UMW introduces permaculture certificate for sustainable landscapes

Sarah Hertz Mahoney

Imagine a landscape where lush trees shade vegetable gardens, rainwater is captured to support crops, healthy soil is built through composting and every element works together to reduce waste while supporting the environment.

That’s the idea behind permaculture, a design approach that uses nature as a guide for creating productive, resilient landscapes, farms and communities.

This fall, Continuing and Professional Studies at the University of Mary Washington is bringing this approach to the Fredericksburg region through a new partnership with the Shenandoah Permaculture Institute. Together, the two organizations will offer a 72-hour Permaculture Design Certificate program that combines classroom instruction, hands-on learning, field experiences and collaborative design projects over four weekends in the fall, beginning Sept. 18.

“We’re excited to bring this micro-credentialing opportunity to our students while also opening it to faculty, staff and community members throughout the region,” said Associate Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences Laura Mentore. “Partnering with the Shenandoah Permaculture Institute allows us to give students opportunities to apply what they learn beyond the classroom.”

Throughout the course, offered only through UMW’s Continuing and Professional Studies department, participants will explore the ethics and principles that guide permaculture design while applying them in practice. From backyard gardeners and homesteaders to farmers, educators, sustainability professionals and landscape designers, students will learn practical tools to create more efficient and ecologically sustainable homes, farms and communities.

Course sessions will be held on UMW’s Stafford Campus as well as at the nonprofit Rappahannock Education Farm, where participants will experience sustainable growing practices directly. Additional field trips will visit working permaculture sites throughout Central Virginia, allowing students to see successful designs in action.

Course topics include regenerative agriculture, water conservation, soil management, food forests, rotational grazing, renewable energy systems and medicinal herb gardens, all reinforced through field experiences and a collaborative final design project.

The Permaculture Design Certificate course will be held during four multi-day sessions: Sept. 18-20, Oct. 3-4, Oct. 24-25 and Nov. 7-8, with classes meeting from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Attendance at all sessions is required to earn the certificate.