Listed Chronologically

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Natural Building Intensive
August 6 - 30
Peterborough, ON, Canada

Endeavour’s one-month Natural Building Intensive puts you at the heart of a natural building project.You will learn about the design and construction of modern natural buildings, using materials sourced from the local environment to create healthy, affordable and energy efficient shelter.You will work with teachers and practitioners who are leaders in the field and work with fellow participants who are motivated and enthusiastic.Join us for an experience that will give you the skills to tackle your own natural building projects!

see endeavourcentre.org for more information.

Everything Earthen
August 10 - 15
Rockaway Beach, Oregon

5th Annual! Experience cob and so much more. This is an in-depth overview of how to source, process, mix, and transform common earth materials into beautiful housing and art. Learn how to create walls from cob/adobe, wattle and daub, rammed earth, straw clay, wood chip clay, straw bales, and more. Learn to mix and apply plasters of cob (adobe), cement, and lime. Also discover mixing and application of earthen paints and lime paints. Hands-on instruction, lectures and slides.

See www.earthenhand.com for more information.

Straw Bales, Cob, and Earthen Floors
August 18 - 22
Mendocino, CA

Description: This workshop will focus on clay and straw, two of the most versatile natural building materials.

In the first part of the workshop, you will learn to:

• Build a highly insulating and fire-resistant straw bale wall

• Mix clay soil, sand and straw into cob 

• Sculpt cob into beautiful, durable walls

• Sustainably harvest and test clay soils 

• Determine the best cob mix for your soil

• Understand the difference between insulation and thermal mass and how to use them together to make an efficient passive solar home

 The extended practicum will focus on faster ways to mix and build with cob using machines, sculpting cob details, and how to install an earthen floor.

See www.abuelagardens.com for more information.

Intermediate Cobber Certification Training
August 18 - Sept. 22
Nevada City, CA

The 28-day Course will offer practical learning by building a 150 sq. ft curvilinear building. The Course starts with the Cob Walls during Weeks 1-3 (the Foundation will already be built), which include a door, opening and fixed windows, shelves, artistic inserts like bottles, driftwood, branches, etc., electrical and plumbing infrastructure, sculpting and the roof connection elements. We will also pour the first 2 layers of floor over the gravel underlayment and apply one coat of earthen plaster on the interior and exterior wall.

See cruzincobglobal.org for more information.

Build a Small Timber Frame
Structure
August 21 - 25
Red Wing, MN

This class is designed to build the skills and confidence needed to tackle a small building. No experience required, we will cover safe work practices and teach proper operation of hand and power tools. The class focuses on traditional building methods supplemented with modern tooling. We employ square rule methodology to layout timbers. Then, we cut, and raise a small timber frame structure using traditional tools.

No experience needed. We supply the community tooling, instruction, and material. Along with your positive attitude, willingness to learn, you will need to bring the following:

See www.andersontimberworks.com for more iniformation.

Complete Cob Building Course
August 23 - 26
Dorset, UK

Everything you need to know to build your own cob house of cob garden studio or home office.

See www.cobcourses.com for more information.

3-Day Cordwood Workshop
August 30 – September 1
West Chazy, NY

Morning sessions include cordwood theory, slide presentations, explanatory tours, and discussion of the three styles of cordwood construction: built-up corners (stackwall), round houses, and cordwood as infilling within a post-and-beam framework. The kinds of wood and how long to dry them is covered, as well as various alternative mortar mixes. Installing doors and windows is detailed, as is cordwood masonry “special effects.” At Earthwood, students examine several different kinds of cordwood masonry buildings. Afternoons are reserved for practical, hands-on work sessions at Ravenwood, 17 miles away, where a tour of the beautiful Ravenwood home is included. The project is cordwood infilling within a timber frame. This workshop gives the student a strong introduction to this ancient building technique. Textbook: Essential Cordwood Building.

See http://cordwoodmasonry.com/events/  for more information  

1-Day Earthwood Techniques Workshop
September 2
West Chazy, NY

Low-cost foundations and earth-sheltering methods used at the Earthwood house are emphasized, accenting surface bonded wall construction and plank-and-beam roofing. The five elements that affect load calculations are discussed. Alternative foundations, drainage and waterproofing, insulation, structural considerations and the masonry stove are all covered. An explanatory tour of the Earthwood house is included, as well as a step-by-step slide presentation documenting the construction of Earthwood from floating slab foundation to earth roof. Textbook: Earth-Sheltered Houses. This is a very full day, consisting of mostly classroom instruction. Like all of our workshops, sessions are punctuated by Jaki’s excellent coffee and tea breaks featured home-baked goodies, and her hearty vegetarian lunches.

