Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond by Brad Lancaster

Brad Lancaster: Plant the Rain to Grow Sustainable Abundance, September 10-13, 2012 – Calgary AB (Canada)
2012-09-10 - 2012-09-13
If you think that urban water harvesting begins and ends with rain barrels … you’re thinking too small.
Discover how you can use your lawn, your street, your shovel—and your shower!—to transform your community into a green oasis of empowered neighbors! During this 4-day course, participants will learn from Brad—in the classroom and through hands-on learning—strategies and skills in integrated design and water harvesting with earthworks and greywater systems.
For LOTS more course information and to register, visit www.vergepermaculture.ca/courses/rainwater-harvesting.
Dates: Monday, September 10 – Thursday, September 13, 2012
Times: 9 am – 5 pm, daily
Where: An acreage 10 minutes south of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Hosted by: The folks at Verge Permaculture

Brad Lancaster: Public Talk: Turning Drains Into Sponges and Water Scarcity Into Water Abundance, September 8, 2012 – Calgary AB (Canada)
2012-09-08 19:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles)
Green Calgary Sustainability Series Presents:
Date: Saturday, September 8, 2012
Time: 7–9 pm
Location: John Dutton Theatre at Castell Central Library, 616 Macleod Trail SE, Calgary
Turning Drains Into Sponges and Water Scarcity Into Water Abundance
This inspiring power point presentation shares eight universal principles of water harvesting along with simple strategies that turn water scarcity into water abundance. They empower you to create integrated water-sustainable landscape plans at home and throughout your community. Rainwater harvesting is the process of capturing rain and making the most of it as close as possible to where it falls. Greywater harvesting is the process of directing water from household sink, bathtub, shower, and washing-machine drains into the soils of the landscape where the water is naturally filtered and reused to generate more on-site resources. The two work hand in hand, and can reduce our water consumption by 30 to 50%! You’ll see examples enhancing local food security, passively cooling cities in summer, reducing costs of living and energy consumption, controlling erosion, averting flooding, reviving dead waterways, minimizing water pollution, building community, creating celebration, and more.
Cost: $10 for members | $20 general admission | $20 Calgary Dollars
Please RSVP by Wednesday, September 5 to www.greencalgary.org or (403) 230-1443
This event is a fundraiser for Green Calgary and is made possible by:
Green Calgary
Calgary Public Library
Verge Permaculture
Bullfrog Power

Early Registration Deadline for Watershed Management Group's Water-Harvesting Certification Course, November 9–17, 2012 — Tucson AZ
2012-09-07

University of Arizona Outreach College: Residential Rainwater Harvesting Course (open to Tucson homeowners), Fall Semester 2012 — Tucson AZ
2012-08-22 09:00 - 16:00
A course on Residential Rainwater Harvesting will be offered in the fall term at the University of Arizona. A flyer which gives you the essential details can be downloaded here. The target is to have 20 students for this class, half from the neighborhoods in Tucson and half regularly registered UA students. The schedule of the class has been set to encourage participation from homeowners in the Tucson area. All classes are held on Wednesdays with lectures from 9–11 am and a studio/lab from 1–4 pm. The latter may run shorter on some days. While this is not so convenient for regular UA students, our intent is to make it easier for Tucson householders to attend as they will need to come to campus only one day per week.
Non-UA students can register—this time only—for $25 and if they complete the course satisfactorily are eligible for 7 Continuing-Education Units. Classes begin on Wednesday, August 22, and end Wednesday, December 5. Classes will be held in room 105 of the Veterinary and Microbiology Building, which is near the 6th Street Parking Garage.
The primary purpose of the course is to help students prepare a detailed portfolio on planned water harvesting for their Tucson home. It must be a home whose site has not previously been analyzed in a UA class. The portfolio is to be of a high quality so that a water harvesting program could be carried out by the homeowner or a contractor. All students are expected to complete the same assignments and take the same exams. A complete syllabus will be provided at a later date. We use Brad Lancaster’s, “Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond, Volume 1” as our textbook.
For more information, contact Professor Jim Riley at jjriley@ag.arizona.edu.

Brad Lancaster for Southern Arizona Rain Gutters: Rainwater Harvesting Incentive Program Workshops, August 18, 25; September 1; October 13, 20 — Tucson AZ,
2012-08-18 09:00 - 12:00
Southern Arizona Rain Gutters (SARG) is hosting Brad to teach Rainwater Harvesting Incentives Program Workshops.
See details below to register for a class—FREE if you register in advance—and to get assistance planning and installing a rainwater harvesting system for your site.

WHAT IS TUCSON WATER’S WATER HARVESTING INCENTIVES/REBATE PROGRAM?
Tucson Water wants to assist its customers wishing to install water-harvesting systems in order to reduce the amount of drinking water being used to water plants. To learn more about Tucson Water’s Single Family Residential Rainwater Harvesting Incentives/Rebate Program, go to Tucson Water’s rebate website at cms3.tucsonaz.gov/water/rwh-rebate
HOW MUCH IS THE INCENTIVE/REBATE FOR?
Incentives/rebates are available at two levels. The first level earns you up to $300, and the second level earns you to up to $2,000.
For a summary of the requirements see Water Harvesting Rebate Requirements.pdf.
For additional details go to cms3.tucsonaz.gov/water/rwh-levels.
A sample water-harvesting plan shows the items needed to apply for a Level 2 rebate (see Example level 2 WH rebate plan.pdf). A blank template is provided to fill in your specific plan information and calculations (see Blank level 2 WH plan template.pdf)
WHERE CAN I TAKE THE REQUIRED RAINWATER HARVESTING INCENTIVES PROGRAM WORKSHOP?
In order to apply for a rebate, you must be a Tucson Water customer and you must attend a 3-hour workshop about rainwater harvesting. SARG has been approved by Tucson Water to teach these workshops, and has hired Brad Lancaster as an instructor.
How do I preregister for a SARG Incentives/Rebate workshop?
Call the SARG office at (520) 299-7246 to sign up for a workshop. YOU MUST SIGN UP AHEAD OF TIME TO ATTEND A WORKSHOP!
When and where is the workshop taught?
Workshops are taught on various Saturday mornings in August, September, and October, from 9 am to 12 noon (plan to arrive at 8:45 am) at the SARG building, 1627 N Stone Avenue (west side of the street between Speedway and Grant).
FOR MORE INFORMATION: www.sargwatersolutions.com/tucson-water-harvesting-rebate.html

