted upon completion of the course, empowers participants as permaculture designers, consultants and beginner teachers. Graduates can use the word permaculture legally in their practice, business or project. 

    This unique certification is a practical path for upgrading your life, resume and portfolio. There is no time limit to complete the certification. 

    Working toward certification is not a requirement. Students may attend the course without completing the material required to attain the certificates. It’s a fun way to journey with likeminded people with experiential education. 

  • I don’t require those taking the course to participate in the certification requirements. 
  • Many people take the program and do not do the questions and project. 
  • No one knows who is doing or not doing this work. 
  • Those wanting the certification will complete:
    • Map and design project
    • 100% attendance (no more than 4 missed live classes and all recordings watched)
    • Watching all pre recorded media and virtual tours
    • Completion of short quizzes on each topic 
    • Contribution to the online forums

      Graduating & Jobs
    • Having a Permaculture Design Certificate from a recognized training institute will empower participants as permaculture designers, consultants and beginner teachers able to use the word permaculture legally in their practice, business or project. This sustainability education eco-training certificate is a practical path for greening your life, resume and portfolio. You will have a green edge when applying for jobs, grants or school program.

Certification Requirements, Graduating and Jobs

Completion Requirements :

The certification from The Permaculture Institute granted upon completion of the course, empowers participants as permaculture designers, consultants and beginner teachers. Graduates can use the word permaculture legally in their practice, business or project. 

This unique certification is a practical path for upgrading your life, resume and portfolio. There is no time limit to complete the certification. 

Working toward certification is not a requirement. 

Students may attend the course without completing the material required to attain the certificates. It’s a fun way to journey with likeminded people with experiential education. 

Many people take the program and do not do the questions and project. 

No one knows who is doing or not doing this work. 

Those wanting the certification will complete:

  • Map and design project
  • 100% attendance (no more than 4 missed live classes and all recordings watched).
  • Watching all pre recorded media and virtual tours.
  • Completion of short quizzes or activities on each topic. 


Graduating & Jobs

  • Having a Permaculture Design Certificate from a recognized training institute will empower participants as permaculture designers, consultants and beginner teachers able to use the word permaculture legally in their practice, business or project. This sustainability education eco-training certificate is a practical path for greening your life, resume and portfolio. You will have a green edge when applying for jobs, grants or school program.

Bee a Visionary! Join this life changing program now.

Please click on the appropriate pricing for you. Join now and until September 30th to save with the early bird pricing options. Monthly payment plans available. If you are a person of means, you may consider the pay it forward pricing which helps someone in financial need attend at discounted rate.