See http://cordwoodmasonry.com/events/  for more information 

Roundwood Timber Framing Course
Sept. 2 - 5
Hampshire, UK

wo practical, hands on courses in building with roundwood timber with traditional tools and techniques, working with local wood sourced from our site. Timber like this, used in the round, marries strength and beauty to create buildings that can either stand alone or sit comfortably alongside more traditional structures. Step by step, the courses will take you through the process of raising your very own roundwood timber structure and will include both theory and practice.  From selecting your timber and peeling the bark, to visiting a completed project and raising the frame, these two complimentary courses will inform and inspire you to create a beautiful natural building, designed to blend into its surroundings.

See www.sustainability-centre.org for more information.

Adobe, Cob, Wattle and Daub, Arches, & Clay Plasters
Sept. 6 - 12
Mendocino, CA

More fun with clay, straw, and sticks! Building on what we learned in the previous workshop, we will branch out into other earthen wall systems and begin the finishing process.

• Make adobe blocks from clay soil mixed with straw or other fibers

• Build different styles of earthen arches, with and without forms

• Make several types of wattle and daub, a sculptural, thin earthen wall made of sticks, clay and straw

• Learn the steps to turn a raw earthen or straw bale wall into a finished, durable wall by applying plasters made of clay and lime.

• Understand how to connect multiple natural wall systems together in a strong, efficient hybrid home

The extended practicum will include more wall building and much more experience with earthen plasters.

See www.abuelagardens.com for more information.

Complete Earthbag Tiny House Build
Sept. 7 - 14
Bottom Leaf Intentional Community
near Asheville, NC

During this workshop, we will build an entire house from the ground up. The build will last from five to eight days, depending on how fast it goes. Participants should leave with all of the skills needed to build their own home. Participants will get hands-on experience with earthbag, cob, bottlewall, earthplaster, and more. We will also discuss house design, site selection, roof and foundation types and much, much more!  

See morgancaraway.com to sign up.

Earthbag Dome Building
Sept 12 - 15
Rockaway Beach, Oregon

In just four days learn the basics of dome building with flexible form rammed earth. We will complete a small building together, and share the technical details of how to set one up yourself. Hands-on instruction, slides, and guided design work.

See www.earthenhand.com for more information.

Complete Cob Building Course
Sept. 16 - 19
Dorset, UK

Everything you need to know to build your own cob house of cob garden studio or home office.

See www.cobcourses.com for more information.

Paw Paw Fest
Sept. 21
Frederick, MD

4th Annual PawPaw Fest to be held on September 21st at Long Creek Homestead, Frederick, Maryland. Come join our celebration of all things pawpaw while exploring food forests, fruitful gardens, mushroom growing, our circular strawbale home, and much more.

Get your tickets while they last.. PawPaw Fest Tickets

or via our Festival Post Page: PawPaw Fest Post

or.. on Facebook For the Love of PawPaws Facebook Page

Essential Hempcrete Construction
Sept. 21, 2019
Peterborough, ON, Canada

Hempcrete (or hemp-lime) construction uses chopped hemp hurd (the woody core of the hemp plant) mixed with hydraulic lime to create an insulation material with excellent thermal, moisture-handling, fire-resistance, non-toxic and structural properties. Hempcrete is also a carbon sequestering material. In the Essential Hempcrete workshop, you will find out how hempcrete is made, see a slideshow of various Canadian and international hempcrete building projects, and gain an understanding of how, why and where hempcrete is an appropriate material choice. In the classroom, we will look at the costs, material sourcing and building science of using hempcrete on new building projects and renovations.

See endeavourcentre.org for more information.

Complete Cob Building Course
Sept. 27 - 30
Dorset, UK

Everything you need to know to build your own cob house of cob garden studio or home office.

See www.cobcourses.com for more information.

Natural Building East
Climate Action Collaborations
Sept. 28 - 29
Lower Ship Harbour, Nova Scotia

Natural Building EAST is a gathering to explore natural building and permaculture approaches for climate resilience and how we can collectively reduce our carbon footprint.