Free Dunbar/Spring Pruning Workshop and Mulching Services, August 4, 2012 — Tucson AZ
2012-08-04 06:30 - 12:00

Warren Brush, Brad Lancaster, Owen Dell, and Sasha Rabin: Sustainable Vocations Training Course, July 25 - August 11, 2012 – central CA
2012-07-25 - 2012-08-11
Sustainable Vocations prepares youth (ages 15 – 24) for diverse leadership roles that integrate sustainability into their lives and communities. This pioneering program provides a unique, hands-on introduction to the expanding green jobs market while exploring the comprehensive tenets of environmental stewardship and sustainable living. While expansive in scope, timely topics include: ecological design, conservation and restoration, alternative energy systems, sustainable agriculture, natural building, ecological literacy, water harvesting, community regeneration, and nature awareness. Students earn an internationally recognized Permaculture Design Certification and graduate with the practical skills to enhance their employment opportunities and life path – all while helping to create a more sustainable future for us all.
Sustainable Vocations
Summer 2012 Course Dates:
July 25 – August 11, 2012
Cost: $1,500–$2,500 (sliding scale)
Priority/Scholarship Application Due Date
May 1, 2012

FMI: www.sustainablevocations.org/home

Brad Lancaster & Gary Wittwer: Rainwater—An Untapped Harvest, June 6, 2012 – Tucson AZ
2012-06-06 13:00 - 15:00

Brad Lancaster: "Beneficial Ruins and Water Webs" Free Public Talk, June 1, 2012 — Portland OR
2012-06-01 19:30 - 21:00
Date: Friday, June 1, 2012
Time: 7:30 – 9 pm
Venue: Portland State University’s Shattuck Hall Annex
Address: 1914 SW Park Ave, Portland OR 97201
Cost: free & open to the public
Hosted by: PSU School of Architecture, with special thanks to Kai Pannu & Scott Burns
Talk title & description:
Beneficial Ruins & Water Webs: A Vernacular Design Challenge to Increase the Resilience of Local Ecologies & Human Communities
This talk explores the idea of a beneficial ruin—a creation that improves the conditions of the ecological and human communities where it resides, even when abandoned. A beneficial ruin must be in relationship with its place and its people. Typically it acts as a web, passively harvesting and enhancing natural flows, so that at its best it generates other resources, even while regenerating itself. Examples of such ruins from the drylands of the southwest U.S. and the Middle East will be shared, with an emphasis on those that improve water, soil, food, and community. Examples of what Portland is already doing—or could be doing—will be woven into the talk, challenging you to create and/or enhance such ruins or seeds of resilience in your place.

Brad Lancaster: Bike Tour of Regenerative Sites of Portland, June 1, 2012 — Portland OR
2012-06-01 13:00 - 18:00
Join Brad Lancaster (author of Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond series), Dave Elkin of Greenworks, Lisa Petterson of SERA Architects, Kati Falger and Chris Heckman (residents of Kailash Eco Village), and Kevin Cavenaugh of TENPOD and the Burnside Rocket, to bike-tour dynamic projects pushing beyond mere sustainability (baseline survival), and aiming for integrated regeneration (thriving evolution).
All these sites and the people behind them aim to turn “problems” into solutions, as they harvest and enhance free, local, on-site resources to reduce or eliminate the “need” to import costly, polluting, off-site resources.
Date: Friday, June 1, 2012
Time: 1–6 pm (followed by an optional dinner at Noble Rot—seating limited!)
Address: Meet at Shattuck Hall Annex on the PSU Campus (1914 SW Park Ave, Portland)
Link to: Proposed Map (in-between sites will be visited as time allows)
Cost: Tour is free, but bring CASH if you’d like to eat or drink at Noble Rot after the conclusion of the tour
What you should bring: Your bike, water, snacks, $ if you want to eat or drink at the Noble Rot afterward
Link to a self-guided sustainable stormwater bike tour folks can do on their own: www.portlandonline.com/bes/index.cfm?c=34604&a=53568
Key sites to be toured include:
• The Oregon Sustainability Center, to see how the center was planned to shift from a consumer of resources to a producer of resources, achieving the Living Building Challenge of being net-zero energy, water, and waste;
• The Kailash Ecovillage, to see and hear the story of how an old apartment complex and its grounds are being converted into an ecovillage that turns “wastes” into resources for its residents and neighbors;
• The Burnside Rocket and Noble Rot, to learn how very simple and inexpensive strategies are being used to grow food on site, and passively heat and cool the building in a very urban setting; and
• Sustainable Stormwater projects passively turning stormwater flooding liabilities into free irrigation assets producing food, shade, wildlife habitat, clean air, fish, and more.
After the bike tour and dinner, Brad will be giving a free public talk, Beneficial Ruins and Water Webs, back at PSU’s Shattuck Hall Annex.
FMI: Kai Pannu, (971) 244-3548.

TreePeople's Green City Fair, May 5, 2012 – Beverly Hills CA
2012-05-05 10:00 - 15:00
Join in TreePeople’s 2nd annual Green City Fair!
A day of fun, food and activities hosted by TreePeople. Green City Fair will provide you with the resources to make healthy, sustainable changes. FREE sustainable workshops will be held throughout the day. Note that Brad is no longer scheduled to participate in this still-awesome event.

