Gaia Ashram’s Deep Ecology Training of Trainers
Background
We are in a time that calls for deep reconnection – with the Earth, with each other, and our inner ecological selves. Deep Ecology is not just a set of practices; it is a worldview and a way of being.
“Training of the Ecological Self” is Gaia’s unique Deep Ecology Training of Trainers (ToT), designed for those who have previously participated in a Deep Ecology or the Work That Reconnects (WTR) program and wish to deepen their practice and become stewards of this transformative work in their own communities.
Our intention is to support a new generation of Asia-based guides ready to localize and root this work in their own cultures and landscapes.
This 7-day immersive training supports participants in cultivating their ecological self, developing practical facilitation skills, holding space with energetic awareness, and co-creating with land and story.
A range of tools and practices will be offered, including mindfulness, nature immersion, and workshop design, to support this ongoing path.
Participants are encouraged to relate to this not only as facilitators, but as practitioners, continuing their own self-practice, much like how meditation holds a steady return to presence in daily life.
Rooted in Gaia Ashram’s Asia-centered approach, the course fosters a growing regional community of Deep Ecology facilitators.
Learn More
About Deep Ecology
About The Work That Reconnects
Note: This is Gaia’s independent training, grounded in its unique facilitation philosophy. There is no official certification required to facilitate Deep Ecology or the Work That Reconnects.
Program dates
11 – 17 May, 2026 | Gaia Ashram, Thailand
7 – 13 December, 2026
Optional: Join the Deep Ecology Course (25–29 Aug) as a precursor if you have not previously participated in a Gaia or Deep Ecology course.
Register Here.
Special Offer – Package
Join the Deep Ecology course from 30 November – 4 December, 2026 + Training of the Ecological Self from 7 – 13 December, 2026 and get 10% off both courses.
who would benefit from this training?
This program is for you if:
- You’ve completed at least one Deep Ecology or WTR course
- You have basic facilitation experience and want to deepen your capacity with creativity, attunement, and integrity
- You are based in or deeply connected to Asia
- You want to localize Deep Ecology and WTR in your context
- You are a facilitator, guide, educator, artist, community weaver, or in therapeutic work. This programme is a deep exploration of self, and will empower you to support others to deepen their connection to the natural world.
While we prioritise participants based in Asia and those with foundational facilitation experience, we also welcome participants from other regions who feel called to this work.
Learning outcomes
What You’ll Gain:
- Develop and ground your personal practice (e.g. mindfulness, nature immersion), which is essential to stepping into the role of guide
- Deepen your inner connection to the ecological self
- Practice facilitating key elements of The Work That Reconnects (WTR) and Deep Ecology practices
- Develop skills in holding space for emotions and crafting ritual
- Learn to co-create with local land; localize for culture and community
- Join a growing community of facilitators dedicated to this work
Lead facilitator
Sunisa Jamwiset Deiters (Om) – Co-founder of Gaia Ashram, Thailand
Om Sunisa is an educator and facilitator with two decades of experience in ecovillage living, Deep Ecology, and regenerative education.
Inspired by the Ecovillage movement, Deep Ecology philosophy, and Permaculture, she co-founded Gaia Ashram with her partner in 2012.
Before starting Gaia Ashram, Om lived and worked as a facilitator for eight years at Wongsanit Ashram – a socially engaged spiritual community, and later on at Panya Permaculture Project.
She has helped to shape the Next Generation of the Global Ecovillage Network of Oceania & Asia (NextGENOA), where she continues to mentor young leaders.
Om has facilitated numerous courses both in Thailand and internationally, working with NGO workers, educators, young Buddhist activists, international students, and children.
She uses participatory teaching methods, and has been facilitating Deep Ecology workshops, based on The Work That Reconnects for over 15 years.
Om brings a deeply intuitive and grounded style of holding space, blending ritual, embodiment, and place-based wisdom. Her work centers on Deep Ecology, Ecovillage Design, Socially Engaged Spirituality, and regenerative education.
