Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond by Brad Lancaster

Brad Lancaster: Landscape Alberta's Green Industry Show & Conference, November 19–20, 2015 — Calgary AB, CANADA
2015-11-19 08:30 - 10:15 (America/Los_Angeles)
Landscape Alberta presents:
2015 Green Industry Show & Conference
Venue: BMO/Round-up Centre at Stampede Park
Address: 20 Roundup Way SW, Calgary
Dates: November 19 & 20, 2015
Conference website
Conference program
Registration page
Attend one or both days.
Discounts for members and students.
From the organizers:
Our amazing team of staff and volunteers have put together a conference program aimed to inform and inspire everyone from designers to arborists, owners to students, growers to contractors. Our conference sessions are timely and responsive to industry issues—this event is not to be missed! Please join us this fall in Calgary to make new connections, build your business, and share in the success of our industry in Alberta and beyond.
Copies of my book, Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond, Volume 1, 2nd edition, will be available after each session for sale & signing
My two contributions:
Thursday morning—Simple and Effective Ways to Enhance Your Home, Community, and the Larger World:
This dynamic presentation shares patterns and strategies to harvest, integrate, and enliven free local resources—such as rain-, grey-, and stormwaters; sun, wind, and shade; along with soil fertility, wild foods, and community fun—in a way that generates far more potential than the sum of their parts. Scarcity is re-visioned into abundance simply through creative cycling and utilization of what is already at hand. Costly and consuming habits and infrastructure, disconnected from their surroundings, are reoriented and reconnected to maximize enriching opportunities.
You’ll see many examples of such transformation, including how once-dying wetlands and creek flows are being regenerated with simple hand-built structures made of on-site materials; how ancient sun- and shade-harvesting sites are informing passively heated, cooled, and powered modern homes and retrofits; and how once-blighted, overheated neighborhood streets are being rejuvenated into thriving greenbelts of water, people, wildlife, art, food, and celebration by planting once-drained stormwater, seed, and yard prunings.
This talk is both an invitation for you to engage and partner with your natural surroundings and community, and a treasure map showing you the way—by planting the rain, dancing with the sun, growing fertile shade, and more—to live as one of your community’s inspirational sparks!
Friday morning: Water-Harvesting Earthworks and Rain Gardens:
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 Lancaster: "Integrated Local Harvests" Public Talk, November 16, 2015 — Eagle Mountain City UT
2015-11-16 19:00 - 20:30
Date: Monday, November 16, 2015
Time: 7–8:30 pm
Venue: Garden Near the Green
Address: 3700 E Campus Dr #100, Eagle Mountain
Hosted by: Eagle Mountain City, with special thanks to the Office of Mayor Christopher Pengra
Brad’s talk title & description:

Integrated Local Harvests:
Simple and Effective Ways to Enhance the Natural Abundance of Your Home, Community, and the Larger World
Water and sun harvesting, along with water and sun cycling. Illustration by Joe Marshall.
This dynamic presentation shares patterns and strategies to harvest, integrate, and enliven free local resources—such as rain-, grey-, and stormwaters; sun, wind, and shade; along with soil fertility, wild foods, and community fun—in a way that generates far more potential than the sum of their parts. Scarcity is re-visioned into abundance simply through creative cycling and utilization of what is already at hand. Costly and consuming habits and infrastructure, disconnected from their surroundings, are reoriented and reconnected to maximize enriching opportunities.
You’ll see many examples of such transformation, including how once-dying wetlands and creek flows are being regenerated with simple hand-built structures made of on-site materials; how ancient sun- and shade-harvesting sites are informing passively heated, cooled, and powered modern homes and retrofits; and how once-blighted, overheated neighborhood streets are being rejuvenated into thriving greenbelts of water, people, wildlife, art, food, and celebration by planting once-drained stormwater, seed, and yard prunings.
This talk is both an invitation for you to engage and partner with your natural surroundings and community, and a treasure map showing you the way—by planting the rain, dancing with the sun, growing fertile shade, and more—to live as one of your community’s inspirational sparks!
There will be the opportunity after the talk for Q&A as well as sales and signing of Brad’s book, Rainwater Harvesting for Dryland and Beyond, Volume 1.