When: Saturday, May 5 , 2011 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: TreePeople
12601 Mulholland Drive
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Workshops
Details TBA here and at www.treepeople.org/green-city-fair-2012
NOTE: Plans have changed, and Brad will NOT be participating in this event.
Sponsors, Vendors & Exhibitors
Interested in becoming a sponsor, vendor or exhibitor?
Please contact Jillian Fontaine at (818) 623-4862 or jfontaine@treepeople.org

Josh Robinson & Brook Sarson: Water-Harvesting Intensive, May 4–6, 2012: Ramona CA
2012-05-04 - 2012-05-06
Join us May 4-6 for an exciting opportunity in San Diego’s back country town of Ramona for a unique hands-on workshop to learn how to transform a house into a sustainable oasis by tapping into rainwater and greywater.
This holistic water harvesting training course will teach people the fundamentals of integrated water design through hands-on activity. Over 3 days, participants will design and install:

A “Laundry to Landscape” greywater system
Two branched-drain greywater systems from two bathrooms
A 2,500 gallon rainwater harvesting cistern and plan for future expansion
A wide range of passive water-harvesting earthworks

All of these water harvesting projects will be integrated to provide an edible landscape that works in harmony with both the natural ecology and the home itself.
Through this training, participants will learn:

Best Management Practices for rainwater and greywater harvesting
Legal regulations and permitting
Best plumbing practices
Edible landscape integration
Tricks and tools of the trade

This course is for anyone interested in learning how to design water harvesting features into their own landscapes and is ideal for homeowners, contractors, architects, designers, and city and county regulators. No prior experience is necessary. All participants will receive a certificate of completion. If you have been waiting for one course that will give you an overview of how to install your own legal rainwater harvesting and greywater systems then this is the course for you. By the end of the three days you should have the understanding and confidence to begin to create your own sustainable oasis!
Course Tuition: We are offering a range of weekend opportunities. Due to the more distant location in the county participants can choose to stay on the property for the entire weekend or commute to the site location on a daily basis.
Residential Weekend Experience: Stay on site all weekend if you don’t want to commute. Camp in your own tent or share some dorm style indoor space in the house or trailer. Prices include 3 meals a day, nightly campfire and music, and possible movie.
Residential (Tent): $350
Residential (Shared Indoor Dorm Space): $400
Commuter Weekend: If you live nearby or choose to stay at a local hotel and commute daily, we will serve you lunch and snacks.
Commuter: $300
Single Day: If you can just make the class for a day, no problem. We are offering those who wish to take a single day the opportunity to do so. Includes a healthy lunch and snacks.
Single Day Tuition: $150
This course will pay for itself and then some with the amount of information each person will learn. Learn how to do things right the first time.
For course schedule, bios of the instructors, to contact the instructors, or register for the workshop, visit:
www.edenonearthlandscaping.com/water-harvesting-intensive

Watershed Management Group: Water-Harvesting Lecture Series, May 2012 — Tucson AZ
2012-05-04 10:00 - 12:00
The WMG Water Harvesting Certification program provides the highest quality and greatest depth of training in integrative water harvesting offered in the nation. We are opening four of the lectures from our upcoming May Certification course in Tucson to the public.
This is ideal for people interested in learning more about Water harvesting but not quite ready to commit to our full nine-day Water Harvesting Certification The presenters are dynamic educators and experts in their field.
This lecture series will introduce the concepts of integrated water-harvesting design in an informative and accessible way, inspiring you to make the most of your water resources at home.
Cost to attend, per lecture: $25 a session.
The four-session series, to be held in Tucson, includes:
Friday 5/4: Water Harvesting Earthworks, 10 am — noon, with James DeRoussel
Learn design and application of basins, berms, swales, terraces, and french drains. This lecture covers lot-scale to watershed scale practices with information on soils, landscape materials, and integration with plants. Click here to register.
Saturday 5/5: Water Harvesting for Food Production, 3 – 5 pm, with Brad Lancaster
Brad’s lecture covers a diverse range of agricultural applications from backyard to large-scale systems, showing how rain and greywater can enhance food production while conserving water. Click here to register.
Monday 5/7: Cisterns, 1 – 3 pm, with Mark Ragel, owner of Water Harvesting International
Comprehensive overview of cistern systems from guttering, filtration, storage, and distribution, including best management practices and cistern types for different applications. Click here to register.
Monday 5/7: Greywater Systems, 3 – 5 pm, with Brad Lancaster
Greywater systems harvest water from laundry machines, bathroom sink and showers, and AC condensate. Learn how to reuse greywater in your yard, with a focus on gravity-fed systems, plumbing considerations, and appropriate uses. Click here to register.
Pre-registration and pre-payment is required for each session.
Lectures will be held at Saint Mark’s Presbyterian Church, 3809 East 3rd Street, Tucson
Please contact Rhiwena Slack at rslack@watershedmg.org or at 520-396-3266 if you have questions.

Priority Application Deadline for Sustainable Vocations Youth Program, July 25 – August 11, 2012 — Central CA
2012-05-01
May 1, 2012 is the Priority Application deadline for the Sustainable Vocations program at Quail Springs.
More information available here.

Watershed Management Group: Watershed Technical Training in Expanded Greywater Systems, April 25-27, 2012 – Tucson AZ
2012-04-25 - 2012-04-27
New dates: April 25-27, 2012
Course location: Tucson
Greywater use is not only allowed by an increasing number of municipalities, it’s actively encouraged by many authorities in efforts to preserve water, reduce energy and chemical use in treatment plants, and deliver nutrients to soils. This three-day, hands-on training course is designed to give advanced technical knowledge in greywater systems to individuals who will implement these practices in their work. In particular, this course is relevant to architects, landscape architects, permaculture designers, plumbers, developers, irrigation specialists, and other professionals in the building trades. This course will build on knowledge of greywater systems gained through WMG’s Water Harvesting Certification course. The focus of this course will be on gravity-fed kitchen-sink and pumped-greywater systems, integrated design, policy, and plumbing best practices.
Brad Lancaster, Senior Watershed Specialist with WMG and author of the Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond book series, will lead this hands-on technical training covering advanced greywater systems.
Early registration and alumni rates available. Applicants may also apply for a limited number of partial scholarships.
For more information about WMG’s technical trainings, please visit their certification and technical trainings page.
You can apply for the Expanded Greywater Systems training online here, or contact Rhiwena Slack at rslack@watershedmg.org / (520) 396-3266.

