February 3-16, 2013

4th Annual Eco-Village Design Gathering

You are invited to join us for the 4th Annual Eco-Village Design Gathering at InanItah. We will respond to current global challenges by designing and modeling opportunities for long-term sustainable living. The coursework will explore and weave together the four basic areas of sustainable community development as inspired by the Gaia Education Ecovillage Design Curriculum.

The Gaia Education Mandala has served as guiding design model for growing InanItah from a forested cattle pasture to a young, innovative and thriving eco-spirit community. Since the purchase of the land in 2008 we have designed, built and woven together numerous elements inspired by the Gaia Education 4 pillars of sustainable community design: ecological, social, worldview and economic.

You will have the opportunity to experience and learn from the solutions we are modeling for each of the pillars of integrated eco-village design:

Ecological: how to co-create an abundant reality in communion with the earth.

  • 9 hand sculpted natural buildings
  • 2 traditional Nicaraguan natural buildings
  • Gravity fed spring water system serving InanItah and 23 surrounding farms
  • Solar photovoltaic energy system
  • Solar food dehydration
  • Efficient wood burning stoves
  • Compost heated warm showers and solar heated hot tub!

Economic: how to create win-win scenarios in the exchange of goods and services.

  • Educational programming to create opportunities for right livelihood
  • Microloan and employment programs for local residents
  • A non-profit educational and social services organization
  • Meaningful livelihood for our members and co-creators

Social: how to communicate, work and play together.

  • Transformational and transparency circles
  • Regular structure of community meetings
  • Multiple decision making models
  • An international family of ecovillage enthusiasts
  • Food culture rooted in local food recipes

Worldview: how we perceive and respond to the world inside and inside ourselves.

  • A culture of meditation and ceremonies
  • Multiple self development and transformational curriculums and programs
  • Sacred geometry and sacred art
  • A tradition of celebrations

The focus of the 4th Annual Eco-Village Design Gathering will be on deepening and expanding the InanItah Giving Program. Using the social, ecological and economic tools that you will learn from the eco-village design curriculum, you will be supported to co-create a series of community outreach events, and the InanItah anniversary celebration in which we honor the contribution of our Ometepe neighbors.

In addition to learning about the Gaia Education Design model, you will have a chance to practice Spanish, give to the local Nicaraguan residents, work and play together in community, deepen in your self-awareness, engage in bio-regional outreach and create shared learning experiences in the art of natural building, swale design, and cooking with local foods.

You will have a chance to actively engage in the 4 pillars of the Gaia Education in the following ways:

Social

  • Study and apply community development skills
  • Learn communication and decision making tools such as consensus, sociocracy, and holocracy
  • Learn and share local food recipes
  • Step into leadership

Worldview

  • Explore shamanism and eco-psychology
  • Learn and plan for group ceremonies and celebrations
  • Practice tantra, yoga and meditation
  • Practice spiritually motivated activism
  • Celebrate and play

Economic

  • Vision cottage industries and microloan projects
  • Engage in barter, trade and gift economies
  • Learn and share about right livelihood
  • Learn about alternative economies, including the economy for the common good
  • Learn about non-profit development

Ecological

  • Practice and share the art of natural building
  • Experience appropriate water and energy systems demonstrations
  • Learn about Permaculture Design
  • Practice integrated ecovillage evaluation and planning

This is a participatory and experiential event. In addition to demonstrations, classroom time, discussions, media experiences, celebrations and rituals, we will take a practical hands-on approach to the curriculum, applying this course to help grow InanItah and all it’s relations.

Yoga, tantra, and dynamic meditations will be offered on weekdays. Everyone will also have a role in supporting the community through meal preparation, clean-up and general chores on the land. There will be also be time set aside for relaxation and exploring the beauty of Isla de Ometepe.

The workshop contribution is a sliding scale $550 - $750.
100% of all contributions over $550 go directly to the InanItah Giving Program.
Discounts available for contributing participants.
To register for the workshop or to propose lectures and presentations,
please email us at workshops(at)inanitah.com.