Watershed Management Group w/ Brad Lancaster: Water Harvesting Design Certification, November 2–8, 2015 — Tucson AZ
2015-11-02 - 2015-11-08

Brad Lancaster: Re-Envisioning Water, Sustainability, & Wild Foods, October 23–24, 2015 — Sacramento CA
2015-10-23 - 2015-10-24

Brad Lancaster: Keynote Address & Hands-on Workshop at EPA Region 6 Stormwater Conference, October 19–20, 2015 — Hot Springs AR
2015-10-19 - 2015-10-20

Brad Lancaster: Native-Foods Talk, September 19, 2015 — Alpine TX
2015-09-19 19:30 - 21:00
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Brad Lancaster: Mesquite Workshop, September 19, 2015 — Alpine TX
2015-09-19 13:00 - 17:00

Brad Lancaster: Water-Harvesting & Integrated-Design Talk at Design Marfa Architecture + Design Symposium 2015, September 18–19, 2015 — Marfa TX
2015-09-18 - 2015-09-19

Brad Lancaster, Pandora Thomas, & Eric Toensmeier: Integrated Social & Ecological Design, May 29 – June 7, 2015 – Sedalia CO
2015-05-29 18:00 - 2015-06-07 15:00

Brad Lancaster: "Regenerative Watersheds: From Plumbing to Policy" Talk & Panel with Local Policymakers & Water Activists, May 28, 2015 — Denver CO
2015-05-28 17:30 - 20:30
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What might the future hold for greywater in Colorado?
Date: Thursday, May 28, 2015
Time: 5:30–8:30 pm
Venue: Green Spaces
Address: 1368 26th St, Denver
Hosted by: Denver Permaculture Guild
Sponsors include: Woodbine Ecology Center—check out their Integrated Social & Ecological Design Course taught by Brad, Pandora Thomas, and Eric Toensmeier from May 29–June 7. Early-bird discount through May 1!
About the event:
Which methods of rainwater harvesting are legal in Colorado—and which kinds aren’t? How have other communities come together to change their state’s approach to water? What opportunities do we have locally to push the envelope in regards to sustainable water policy? Join us on May 28 for a rousing night of discussion of these questions and more. We’ll hear a presentation, Regenerative Watersheds: From Plumbing to Policy, by Arizona’s rainwater-harvesting expert Brad Lancaster, followed by a panel and Q&A with local policymakers and water activists.
Brad will be selling & signing his Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond books after the panel.
Tickets:
General public: $15 until May 15, $20 after May 15, $25 at the door
Denver Permaculture Guild Members: $10
Purchase your tickets in advance here!

Brad Lancaster, Barbara Rose, Dan Dorsey, Leona Davis, & Justin Bramhall: Post-Film Discussion of INHABIT: A Permaculture Perspective, May 21, 2015 — Tucson AZ
2015-05-21 19:30 - 21:30

Brad Lancaster & Others: BECC's Border Green-Infrastructure Forum II, May 20–21, 2015 — Tucson AZ
2015-05-20 - 2015-05-21

Brad Lancaster, Jerry Yudelson, & Others: Coneybeare Cleantech Leaders Conference, May 14, 2015 — Irvine CA
2015-05-14 09:00 - 19:00
Calling all community and government leaders; utility executives; property owners and managers; clean technology companies; “green” architectural, engineering, and construction firms; and venture capitalists who want to be part of the evolution to provide superior-performance technologies at lower social, environmental and economic costs:
Come to the Coneybeare Cleantech Leaders Conference to learn about innovative, cost-effective, high-impact, scalable strategies in water, solar, and renewable energy from a wide-ranging group of leaders in their fields, while engaging in conversation with new connections and enjoying excellent food throughout the day.
Brad’s talk, Integrated Harvests of Sun, Water, & More, will wrap up a day-long conference featuring speakers Jerry Yudelson, LEED Fellow; Miguel Pulido, Mayor of the City of Santa Ana; and John Irvine, MBA and Sustainability Consultant.
Innovative technologies to be presented include: Eva Smart Shower, Ciralight, Plant-e, and Mirrors Around the Globe.
Date: Thursday, May 14, 2015
Times: 9 am – 5 pm (conference) and 5–7 pm (happy hour)
Location:
Eureka Building
1621 Alton Parkway
Irvine, CA 92606
Click here for more info and to register.

Homegrown Food Summit, featuring Mike Adams, Toby Hemenway, Brad Lancaster, Joel Salatin, and others: April 6–12, 2015 — online
2015-04-06 - 2015-04-12
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The Homegrown Food Summit is a free online series that goes beyond the usual offerings, with presentations on topics like:
Aquaponics,
Chickens,
Communicating with Plants,
Deer Hunting,
Eating Insects,
Food Forests,
Food Preservation,
Gardening, & Foraging,
Homesteading,
Living without Refrigeration,
Seed Saving,
Water Harvesting,
and more.
The summit runs from April 6 through April 12, hosted by self-reliance specialist Marjory Wildcraft.
Learn more about the topics that will be covered, and register here for free.