Craig Sponholtz: Erosion-Control Workshop at Double Circle Ranch, April 20-22, 2012: near Clifton AZ
2012-04-20 - 2012-04-22
Double Circle Ranch is both a working cattle ranch and a model for conservation and environmental stewardship. Bring your camping gear and join us for this free weekend funded by the Arizona Water Protection Fund Commission. Help us slow soil loss and improve water quality in Eagle Creek while learning skills to benefit your own land.
Dates: April 20-22, 2012
Location: Double Circle Ranch, near Clifton, AZ
Cost: Free
RSVP ASAP

Instructor: Craig Sponholtz earned an M.A. in Agro-Ecological Restoration from Prescott College and studied Permaculture at Bill Mollison’s Tagari Farm in Australia. He spent a decade with the U.S. Forest Service in New Mexico and Arizona working in Wildland Fire Management and Fire Use. Craig has had extensive training and hands-on experience in passive water harvesting, erosion control and stream restoration that is well complimented by a background in fine art sculpture and ceramics. Craig founded Dryland Solutions in 2003 and continues to design and implement watershed restoration projects throughout the Southwest. He is an expert heavy equipment operator specializing in low impact techniques and artistic in-stream boulder masonry. Craig teaches a wide variety of watershed restoration techniques that foster beneficial relationships between people and the watersheds they live in.
Food and land for camping are provided. Bring your own gear. For more information, including how to register, download the Erosion Control Workshop Flyer April 2012.

Craig Sponholtz: Applied Watershed Restoration Workshops, April 2012 – NSW & QLD Australia
2012-04-03 - 2012-04-05
Applied Watershed Restoration Workshops with Craig Sponholtz:

3-5 April 2012, at Milkwood Permaculture Farm, Mudgee, NSW, Australia. Sponsored by RegenAg and part of the FarmReady Program. For more information and registration, please visit: milkwoodpermaculture.com.au/courses/details/86-advanced-watershed-restoration-412-mudgee
11-13 April 2012, at MacKenzie’s Farm, Dimbulah, Qld, Australia. Sponsored by RegenAg and part of the FarmReady Program. For more information and registration, please visit: regenag.com/web/upcoming-courses/details/33-Applied%20Watershed%20Restoration%20Dimbulah.html
**FarmReady Approved Courses – eligible primary producers and their families may be eligible for a 65% reimbursement of course costs. See below for details.

Increase your working knowledge of passive water harvesting, erosion control and stream restoration practices with this three-day, intensive, hands-on workshop. Applied Watershed Restoration is designed for landowners and land managers, as well as practitioners, farmers, restorationists and advanced students of Permaculture.Craig Sponholtz is a world-leading expert in watershed restoration using techniques that harness natural hydrology to self-repair riparian zones and watersheds.

These techniques emphasize working with, rather than against, nature and will establish the foundational knowledge needed to work effectively with our most precious resource, water. Acquire the critical skills needed to recognize the root-causes of watershed problems and identify the best opportunities to make improvements.Learn how to read the landscape, assess, design, plan and implement projects that utilize runoff as a resource. In addition, gain exposure to cutting-edge watershed restoration methods including natural channel design, induced meandering and agro-ecological restoration.

This course will cover:

Watershed patterns and processes
Introduction to watershed restoration methodologies
Passive water harvesting
Restoration treatments and structures
Watershed restoration practicum

See websites for full outline…

So if you’re a land manager, land owner, or someone curious and passionate about restoring precious water soil to the landscapes of your farm or community, please join us for 3 days of unique and incredibly important knowledge that will help you heal your land…This tour is Craig Sponholtz’s first visit to Australia to share these cutting edge and very effective techniques that put watershed restoration back into the hands of those who live on the land…

“Craig Sponholtz’s Applied Watershed Restoration courses are a must. I was very impressed with the thoroughness, hands-on learning, and Craig’s deep knowledge based on years of real-life experiences. The strategies taught are simple and effective. They build on natural patterns so you work with natural processes, not against them. This way nature does the bulk of the work once the structures are in place. I highly recommend these courses for anyone working with the land and water….”
~Brad Lancaster, author of Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond
Some resources to get you thinking:
Drylands Solutions Website
Let the Water do the Work – watershed restoration manual by Bill Zeedyk
Building Zuni Bowl anti-erosion rockwork at Milkwood Farm
Erosion Control Field Guide
This course is part of RegenAG’s 2012 program. RegenAG is an alliance of Australian farming families who are committed to helping regenerate Australia’s farms, soils, communities and on-farm livelihoods. For more courses like this across Australia, go to RegenAG.com

Watershed Management Group & Partners: 2012 Arid LID Conference, March 27-29, 2012 – Tucson AZ
2012-03-27 - 2012-03-29
Arid LID 2012
Green Infrastructure and Low Impact Development in Arid Environments
March 27-29, 2012
Tucson, Arizona
Visit the Arid LID website for the following:
Registration – early registration through 1/16/2012
Agenda
Venue & Accommodations
Sponsorship Opportunities
Post-conference training in community-based green infrastructure
Keynote speakers to include:
Benjamin Grumbles, President, Clean Water America Alliance
Andy Lipkis, Founder and President, TreePeople
Brad will one of the panelists for The Tucson Trajectory: from guerrilla gardens–to big box parking lots–to planned communities
Many other speakers will be featured. Visit the Arid LID website for complete details.
Click to download WMG’s AridLID Conference Press Release.

