Deep Ecology, Nature Connection & Wilderness Retreat
20th – 27th January 2019
20th – 24th January: Learning at Gaia Ashram
25th – 27th January: Wilderness Retreat at a wild forest
By connecting deeply with nature, we find the nurturing love that has been missing from our life. A profound courage will raise from that deep rooted love to honestly face the pains in our hearts and in the world. When we are solidly grounded in Mother Earth, our calling, purpose, and inner strength will gradually emerge from within.
This course on Deep Ecology aims to give us the tools & knowledge and experiential learning that will deepen our connection with our beautiful Mother Earth & all its beings. We will spend 5 days contemplative learning at Gaia Ashram and 2 days wilderness retreat at a wild forest. It is our wish to see that this course will benefit all beings one way or another. We will learn together what Deep Ecology is as a philosophy, as an approach to deepen our connection with nature, and as a way of living.
The program is designed to have balance of learning through 4 different channels of our being:
Head: Theoretical learning, critical thinking, debate, discussion, deep reflection & deep questioning. The learning through the head help us to understand deeply of what is happening around us and in the world. Deep questioning on our relationship with the natural world and the underlying values behind it.
Heart: Listening to what we are feeling when we engage ourselves in nature and her stories. Allowing the heart to feel love, joy, compassion, sadness or fear… We let ourselves to feel the pain of the world & Mother Earth. The activities of The Work That Reconnect of Joanna Macy and other practices will be used to help our heart to learn deeply. We need the learning through our heart to bring about transformation at a deep level.
Hands: Mindfully working with nature in the garden. When we are mindful, we love, respect and connect as we are physically engaged. Practical work help us to ground our believes, philosophy and vision. It empowers us and assures us that the new reality we wish for is possible. It makes what’s in our head and heart become real and tangible.
Spirit: Spirituality, meaning & purpose. Learning at this level is about being conscious of our values and purpose, seeing ourselves as part of a greater universe and realizing our connection, relationship and responsibility in that picture. a learning at this level helps us to stay connected with our core and bring meaning to life.
The course will run through the frame work of the Works That Reconnect which is a deep experiential learning process initiated by Joanna Macy and her colleges. The learning in four phases are Gratitude, Honoring our Pain for the World, Seeing with New Eyes and Setting Forth.
Please check more info about the Work That Reconnect here : https://workthatreconnects.org/
Facilitator Team
Sunisa Jamwiset Deiters: Co-Founder of NexGENOA network, Co-Founder of Gaia Ashram, long time involvement in the Global Ecovillage Network of Oceania & Asia(GENOA) as part of the team. Ecovillage Design Education trainer and applying the knowledge in creating the Gaia Ashram project.
Winston Lau: Freelance artist, Creative Director of W Studio, Facilitator for inspirational courses such as Healing with art, Creating with Nature, Journey into the Heart Abstract Art, Connect with Inner Child, body awareness movement… Winston uses his art as a platform to explore the inner world as well as interact with other dimensions.
Illustrated by Dori Midnight.
General Information:
Application process
Email us a motivation letter why you want to attend the course, then sign up and pay your registration fee through Eventbrite link. We will send you Registration form to fill in your personal information along with information package for your preparation to participate in the course. Then you are booked!
What are the fee?
We have made three sliding scale fee to be able to give more chance for youth and people with low income to participate in the program. We wish that people with more income are willing to pay the recommended fee or the gifting fee which are the amount that will enable us to continue doing this work and give more space to youth with low income.
320 Euro – Dormitory
360 Euro – Shared room
350 Euro – Single room
Scholarship for Asian youth from 18-30 years: 270 Euro
Cancelation Policy :
This course requires a minimum of 10 participants. We ask people to book and pay the deposit of 100 Euro before 6th January 2019. As soon as the minimum number of 10 participants is reached, we will confirm that the course will take place. In case there are not enough participants signing up, we will announce the cancellation of the program by 10th January latest. If Gaia Ashram has to cancel the program, the paid deposit of 100 Euro will be fully refunded.
In case a participant cancels his or her participation in the program, the deposit of 100 Euro can not be refunded.
Facilities: Gaia Ashram provides basic facilities and the basic needs of participants will be met.
Accommodation: Dormitory, shared rooms and single rooms. Mosquito nets, cushions, bedding and blankets are provided.
Common Space for sessions: Indoor session will be held at the first floor of Gaia Sala & the Mini-Sala and practical session will be happening on the land, in nature.
Toilet and Shower: compost toilets and showers for men and women.
Internet: Internet Shop in the next village is usually available everyday. We have a few bicycles available. We will provide trip to internet on Sundays.
Food: Healthy local vegetarian & vegan food will be served by local cooks. Participants will team up to cook breakfast in turns.
Gaia Ashram’s policy on drugs & alcohol
We allow no alcohol or drugs on the Gaia Ashram property. We ask people to smoke at the smoking corner only. This will help to provide healthy environment for learning and living together for one month. We encourage people to take this one month as an opportunity to have a break from their smoking or drinking.
Any further information you need about this course, please contact us at gaiaschoolasia@gmail.com
Most of the rest of the profit from the course will be spent on water harvesting and irrigation at the Gaia Ashram (building water tanks, installing gutters, buying pumps and install solar energy system for the pumps etc.)
For more information on Deep Ecology you can look at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_ecologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_ecology
https://www.schumachercollege.org.uk/learning-resources/what-is-deep-ecology