CANCELLED: Brad Lancaster: Guided Home and Neighborhood Tour Showcasing Integrated Harvests of Water, Sun, Wind, Shade, Fertility, Carbon, and Community, April 4, 2015 — Tucson AZ
2015-04-04 09:30 - 12:00
THIS TOUR DIDN’T REACH THE MINIMUM REGISTRATIONS TO MAKE IT A GO—SORRY!
PLEASE KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR THE NEXT TOUR AFTER COOLER WEATHER RETURNS.
Brad Lancaster, author of the award-winning, best-selling book series, Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond, will lead this 2.5-hour tour of his home property (this is the only home property that will be on the tour) and sites within the public rights-of-ways of the Dunbar/Spring neighborhood.
A portion of the proceeds from the tour will help fund ongoing integrated water-harvesting, native food-tree planting, traffic-calming, and education efforts within the public realm of the neighborhood.
Some of the many features to be included in the tour:

Low-tech, low-cost, gravity-fed (no pumps) potable rainwater-harvesting system providing for household water needs (including drinking water)

Rainwater-harvesting tanks doubling as summer sun- and winter shade-harvesting systems, privacy/property fences, fire breaks, and more

Passive, gravity-fed greywater-harvesting systems that reuse all household drainwater for safe irrigation of food plants that also help passively shade/cool buildings in summer while retaining the sun’s heat and light gain in winter.

Flood-controlling, heat-island abating, and carbon-sequestering public gardens and orchards irrigated ONLY with on-site rainwater

A tiny-house one-car-garage-to-cottage conversion resulting in a passively heated and cooled garottage

Numerous strategies on how to maximize the harvest of winter sun AND summer shade in a way that reduces your water consumption, carbon emissions, and costs—these strategies work in ALL seasons, rather than working in only one season at the expense of others

Sculpture that celebrates the seasonally changing path of the sun and the design of homes and gardens that make the most of the winter sun and summer shade

Solar cooking, power, hot water, heating, lighting, and clothes drying

Low-tech, low-cost, legal site-built compost toilet

Self-regenerating living mulch machines that naturally bioremediate pollutants from street runoff

Novel urban-wildlife habitat such as pollinator fences and shade screens

Neighborhood-history sign project

Neighborhood-scale water harvesting, native food-tree planting, traffic calming, and art—all celebrating and enhancing the story and potential of Place

For visual previews of some of these features: Click to enlarge the images below, check out these sun- and shade-harvesting and water-harvesting & cistern set-up videos, &/or read this enhanced stormwater-harvesting blog post.

Also available for sale at the tour will be signed copies of Brad’s books (including the newly revised and expanded second edition of Volume 1), as well as Rainwater Harvesting and Desert Harvesters t-shirts.
**The Fine Print**

For the tour to have been held as planned would have required a minimum of 15 tickets sold by 7 pm MST on Thursday, April 2—which we did not reach. All ticket-holders will receive an email (at their PaypPal-related address) by 12 noon on Friday, April 3, either to confirm the tour or to announce its cancellation. If the tour is cancelled, all ticket-holders will receive a full refund. If the tour will be held as expected, the email will include details and logistics of the tour, including the address.
If you wish to cancel your ticket(s) you must email us at admin@Harvesting Rainwater.com with your cancellation request by 7 pm MST on Thursday, April 2, to receive a refund. After that time, your ticket purchase becomes a donation in the event you are not able to attend or sell/give away your ticket.
Tickets are transferable (you may give/sell your ticket to another person). When you arrive for the tour, simply provide the name of the original ticket-purchaser and we’ll check you in on our tour list.
After you complete your ticket purchase, you will receive an automated confirmation email from PayPal and be brought back to this page. When one of us humans sees your purchase, we’ll generate a second confirmation email via PayPal. Thanks for your interest and support!

Brad Lancaster & WMG Colleagues: Water Harvesting Design Certification Course: November 17–23, 2014 & March 16–22, 2015 — Tucson AZ
2015-03-16
The WMG Water Harvesting Design Certification program is a hands-on training course that provides certification in water-harvesting-system design and implementation. The WMG program provides a high-quality, in-depth training in integrative water harvesting. Detailed course information can be found here. A list of Certified Practictioners can be found here.

Tucson courses:
November 17-23, 2014
March 16–22, 2015 (register by January 16 for a discount)

The course teaches site assessment, design, and installation of:

Greywater systems
Rainwater-harvesting landscapes
Roof-top rainwater catchment (cisterns)

For more information about the Certification program or to register, please click here, email tech-trainings@watershedmg.org or call 520-396-3266.
Course participants conduct a site assessment.
Developing a water-harvesting site plan based on a site assessment.
Participants review hands-on steps following greywater install.