About the conference:
For the past two years, the AridLID Workshops held in Albuquerque, New Mexico, have built a growing discussion and exposition of Green Infrastructure (GI) and Low Impact Development (LID) practices that are appropriate to the unique climates of the southwestern United States. In 2012, we are holding the conference in Tucson, Arizona, with the twin goals of sharing best practices and building professional networks across a wider swath of the region, and of developing a clearer Southwestern vision and voice in the growing national discussion on GI/LID.
The theme of AridLID 2012 is Integrated Approaches to Green Infrastructure and Low Impact Development. Green Infrastructure projects function best and are most cost-effective when they provide multiple benefits—like a streetside bioretention basin that captures and cleans stormwater while it passively irrigates vegetation that shades the street and sidewalk, beautifies a neighborhood, and calms traffic. Likewise, effective green infrastructure practice often requires that people of various disciplines and perspectives work together—think landscape architects, engineers, and stormwater managers working together with a watershed group, a neighborhood association, and a University laboratory to achieve shared goals! This conference will explore the potentials, best practices and pitfalls inherent in GI at various levels of integration in our region.
Who should attend:
Sessions will be targeted to stormwater, planning, and design professionals; researchers in water resources and urban sustainability; as well as activists and educators interested in implementing these features through grassroots, community-driven models. Participation is especially encouraged from those working in GI/LID in arid regions of the southwestern U.S. (southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Colorado, Utah, west Texas) and northwest Mexico.
Questions? Contact:
James MacAdam
Watershed Management Group
520-396-3266
james *at* watershedmg.org

Brad Lancaster: Keep Sedona Beautiful's 33rd Annual Native Plant Workshop, March 24, 2012 – Sedona AZ
2012-03-24 08:30 - 15:00
Brad Lancaster and Jan Busco will be the two keynote speakers for Keep Sedona Beautiful’s 33rd Annual Native Plant Workshop
Native Hedge Hog cactus in full bloom. Photo courtesy of Gerry Snyder.
Date: Saturday, March 24, 2012
Time: Doors open at 7:45 am. Event runs from 8:30 am to 3 pm

Location: West Sedona School
Address: 570 Posse Ground Road
Cost: In advance: $20 KSB members, $30 Non-members. An extra $10 per ticket will be charged at the door.
Topic of Brad’s talk:
Planting the Rain: Principles, Practices, and Tips for Water-Harvesting Earthworks and Raingardens
Plant the rain before you plant your trees to boost production, reduce flooding, conserve water, and create sustainable oases around your homes and community infrastructure. Raingardens and other small-scale earthworks quickly infiltrate rainfall into the soil where less is lost to evaporation, while reducing erosion. Living ‘pumps’ of vegetation then enable us the access that water. Come learn simple principles and tips to leverage greater success as you implement these simple and effective passive systems. This presentation builds on Brad’s basic water-harvesting talk, while offering more specifics and case studies. Working examples and case studies will be highlighted.
Brad will sell & sign his books after his talk and during lunch. Desert Harvesters’ Eat Mesquite! cookbook will be available for purchase as well.
Jan Busco, Horticulturist at Grand Canyon National Park, will speak on: Getting the Best from Your Native Plants
The format will be similar to last year’s, with a full day program, two keynote speakers, and attendance of two workshops from a selection of eight options: composting, container gardening, managing invasive plants, insects for home & garden, native plant essential oils, highland cacti, fire ecology and hydroponics.
Breakfast beverages and savories and a bag lunch are included with registration.
There will also be opportunities to bid on items at a Silent Auction fundraiser.
For more information and to register, go to keepsedonabeautiful.org or call 928-282-4938.

Brad Lancaster: Desert Harvesters and Native Foods at Keep Sedona Beautiful's Speaker Series, March 23, 2012 – Sedona AZ
2012-03-23 17:30 - 19:00
Keep Sedona Beautiful Speaker Series:
A series of monthly presentations on subjects of community interest that are aligned with the Keep Sedona Beautiful Mission: Preserving the Wonder™
Speaker Series events are typically held on the third Wednesday of each month beginning in September and ending in June.
Note that the March event will be on Friday evening, March 23.
Time: 5:30 – 7 pm
Location: Pushmataha Center • 360 Brewer Road • Sedona AZ 86336
Venue phone: (928) 282-4938
Brad will give a talk on Desert Harvesters, a group he co-founded in Tucson that celebrates and promotes the native foods of the Sonoran desert. Desert Harvesters’ Eat Mesquite! cookbook, along with signed copies of Brad’s water-harvesting books, will be available for sale after the talk.
Desert Harvesters and Native Foods: Put ‘em in your mouth, your yard, your street, and your neighborhood
This is a celebratory presentation on the history of Desert Harvesters and other dynamo local-food efforts that have enriched the Tucson community, ecosystem, and palates – and how you can likewise enrich the community where you live. Learn about grinding mesquite (and carob) pods with a hammermill or a Suzuki 4 x 4; irrigating food-producing street trees with the street; planting and picking the best tree-beans; throwing pie, mulch, and pancakes parties; creating a thoroughly delicious community-tasted cookbook; regenerating ecosystems in your pantry and landscape, and growing friendships and neighborhood networks while you’re at it! Desert Harvesters (www.DesertHarvesters.org) is a volunteer-run, grassroots effort based in Tucson, Arizona, that strives to promote, celebrate, and enhance local food security and production by encouraging the planting of indigenous, food-bearing shade trees (such as the Velvet mesquite (Prosopis velutina)) in water-harvesting earthworks, and then educating the public on how to harvest, process, and enjoy the bounty.
Free wine and appetizers will be served by KSB.
Admission is free and open to the public, donations are appreciated.
For KSB’s most recent presentations visit their Home Page for Upcoming Activities and Events.