The event offers skill and knowledge-sharing opportunities for:

• Builders, designers and developers
• Materials suppliers and systems installers
• Researchers, students and home owners
• Anyone interested in learning  about natural building techniques, practices and materials

Workshops and presentations will address pressing issues like designing for climate change mitigation, sea level rise, species diversity and loss, access and affordability, with a focus on relevance of natural building through this time of flux in our natural environment.

See thedeaneryproject.com

Introduction To Renewable Energy Workshop
October 5, 2019
Peterborough, ON, Canada

This workshop is the perfect introduction to the world of renewable energy, designed to help you figure out the best path to finding yourself living a renewable energy lifestyle.

• Off grid and grid tied systems – Which is right for you?

• Photovoltaics (PV, or “solar electricity”) – How it works and what components go into a system?

• Wind energy – How it works and what components go into a system?

• Micro hydro – How it works and what components go into s system?

• Micro-FIT and Net Metering – How do utility companies deal with renewable systems?

• Doing an energy audit – How much power do you need and what size system is required?

• Living with renewable energy – Lifestyle, maintenance and monitoring

See endeavourcentre.org for more information.

Batch Rocket Thermal Mass Heaters
October 11 - 17, 2019
Mendocino, CA

• Learn the important points to clean combustion

• Why Batch Heaters? Differences and similarities between Batch Rocket 

Mass Heaters and classic, J-tube RMH

• Learn how thermal mass improves heating and how, with the bell system, 

thermal mass can be utilized flexibly and easily

• Build a Batch Box RMH and fire it!

Natural Building Course
October 14 - 27, 2019
Hamburg, Germany

We are trying to create an example of environmental and social utopia to show the world another way of living. Take the earth under your feet and turn it into the most stunning structures! Natural building is a creative, completely organic and long lasting form of building. It takes us back to the roots of connecting with our Earth, our community and other natural materials that we find in our local surroundings. With this technique we can create structures that are unlike anything you can find in modern architecture. We can build completely unique art forms that are functional and in harmony with ourselves and our environment, using curves, arches, domes and much more.

See www.mindfulness-project.org for more information.

Carpentry For Women Workshop
October 19 - 20, 2019
Peterborough, ON, Canada

The Carpentry for Women workshop creates a friendly, inviting space for women who would like to learn the basics of carpentry. In the comfort of a women-only space, experienced carpenters Jen Feigin and Deirdre McGahern will introduce you to the world of measuring, marking and layout, hand and power tools. Over two days, you will gain confidence in basic carpentry as you work on a take-home project. There will be plenty of time to practice with tools and to become familiar with terminology. You’ll learn about tool safety, how to choose and buy tools, selecting and purchasing materials for projects, making sketches for projects and choosing non-toxic, healthy finishes.

See endeavourcentre.org for more information.

Permaculture Design Course
November 3 - 17
Maricopa, CA

Immerse yourself in permaculture in action with this 14-day learning journey! Share in the joy of community learning together and changing the world. Take home the ability to design and apply natural principles to create stable and resilient systems that provide food, water, shelter and energy needs while regenerating ecology, community and economy. The Quail Springs Permaculture Design Course (PDC) includes the 72-hr Permaculture Certification through Permaculture Research Institute.

Permaculture is a conscious integrated design system based on ecology and sustainability principles to create resource efficient and productive human environments and reduce our footprint on the earth. Permaculture provides a framework for consciously designed landscapes that mimic the patterns and relationships found in nature that provide diversity, stability, and resilience. These systems yield an abundance of shelter, water, energy, and food for the provision of local needs.

See www.quailsprings.org for more information.

Design Your Own Sustainable Home Workshop
November 16 - 17, 2019
Peterborough, ON, Canada

The workshop is designed to be an un-biased look at all the options available to the prospective owner-builder, and to assist you with tools to help you assess and choose your way to the house of your dreams. You will leave this workshop ready to handle all the competing claims and information you will face by focusing on your personal goals and aspirations and creating a road map for how best to meet them. At the heart of the workshop is a Criteria Matrix that has been crafted to help you organize your priorities and to set goals for the project that ensure the outcomes you are after.

See endeavourcentre.org for more information.

See On-Going Workshops for more listings.