Brad Lancaster: Guided Home and Neighborhood Tour Showcasing Integrated Harvests of Water, Sun, Wind, Shade, Fertility, Carbon, and Community, February 28, 2015 — Tucson AZ
2015-02-28 09:30 - 12:00
FEBRUARY 28 TOUR: SOLD OUT
Brad Lancaster, author of the award-winning, best-selling book series, Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond, will lead this 2.5-hour tour of his home property and sites within the public rights-of-ways of the Dunbar/Spring neighborhood.
A portion of the proceeds from the tour will help fund ongoing integrated water-harvesting, native food-tree planting, traffic-calming, and education efforts within the public realm of the neighborhood.
Some of the many features to be included in the tour:

Low-tech, low-cost, gravity-fed (no pumps) potable rainwater-harvesting system providing for household water needs (including drinking water)

Rainwater-harvesting tanks doubling as summer sun- and winter shade-harvesting systems, privacy/property fences, fire breaks, and more

Passive, gravity-fed greywater-harvesting systems that reuse all household drainwater for safe irrigation of food plants that also help passively shade/cool buildings in summer while retaining the sun’s heat and light gain in winter.

Flood-controlling, heat-island abating, and carbon-sequestering public gardens and orchards irrigated ONLY with on-site rainwater

A tiny-house one-car-garage-to-cottage conversion resulting in a passively heated and cooled garottage

Numerous strategies on how to maximize the harvest of winter sun AND summer shade in a way that reduces your water consumption, carbon emissions, and costs—these strategies work in ALL seasons, rather than working in only one season at the expense of others

Sculpture that celebrates the seasonally changing path of the sun and the design of homes and gardens that make the most of the winter sun and summer shade

Solar cooking, power, hot water, heating, lighting, and clothes drying

Low-tech, low-cost, legal site-built compost toilet

Self-regenerating living mulch machines that naturally bioremediate pollutants from street runoff

Novel urban-wildlife habitat such as pollinator fences and shade screens

Neighborhood-history sign project

Neighborhood-scale water harvesting, native food-tree planting, traffic calming, and art—all celebrating and enhancing the story and potential of Place

For visual previews of some of these features: Click to enlarge the images below, check out these sun- and shade-harvesting and water-harvesting & cistern set-up videos, &/or read this enhanced stormwater-harvesting blog post.

Also available for sale at the tour will be signed copies of Brad’s books (including the newly revised and expanded second edition of Volume 1), as well as Rainwater Harvesting and Desert Harvesters t-shirts.
**The Fine Print**

The morning tour has been confirmed as planned. An email has been sent to all ticket-buyers (at the address provided through PayPal) with the site address and other logistical details. Please send us an email if you signed up & paid but did not receive the email with tour details.
Tickets are transferable (you may give/sell your ticket to another person) but at this point are not refundable. Your ticket purchase will become a donation in the event you are not able to attend or sell/give away your ticket. When you arrive for the tour, simply provide the name of the original ticket-purchaser and we’ll check you in on our tour list.
After you complete your ticket purchase, you will receive an automated confirmation email from PayPal and be brought back to this page.

Brad Lancaster: Keynote Speaker at Tucson Audubon's Annual Gala, February 10, 2015 — Tucson AZ
2015-02-10 18:00 - 21:30
Date: February 10, 2015
Time: 6–9:30 pm
Venue: Hilton El Conquistador Resort
Address: 10000 N Oracle Rd, Tucson, AZ 85704 [SEE MAP]
Be a Part of an Elegant Tradition at Tucson Audubon’s Seventh Annual Gala
An Evening for the Birds | Bringing Nature Home
We invite you to come together for a magical evening at Tucson Audubon Society’s Seventh Annual Gala! Featuring a Silent Auction, Live Birds and Culinary Delights. Our keynote speaker is Brad Lancaster, one of the nation’s foremost experts on rainwater harvesting and author of the Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond series. His presentation for the evening is titled “Oasis Tucson: Transforming Mirage to Reality.”
Registration and sponsorship opportunities now available. See tucsonaudubon.org/gala for more information.

Sonoran Permaculture Guild: 20th Annual Permaculture Design Course, February & March 2015 — Tucson AZ
2015-02-07

Brad Lancaster: Water-Harvesting Talk at New England Grows, February 5, 2015 — Boston MA
2015-02-05 14:00 - 15:00
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Date: Thursday, February 5, 2015
Time: 2–3 pm (Brad’s session)
Venue: Boston Convention & Exhibition Center
Address: 415 Summer Street, Boston, MA

Both volumes of Brad’s book series, Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands & Beyond, will be available for sale & signing
Brad’s talk:

Rainwater Harvesting & Other Water-Conservation Strategies
As a horticulture professional it is incumbent upon you to partner with your community and natural surroundings to actively preserve and enhance water. Local resources you regularly encounter: rain-, grey-, and stormwaters; sun, wind, and shade; and soil fertility can generate far more potential than the sum of their parts. Scarcity is re-visioned into abundance simply through creative cycling and utilization of what is already at hand. You’ll learn simple ways you can influence your customers to conserve and enhance water. You’ll gain inspiration through examples of earth-friendly and beautiful landscape projects that integrate water conservation strategies. In other words, you’ll take away a treasure trove of ways to make a positive difference.
About New England Grows (from their website):
Held every February, New England Grows is renowned for its world-class education offerings and innovative trend spotting. Founded in 1993 by green industry professionals for green industry professionals, the educational conference and exposition gives participants unique access to targeted, industry-specific products, information, education and connections. The New England Nursery Association, Massachusetts Arborists Association, Massachusetts Association of Landscape Professionals and Massachusetts Nursery & Landscape Association are the organization’s founding partners.
Proceeds from New England Grows go directly back to the industry to support the work of these and other green industry organizations, including yearly research grants to the region’s Cooperative Extension programs. Funds from the show also support related community-based programs, such as the Boston Schoolyard Initiative. The show’s format and educational content is continually updated to meet current industry needs and bring inspirational thinking to participants.
Click to view the full conference guide
Click here to register—early-bird rates expire January 15, 2015.

Brad Lancaster: Integrated Local Harvests (public talk), January 8, 2015 — Encinitas CA
2015-01-08 18:00 - 20:00
Date: Thursday, January 8, 2015
Time: 6–8 pm
Venue: Leichtag Foundation Ranch
Address: 441 Saxony Road, Encinitas CA 92024
Cost: Free & open to the public
RSVP here—space is limited!
Light refreshments will be provided
Talk will be followed by Q&A and book sales & signing
Both volumes of Brad’s book series, Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands & Beyond, will be available for sale & signing
Talk description:
Integrated Local Harvests:
Simple and Effective Ways to Enhance the Natural Abundance of Your Home, Community, and the Larger World
This dynamic presentation shares patterns and strategies to harvest, integrate, and enliven free local resources—such as rain-, grey-, and stormwaters; sun, wind, and shade; along with soil fertility, wild foods, and community fun—in a way that generates far more potential than the sum of their parts. Scarcity is re-visioned into abundance simply through creative cycling and utilization of what is already at hand. Costly and consuming habits and infrastructure, disconnected from their surroundings, are reoriented and reconnected to maximize enriching opportunities.
You’ll see many examples of such transformation, including how once-dying wetlands and creek flows are being regenerated with simple hand-built structures made of on-site materials; how ancient sun- and shade-harvesting sites are informing passively heated, cooled, and powered modern homes and retrofits; and how once-blighted, overheated neighborhood streets are being rejuvenated into thriving greenbelts of water, people, wildlife, art, food, and celebration by planting once-drained stormwater, seed, and yard prunings.
This talk is both an invitation for you to engage and partner with your natural surroundings and community, and a treasure map showing you the way—by planting the rain, dancing with the sun, growing fertile shade, and more to live as one of your community’s inspirational sparks!
Presented by: Leichtag Foundation

Brad Lancaster: Guided Home and Neighborhood Tour Showcasing Integrated Harvests of Water, Sun, Wind, Shade, Fertility, Carbon, and Community, December 20, 2014 — Tucson AZ
2014-12-20 09:30 - 11:30
Brad Lancaster, author of the award-winning, best-selling book series, Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond, will lead this 2-hour tour of his home property and sites within the public rights-of-ways of the Dunbar/Spring neighborhood.
A portion of the proceeds from the tour will help fund ongoing integrated water-harvesting, native food-tree planting, traffic-calming, and education efforts within the public realm of the neighborhood. Tickets for this tour have sold out. Thanks, all! Please send an email to admin@www.harvestingrainwater.com if you’d like to be on the waitlist for this tour &/or notified in advance of future tours!
Some of the many features to be included in the tour:

Low-tech, low-cost, gravity-fed (no pumps) potable rainwater-harvesting system providing for household water needs (including drinking water)

Rainwater-harvesting tanks doubling as summer sun- and winter shade-harvesting systems, privacy/property fences, fire breaks, and more

Passive, gravity-fed greywater-harvesting systems that reuse all household drainwater for safe irrigation of food plants that also help passively shade/cool buildings in summer while retaining the sun’s heat and light gain in winter.

Flood-controlling, heat-island abating, and carbon-sequestering public gardens and orchards irrigated ONLY with on-site rainwater

A tiny-house one-car-garage to cottage conversion resulting in a passively heated and cooled garottage

Numerous strategies on how to maximize the harvest of winter sun AND summer shade in a way that reduces your water consumption, carbon emissions, and costs—these strategies work in ALL seasons, rather than working in only one season at the expense of others

Sculpture that celebrates the seasonally changing path of the sun and the design of homes and gardens that make the most of the winter sun and summer shade

Solar cooking, power, hot water, heating, lighting, and clothes drying

Low-tech, low-cost, legal site-built compost toilet

Self-regenerating living mulch machines that naturally bioremediate pollutants from street runoff

Novel urban-wildlife habitat such as pollinator fences and shade screens

Neighborhood-history sign project

Neighborhood-scale water harvesting, native food-tree planting, traffic calming, and art—all celebrating and enhancing the story and potential of Place

For visual previews of some of these features: click to enlarge the images below, check out these sun- and shade-harvesting and water-harvesting & cistern set-up videos, &/or read this enhanced stormwater-harvesting blog post.