Watershed Management Group: Watershed Technical Training in Community-based Green Infrastructure
2012-03-20 15:00 - 17:00
Green Infrastructure (GI) is a strategy a growing number of communities are using to manage stormwater more sustainably, while using that water to irrigate vegetation that provides multiple benefits such as capturing, cleaning, and infiltrating stormwater; creating wildlife habitat; shading and cooling streets and buildings; and calming traffic. WMG has been working with community members to install neighborhood-level GI projects in Tucson since 2008. Now WMG is offering an in-depth professional training covering the “how to” of organization and design for community-led GI installations.
Introductory webinar: March 20th, 3-5pm (PDT)
Hands on training: March 29-31, 2012, Tucson, Arizona
Application. Please fill out an application to apply or to hold a place in this course: available in PDF or Word and submit to rslack@watershedmg.org by March 16, 2012.
Instructors. James MacAdam, WMG Green Streets/Green Neighborhoods Program Manager, Catlow Shipek, WMG Senior Program Manager, James DeRoussel, RLA, also with WMG, will lead this hands-on technical training in community-based green infrastructure best practices.
Training Curriculum. The focus of this technical training will be on retrofitting and redevelopment. Learning will be achieved through a blend of classroom lectures, site assessments, design exercises, and a hands on workshop. This training draws on WMG’s experience working with neighborhoods and local governments to install GI in the Southwest. While WMG’s focus is on southwestern neighborhoods the intent is for the knowledge gained in this training to be transferable to other regions.
The training will cover:

GI Integrated design

Technical application of GI in a variety of urban environments

Maintenance and problem solving

Community engagement

Policy & permitting

Tools for overcoming municipal concerns

WMG’s goal is to transfer this advanced technical knowledge to professionals, educators, and community activists who will implement these practices in their work and teach others. This course may be particularly appropriate for landscape architects, architects, permaculture designers, developers, engineers, policy makers, restoration ecologists and community activists.
Training Schedule. ?An introductory webinar, which is part of the course, is scheduled for Tuesday, March 20th, 3pm (PDT). The technical training will follow, upon the conclusion of Arid LID 2012 conference on Green Infrastructure and Low Impact Development in Arid Environments, from 2 pm on Thursday, March 29th, to Saturday, March 31st, at 5pm.
Food. Snacks, water and lunch are included in the course fee.
Fees. $500. Discounts of $50 are available to alumni of previous WMG trainings and AridLID 2012 conference participants.
Scholarships. WMG offers a limited number of scholarships of $50 to $200 to help defray the cost of the course. To be considered for a scholarship, please include a description of your financial need where directed on the application. We will review your needs and let you know if your request has been successful. For more information email Rhiwena Slack at rslack@watershedmg.org or call 520-396-3266.
To apply for the course or to hold a place in this course, please fill out the Technical Training application form available in PDF or Word, and submit to rslack@watershedmg.org.

NEW ARTiculations: "Walk the Watershed" Tours, February 26 and March 11, 2012 – Tucson AZ
2012-02-26 13:00 - 15:00
Walk the Watershed

This winter, join NEW ARTiculations dancers and naturalist Eric Dhruv of the Ironwood Tree Experience on a “Walk the Watershed” tour. These 2-hour, interactive walk/talks will engage you in an exploration of how, where, and why water flows in Tucson, Arizona, and how that flow (or lack of it) impacts riparian ecology, desert landscapes, and us as human beings. Come learn about the watershed with your whole body! Open to all ages and abilities. Just show up or sign up on our Facebook event page.
“Walk the Watershed” Tours are free and open to the public. Come to one or all. All tours are kid-friendly (Feb. 26’s is particularly so!).
Sunday, February 26 (especially for kids!), 1-3 pm
Location: Santa Cruz River, park/meet at Santa Cruz River park, N. Riverside Rd. between St. Mary’s and Speedway
Sunday, March 11, 1-3 pm
Location: Ft. Lowell & Mt. Ave. Hendrick Acres
NOTE: Please bring a sunhat and plenty of water & wear comfortable walking shoes. We won’t be walking for 2 hours, however, as there will be lots of stopping and pointing and talking!
FMI: www.newarticulations.org/current-project/walk-the-watershed

Watershed Management Group: Water-Harvesting Certification Course, May 4-13, 2012 – Tucson AZ
2012-02-24
Apply by March 12 to get an early-registration discount
Apply by April 9 for regular registration

Are you interested in taking your water-harvesting expertise to the next level? WMG’s Water Harvesting Certification offers the highest quality and greatest depth of training in integrative water harvesting in the nation. This 65-hour, 9-day course draws applicants from all over the world and from backgrounds as diverse as architecture, landscaping, planning, business, government, science, education and community development.
The curriculum covers design, implementation, and installation of greywater systems, water-harvesting earthworks, and plastic and steel cisterns; integrated design; and appropriate plant selection for retrofitting urban areas. The course is taught through a mix of hands-on workshops, group design work, and lectures.
Graduates who pass the course become Certified Water-Harvesting Practitioners, a formal acknowledgement of their mastery of the essential core concepts of water harvesting, and a testament to their ability to perform this work in a professional capacity.
Participants who complete the Water-Harvesting Certification will be able to:

Integrate water harvesting systems with other design considerations (energy conservation, aesthetic design, food production, wildlife habitat, etc.)
Calculate rainwater runoff potential of catchment areas and determine soil percolation rate
Create a water budget and use water harvesting systems to match landscaping to available water supply
Choose, size, and build appropriate earthworks features for different applications (basins, berms, swales, French drains)

Design greywater systems from washing machines, bathroom sinks, and bath tub and shower water
Build gravity-fed greywater systems from washing-machine water to irrigate landscape
Size and build steel-culvert cisterns
Size and install plastic cisterns
Design water-harvesting systems to support small-scale food production (including earthworks design, cistern design and application, and soil improvements)
Design all of the above systems while incorporating safety and health considerations

Course Costs
Early registration: $1,050.
Regular registration: $1,200
For more information visit our trainings web page watershedmg.org/tech-trainings or contact Rhiwena Slack.
Email: rslack@watershedmg.org
Phone: (520) 396-3266