Also available at the tour will be signed copies of Brad’s books (including the newly revised and expanded second edition of Volume 1), as well as Rainwater Harvesting and Desert Harvesters t-shirts—all at holiday sale prices.
**The Fine Print**

For the tour to be held as planned will require a minimum of 15 tickets sold by 7 pm MST on Thursday, December 18. All ticket-holders will receive an email by 12 noon on Friday, December 19, either to confirm the tour or to announce its cancellation. If the tour is cancelled, all ticket-holders will receive a full refund.
Anyone wishing to cancel his/her ticket(s) must email us their cancellation request by 7 pm MST on Thursday, December 18, to receive a refund. After that time, your ticket purchase becomes a donation in the event you are not able to attend or sell/give away your ticket.
Tickets are transferable (you may give/sell your ticket to another person). When you arrive for the tour, simply provide the name of the original ticket-purchaser and we’ll check you in on our tour list.
After you complete your ticket purchase, you will receive a confirmation email from PayPal and be brought back to this page. Thanks for your interest and support!

19th Annual Dunbar/Spring Neighborhood Rain, Tree, & Carbon Planting, November 22, 2014 — Tucson, AZ
2014-11-22 07:30 - 12:00

Brad Lancaster of Desert Harvesters: Water-Harvesting & Native-Tree Workshop at Food Conspiracy Co-op, November 1, 2014 — Tucson AZ
2014-11-01 08:00 - 12:00
Plants’ water needs and tolerance determine the ideal Rain-Garden Zone. See plant lists in appendix 4 for more.
Do you want to grow native trees in your yard without turning on the hose? Desert Harvesters’ Brad Lancaster will show you how to harvest rainwater, air-conditioning condensate, and stormwater to irrigate native perennial food plants. Learn how to use simple water levels (called bunyips) in your yard or neighborhood and make earthworks—landscaping features that direct and capture the flow of water—for water harvesting. You’ll also learn where to place trees to maximize summer shade and winter sun. After you’re done learning, you’ll get to put your newly acquired knowledge to work installing earthworks and planting trees in the Conspiracy Gardens.
Bring pointed shovels and hard rakes, along with hats and work clothes.
Date: Saturday, November 1, 2014
Time: 8 a.m.–noon
Location: Conspiracy Gardens, behind the Food Conspiracy Co-op, 412 North 4th Ave, Tucson
Cost: Free
Register by emailing Kelly Watters at outreach@foodconspiracy.coop or calling (520) 624-4821

Brad Lancaster: Work In Beauty's Conversations on Local Agriculture, October 18, 2014 — Gallup NM
2014-10-18 11:00 - 16:00
2014 CONVERSATIONS ON LOCAL AGRICULTURE
Hosted by Work in Beauty, a local Gallup 501(c)3 organization
Date: Saturday, October 18, 2014
Time: 11 am – 4 pm
Venue: UNM-Gallup Student Services Building, Room 200
Cost: Free
PROGRAM TO INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:
Click to view/download event poster
**Brad’s presentation on Harnessing Free Water from Streets, Dirt Roads, and Driveways to Grow Abundance:
Local Harvests and Enhancements in Our Community Commons
In populated environments, streetscapes are part of our public land, our commons. They are abundant—one-third of a typical city’s footprint is pavement for motor vehicles. These streetscapes are usually designed as drains, rapidly ridding a community of such perceived “problems” as rainwater, stormwater, organic matter, fertility, and obstructions to traffic flow. This design often leads to ever-increasing costs for importation of water, flood control, pollution control, heat-island abatement, climate-change mitigation, and health problems.
But a simple shift in perception and design can enable us to see and utilize rainwater, stormwater, organic matter, fertility, and even some obstructions to traffic flow as free, local resources, which can be passively harvested to enhance local water supplies, control flooding, filter pollutants, grow cool-islands, mitigate the effects of climate change, and improve health—while generating more resources and more life.
The key is to see and enhance the free abundance that we already have in a way that transforms more of our built systems into living systems that can regenerate themselves and our communities.
Numerous successful examples will be featured.
**Walking tour of campus with Brad to learn to see through a lens of possibility
**Three Sisters Potluck Lunch with Presentation of Awards to winning Demonstration Projects
**Brad’s presentation on Water Harvesting for Food Production:
Food is virtual water—originating from the source of irrigation. Local, sustainable food is all the rage, but we can take it further by growing that food with local, sustainable water. This talk covers the growing of food using rainwater, stormwater, and greywater for irrigation. Case studies include rain-fed greenhouses, dryfarming, backyard market gardens, granada greywater groves, and climate-appropriate traditional and appropriate plantings.
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Click photo above to read a brief piece on Brad in the Gallup Journey
>>Attendees are encouraged to check out the following resources before the Conversations:
Let the Water Do the Work, by Bill Zeedyk & Van Clothier (available for purchase)
Water Harvesting from Low-Standard Rural Roads, by Bill Zeedyk (available as free download)

Brad Lancaster: Free Mini Hands-On Water-Harvesting Earthworks Workshop, October 9, 2014 — Tucson AZ
2014-10-09 08:00 - 10:00
Free Mini Hands-On Water-Harvesting Earthworks Workshop
Brad’s nephew Vaughan playing in the rain, the runoff from which is passively directed to our street-side food-bearing, native shade trees.
Date: Thursday, October 9, 2014
Time: 8–10 am
Location: Dunbar/Spring Neighborhood – just north of downtown, Tucson, AZ
The workshop is on rain or shine
FREE with RSVP
Space is limited to six people
– You’ll be given exact address once you RSVP…
– To RSVP, send us an email at admin@HarvestingRainwater.com, being sure to include your name, email & phone number (preferably cell)
Come wield a shovel to help plant the rain! In so doing, you’ll be creating a street-side raingarden which will freely irrigate native food-bearing shade trees, mitigate downstream flooding, re-forest and re-fauna the urban core, and more. Plus you’ll be helping to spread these concepts and practices near and far, as this workshop will be filmed by a French documentary team for inclusion in a project on water and enhancing global conditions with local efforts.
Included in the workshop:
– Hands-on creation of a street-side rainwater-harvesting basin
– Use of simple bunyip water level and the 3 Key Elevation Relationships of a rain garden
– How to use free, existing driveway “curb cuts”
– Touring thriving water-harvesting earthworks/rain gardens
– How to assess best placement opportunities
– How to improve existing earthworks
– Enhancing the sponge of living soil with free on-site materials
What to bring:
– Sun hat, water bottle, gloves, and work clothes
– A get-after-it attitude and physical readiness to work–this is a hands-on workshop
– A willingness to be filmed–a French documentary team will be filming all participants
– Pointed shovel and/or hard rake
– Rain gear if it looks like rain
Brad will have signed copies of his award-winning books Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond on hand for those wishing to buy them.

Brad Lancaster: Hands-on Water-Harvesting Earthworkshop, September 21, 2014 — Marfa TX
2014-09-21 08:30 - 15:30
Date: Sunday, September 21, 2014
Times: 8:30 am – 3:30 pm
Location: Marfa International School
Address: 800 East Galveston | Marfa, TX 79843
RSVP &/or FMI: Contact Chris Hillen at hillen.christopher@gmail.com. Space is limited.
How to Plant the Rain (and Other On-site Waters) to Grow Sustainable Abundance
In order to better see the whole and our place within the hydrologic cycle, each earthworkshop begins with participants learning the Water-Harvesting Principles; basic watergy facts; integration of sun, water, and community; oasis zones; how to think like a plant; and various earthworks strategies. We then assess the site, identifying water resources and watersheds, asking and answering relevant site-specific questions, and testing our observations with simple tools. Equipped with a deeper understanding of the site and its water, we then place and create water-harvesting earthworks, guided by the Principles, key integration techniques, and the goal of living within the site’s sustainable water budget. Depending on the site, typical earthworks created in an workshop can include infiltration basins/rain gardens, one-rock check dams, contour berm ‘n basins/swales or boomerang berm ‘n basins, and terracing. Time and resources permitting, we will plant guilds of vegetation within/beside the earthworks and view a presentation of earthworks from around the world. This duration of this workshop is typically 6–7 hours.
Note: There will be another hands-on earthworkshop in Alpine on Saturday, September 20.