Kerr-Cole Sustainable Living Center: Tribute to Solar-Cooking Pioneer Barbara Kerr, February 18, 2012 – Snowflake AZ
2012-02-18 13:00 - 16:00
Date: Saturday, February 18, 2012
Time: 1 to 4 p.m. (Doors open at 12:30 pm)

Location: Northland Pioneer College
Learning Center (Room 101)
1611 South Main Street
Snowflake, AZ 85937
Cost: Free
This is a chance to meet people who are changing the world for GOOD with solar! Come share your ideas, meet new people, network and enjoy kindred spirits.
The event is free, but the organizers would appreciate your registering at their website to help them plan. And they’d love it if you could pass this invitation on to others who might be interested!
More details, or to register: kerr-cole.org/index.php/tribute

Jeff & Ana Sanders: Animal Processing Workshop, February 18-19, 2012 – Tucson AZ
2012-02-18 - 2012-02-19
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Animal Processing Workshop
Presented by Jeff & Ana Sanders ~ Hosted by Brad Lancaster

*see below for identification of pictured items
This workshop is currently full, but we will be happy to accept names for a wait list in the event of cancellations.
During this two-day workshop students will learn to slaughter, skin, eviscerate, butcher, and cook a medium-sized animal (sheep or goat) in a traditional way, using little more than one’s knife.
Jeff and Ana will teach you how to:

Identify all the parts of the animal
Cook the edible parts, such as the muscles, intestines, some organs
Process the hide, sinew, intestines, bones, and hooves to where they can used to make tools, clothing, musical instruments, or adornments. Examples include bone tools, sinew & intestine cordage, hoof rattles, hide glue, & more. Examples of such items will be available and students will have the opportunity to work on these projects.

The workshop includes lunch & dinner, cooked by the students during the workshop. Vegetarians are welcome!
Cost: $40 per person
Date: Saturday & Sunday, February 18 & 19, 8:15 am – 6 pm
Location: Dunbar/Spring neighborhood (north of downtown). Address will be provided upon receipt of deposit.
A minimum of 7 students will be required for the workshop to run
Limited spaces available – pre-registration is advised
Reserve a space with a $20 deposit (non-refundable after February 1)
Students will be required to sign a waiver acknowledging and accepting full responsibility for any possible injuries that could be sustained during a hands-on workshop involving knives and exposure to blood.
To register or with questions, email admin@HarvestingRainwater.com or call (520) 777-0049
To download a copy of the flyer, click: Sanders Animal Processing Workshop
*The items pictured above are (from left to right):
Top Row: Back-strap sinew (cleaned and dried)
Second Row: Felted wool pouch, hoof and buckskin rattle, buckskin pouch with a scrimshawed bone button
Bottom Row: deer-hock pouch, bone needle, two styles of bone awls, bone knife
Bottom Right Corner (right of bone knife), counterclockwise: bone whistle, two bone dice, six bone gaming sticks, sinew bowstring, small-intestine cordage, sheep-horn cup, and chips of dried hide glue
About the workshop:
The focus of the workshop is to help people experience a lifestyle that is closer to the earth and the things we need to sustain life. Raising or processing one’s own food means that it is not shipped thousands or even hundreds of miles. The impact we create when we process our own food is seen more immediately and directly instead of being spatially separated from us. This way we are less insulated from the true impact our life has on the entirety.
Lessons learned with domestic animals are directly transferable to working with animals of any size, domestic or hunted.
Vegetarians that have taken past workshops have said that they would consider eating meats that are not processed industrially, as a healthful and ethical choice. Many of Jeff and Ana’s past participants are inspired to find farms where they may become more connected with the life of the animal and the meat they eat.
The workshop is very hands-on and includes a focused anatomy lesson.
We will use as much of the animal as possible in the time available. The workshop is more about the animal than about the food, for this reason Jeff and Ana have streamlined the cooking portions of the workshop so that less energy is used on cooking allowing for more time and energy spent learning about the processing.
Short bios for the instructors, Ana and Jeff:
Ana and Jeff live in southern Utah with their two-year-old daughter. Their lifestyle is very much rural with a focus of raising, hunting or obtaining locally a significant portion of our food.
Jeff learned animal processing at the Boulder Outdoor Survival School (B.O.S.S.) beginning in 2000. He has worked in many capacities at BOSS since 2000, and in 2011 was able to return to teaching full time in the field. Last year he felt it would be valuable to expand the web of the animal-processing lessons and started teaching this workshop at primitive skills gatherings and for other organizations.
Ana has also taught at BOSS, focussing primarily on teaching primitive-living skills. Currently, she takes care of a dairy cow which has provided the family with milk, cheese, yogurt and butter and also takes care of the garden and orchard. She owns a small business, through which she designs and makes jewelry with silver and semi-precious stones.

Brad Lancaster: ProGreen EXPO, February 10, 2012 – Denver CO
2012-02-10 08:00 - 09:00
ProGreen EXPO 2012 spans from February 7-10 this year, featuring over 100 seminars (including several in Spanish) and 650 booths at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver.
Brad will be giving the following talk twice on Friday, February 10, once at 8 am and again at 10:30 am.
Turning Drains Into Sponges and Water Scarcity Into Water Abundance
This inspiring power point presentation shares eight universal principles of water harvesting along with simple strategies that turn water scarcity into water abundance. They empower you to create integrated water-sustainable landscape plans at home and throughout your community. Rainwater harvesting is the process of capturing rain and making the most of it as close as possible to where it falls. Greywater harvesting is the process of directing water from household sink, bathtub, shower, and washing-machine drains into the soils of the landscape where the water is naturally filtered and reused to generate more on-site resources. The two work hand in hand, and can reduce our water consumption by 30 to 50%! You’ll see examples enhancing local food security, passively cooling cities in summer, reducing costs of living and energy consumption, controlling erosion, averting flooding, reviving dead waterways, minimizing water pollution, building community, creating celebration, and more.
For more information about ProGreen EXPO, visit: www.progreenexpo.com.
Questions? Please contact ProGreen EXPO at the numbers below with any questions or comments you may have.