Brad Lancaster: Public Talk: "Integrated Local Harvests," September 20, 2014 — Marfa TX
2014-09-20 19:00 - 21:00
Both volumes of Brad’s book series, Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands & Beyond, Volumes 1 & 2, will be available for sale & signing
Date: Saturday, September 20, 2014
Time: 7–9 pm
Venue: Crowley Theater
Address: 98 S Austin St | Marfa, Texas 79843
Cost: Free & open to the public
Talk will be followed by Q&A and book sales & signing
Sunday there will be a free hands-on water-harvesting workshop at Marfa International School
Saturday’s talk description:
Integrated Local Harvests:
Simple and Effective Ways to Enhance the Natural Abundance of Your Home, Community, and the Larger World
This dynamic presentation shares patterns and strategies to harvest, integrate, and enliven free local resources—such as rain-, grey-, and stormwaters; sun, wind, and shade; along with soil fertility, wild foods, and community fun—in a way that generates far more potential than the sum of their parts. Scarcity is re-visioned into abundance simply through creative cycling and utilization of what is already at hand. Costly and consuming habits and infrastructure, disconnected from their surroundings, are reoriented and reconnected to maximize enriching opportunities.
Click to view the full-size poster with details on Brad’s 2 public talks and 2 free workshops the weekend of Sept 19-21 in Alpine and Marfa.
You’ll see many examples of such transformation, including how once-dying wetlands and creek flows are being regenerated with simple hand-built structures made of on-site materials; how ancient sun- and shade-harvesting sites are informing passively heated, cooled, and powered modern homes and retrofits; and how once-blighted, overheated neighborhood streets are being rejuvenated into thriving greenbelts of water, people, wildlife, art, food, and celebration by planting once-drained stormwater, seed, and yard prunings.
This talk is both an invitation for you to engage and partner with your natural surroundings and community, and a treasure map showing you the way—by planting the rain, dancing with the sun, growing fertile shade, and more to live as one of your community’s inspirational sparks!
Presented by: The Highland Soil & Water Conservation District

Brad Lancaster: Hands-on Water-Harvesting Earthworkshop, September 20, 2014 — Alpine TX
2014-09-20 08:00 - 14:00
Date: Saturday, September 20, 2014
Times: 8 am – 2 pm (approximate—subject to slight adjustment)
Location: Alpine (TX) Public Libary
Address: 805 W. Avenue E | Alpine, Texas 79830
RSVP &/or FMI: Contact Will Juett at wjuett01@yahoo.com. Space is limited.
How to Plant the Rain (and Other On-site Waters) to Grow Sustainable Abundance
In order to better see the whole and our place within the hydrologic cycle, each earthworkshop begins with participants learning the Water-Harvesting Principles; basic watergy facts; integration of sun, water, and community; oasis zones; how to think like a plant; and various earthworks strategies. We then assess the site, identifying water resources and watersheds, asking and answering relevant site-specific questions, and testing our observations with simple tools. Equipped with a deeper understanding of the site and its water, we then place and create water-harvesting earthworks, guided by the Principles, key integration techniques, and the goal of living within the site’s sustainable water budget. Depending on the site, typical earthworks created in an workshop can include infiltration basins/rain gardens, one-rock check dams, contour berm ‘n basins/swales or boomerang berm ‘n basins, and terracing. Time and resources permitting, we will plant guilds of vegetation within/beside the earthworks and view a presentation of earthworks from around the world. This duration of this workshop is typically 6–7 hours.
Note: There will be another hands-on earthworkshop in Marfa on Sunday, September 21.

Brad Lancaster: Public Talk: "Integrated Local Harvests," September 19, 2014 — Alpine TX
2014-09-19 19:00 - 21:00
Date: Friday, September 19, 2014
Time: 7–9 pm
Venue: Granada Theatre
Address: 207 E Holland Ave | Alpine, Texas 79830
Cost: Free & open to the public
Talk will be followed by Q&A and book sales & signing
Saturday there will be a free hands-on water-harvesting workshop at the Alpine Public Library
Both volumes of Brad’s book series, Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands & Beyond, Volume 1 & 2, will be available for sale & signing
Friday’s talk description:
Integrated Local Harvests:
Simple and Effective Ways to Enhance the Natural Abundance of Your Home, Community, and the Larger World
This dynamic presentation shares patterns and strategies to harvest, integrate, and enliven free local resources—such as rain-, grey-, and stormwaters; sun, wind, and shade; along with soil fertility, wild foods, and community fun—in a way that generates far more potential than the sum of their parts. Scarcity is re-visioned into abundance simply through creative cycling and utilization of what is already at hand. Costly and consuming habits and infrastructure, disconnected from their surroundings, are reoriented and reconnected to maximize enriching opportunities.
Click to view the full-size poster with details on Brad’s 2 public talks and 2 free workshops the weekend of Sept 19-21 in Alpine and Marfa.
You’ll see many examples of such transformation, including how once-dying wetlands and creek flows are being regenerated with simple hand-built structures made of on-site materials; how ancient sun- and shade-harvesting sites are informing passively heated, cooled, and powered modern homes and retrofits; and how once-blighted, overheated neighborhood streets are being rejuvenated into thriving greenbelts of water, people, wildlife, art, food, and celebration by planting once-drained stormwater, seed, and yard prunings.
This talk is both an invitation for you to engage and partner with your natural surroundings and community, and a treasure map showing you the way—by planting the rain, dancing with the sun, growing fertile shade, and more to live as one of your community’s inspirational sparks!