email:

info@progreenexpo.com

toll-free:

(800) 397-6665 (EXPO)

phone:

(303) 756-1079 (Exhibitors)

(720) 748-4872 (Seminars)

Watershed Management Group: Soil Steward Composting Toilet Program Info Session, February 9, 2012 – Tucson AZ
2012-02-09 18:00 - 20:00
Soil Steward Composting Toilet Program: Seeking Participants
Are you…

An early adopter who would like to be part of a cutting-edge pilot program to influence city and state policy?
Tired of flushing potable water down the toilet and interested in building a legal composting toilet for your home?
Interested in using alternative composting systems to improve your soil and fertilize trees and other plants?
Want to get geeky about soil – how to build healthy soils and conserve water while producing food and lush native landscapes?

Watershed Management Group invites you to attend an informational session: Thursday, February 9, 6-8pm. Register to attend this free informational session on participating in WMG’s Soil Steward Compost Toilet program (attendance required to apply to be a pilot participant). Register here.
This informational session will include:

The activities and information taught in the Soil Steward program
Composting-toilet designs offered through the program (site-built), proper use, permitting, and legal issues
How to apply to receive a subsidy and be an exclusive pilot participant to receive a legal site-built composting toilet

If you’re interested in participating or learning more about our Soil Stewards program, please contact Catlow Shipek at catlow@watershedmg.org.
Click to download the flyer for the event.
The project is possible through grant funding from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 9 for their environmental education projects.

Sonoran Permaculture Guild: 17th Annual Permaculture Design Course, February & March 2012 – Tucson AZ
2012-02-04
Five Weekends in 2012: February 4-5, 11-12, 25-26; March 10-11, 17-18
Cost $695, or $650 for early registration before December 1st. There is also a class book fee of $39 for a copy of Introduction to Permaculture by Bill Mollison. Also highly recommended is Brad Lancaster’s Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond series (Volumes 1 and 2). Partial scholarships are available and registration is open now!
For the last sixteen years this course has been full with a waiting list, so early registration is encouraged. To give a high quality educational experience, we limit the size of the class to eighteen participants. Contact Dan, the course registrar, at dorsey@dakotacom.net or 520-624-8030 to register or receive more information.
This Permaculture certification course covers all aspects of sustainable design with a Southwest dry lands flavor, including a balance of hands on experience, classroom time, and design practicum. Dynamic exercises encourage pattern recognition, noticing the links between plants and animals, climate, and landforms that make up natural ecosystems. Our course closely follows the standard 72 hour format developed by Bill Mollison and others. The course focuses on dry land communities with a strong urban and semi-rural emphasis, addressing individual site and neighborhood “problems”, such as storm water flooding. Students learn to read the landscape, to map and analyze energies flowing through a site, and to develop integrated designs for sustainable systems. The weekend format of the course makes it easier for people who hold a week day job to attend and promotes better integration of the course material into daily life.
Course topics include agroforestry, appropriate technology, building design, design principles and patterning, site analysis, drylands gardening principles, ecosystem restoration, philosophy and ethics of Permaculture, regenerative community economics, soils and erosion control, village and community design, water harvesting, invisible structures, and many other topics. The classroom site is in the Central Tucson area and at other Permaculture sites in the Tucson area. Much of the class is held outdoors. This course is taught and facilitated by Dan Dorsey, Brad Lancaster, and Barbara Rose, each with two decades of Permaculture experience, as well as other SPG associate teachers.
For more information on courses and teacher profiles see the Courses & Workshops and Teaching-Team Members links on the website: www.sonoranpermaculture.org

Dave Siebert, Bill Zeedyk, Steve Carson: Watershed Restoration Workshops, January 14-15 & 21-22, 2012 – Altar Valley AZ
2012-01-14 - 2012-01-15
STEWARDSHIP DAYS ELKHORN / LAS DELICIAS DEMONSTRATION PROJECT
Supported by:
Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold
Pima County Natural Resources, Parks and Recreation Department,
Altar Valley Conservation Alliance and Partners

The entire project will run from January 9-23, 2012. Focused learning opportunities will be the weekends of January 14-15 & 21-22.
Join the Altar Valley Conservation Alliance Restoration Coordinator David Seibert and watershed restoration experts Bill Zeedyk and Steve Carson for a hands-on workshop where you’ll learn by doing. We’re seeking people to install rock structures that will harvest upland rainwater flows to reestablish vegetation and arrest erosion. In the process, you’ll learn how the low-tech system of induced meandering stabilizes and restores eroding gully systems. You’ll help implement low-tech techniques that drain road systems and harvest water onto the adjoining land in order to restore watershed surface hydrological function and promote vegetation for wild life and livestock. Construction of the structures involves physical work while moving and placing rocks, but if you’re not sure that’s for you, rest assured that there are still ways you can be involved!
Photography is also welcome.
Please bring: Food, water bottles/canteens, camping supplies (wood fires strongly discouraged), gloves, hat, and sturdy work shoes.
To learn more contact: David Seibert (dseibert@email.arizona.edu) or Mary Miller (mary@elkhornranch.com)
To RSVP: please fill out the form below and return to Sarah King at sehking@gmail.com.
If you’d rather, you can also print it and mail it to:
Altar Valley Conservation Alliance
PO Box 27906
Tucson AZ 85726
Upon receipt of your RSVP, you will receive a confirmation note with your dates, role, map, and a release of liability form that you will need to bring with you on your first day of work.
PLEASE RSVP BY DECEMBER 16, 2011.
Click to download AVCA Elk-LD Volunteer Flyer

Watershed Management Group: Early Registration Deadline for Watershed Technical Training in Expanded Greywater Systems, January 6, 2012
2012-01-06