Topics and learning this training will cover
1. Foundational Skills
- Deep listening and presence
- Using open-ended questions to spark learning and group reflection
- Weaving individual voices into a shared field of collective wisdom
- Knowing when and how to integrate mini-lectures or storytelling
- How to open and close sessions meaningfully
- Engaging with emotions in group dynamics
2. Learning Environment
- Creating spaces that support deep learning
- How to set up, hold, and tend to a learning environment in subtle and intentional ways
- Embedding local culture and context into facilitation
- Understanding and responding to participants’ backgrounds and their relationship to place
- Designing and integrating rituals in culturally respectful ways
3. Energetic and Meta Skills
- Sensing and tending to group energy
- Sustaining personal energy while holding space
- Skills for navigating tension and conflict
- Holding space for deep emotions and grief, with compassion
- Cultivating intuition – a deeper knowing of what needs to happen and guided
- Leading from presence
Om will create practice spaces, and share from her own experience to illustrate how this inner work is embodied in practice. For this reason, it is highly recommended that participants attend a Deep Ecology course with Om before joining this facilitator training – direct experience with her facilitation will allow the teachings to resonate deeply.
sample program schedule
Note: If you want to arrive early or stay later, please inform us in advance or before the course ends.
course fee
25,000 Thai Baht (includes accommodation and meals)
We offer an early bird fee of 15% discount which is 21,250 THB for the first 3 sign-ups. Early bird discount ends 3 months before course date.
We also offer a 10% alumni discount, which is 22,500 THB for those who’ve taken previous Gaia courses (including Deep Ecology).
Partial Scholarships: For those unable to pay the full fee, especially individuals working in grassroots or NGOs, we offer limited partial scholarships.
- To apply for a scholarship, please write to gaiaschoolasia@gmail.com with a short note sharing your intentions for joining the course, reasons for applying for a scholarship, and how you intend to carry this work into the world. Each request will be reviewed individually.
Special Offer – Package
Join the Deep Ecology course from 30 November – 4 December, 2026 + Training of the Ecological Self from 7 – 13 December, 2026 and get 10% off both courses.
food & accommodation
Included in the fee is accommodation in our dormitory, 3 vegetarian/vegan meals per day, tea breaks, as well as yoga and meditation.
We also have private accommodation available that can be booked for an additional fee.
- Accommodation: Dormitory, hostel style. Mosquito nets, cushions, bedding, and blankets are provided.
- Single rooms, for one guest, 1,500 THB for course duration( 6 nights) an extra fee.
- Double room, 2 guest 2,100 THB for course duration (6nights)
- Family House, 4 guests 6,000 THB for course duration (6 nights).
registration process
If you would like to join the Deep Ecology Training of Trainers (ToT) at Gaia Ashram, please take the following steps to register:
Step 1: Contact us to check for availability. Send us an email: gaiaschoolasia@gmail.com
Step 2: Fill in the Deep Ecology Training of Trainers (ToT) registration form:
Step 3:
Make a deposit of 5,000 THB to secure your spot, and pay the remaining fee in cash on arrival, in Thai baht cash on arrival at Gaia Ashram. There are ATMs available locally.
IMPORTANT: We very strongly prefer Wise as a payment method. If it is not possible to use Wise, we will find another solution, but please email us to arrange (please don’t make a transfer using another method without arranging with us first).
After you have paid the deposit, please send us a screenshot of the proof of payment via email.
If you have completed all steps above, you are booked and we will send you an information package before the course. Looking forward to seeing you at Gaia!
*** Please note that this course will only happen when with a minimum number of participants. We will let you know at least three weeks prior to the course start date, or by 7 August 2025 whether the course will run. In case of cancellation from our side all the deposit payment will be fully refunded.
cancelation policy
- If Gaia Ashram cancels the program, you will receive a full refund. If you cancel at least 45 days before the course start date, you will receive a 80% refund.
- If you cancel at least 30 days before the course start date, you will receive a 50% refund.
- If you cancel at least 15 days before the course start date, you will receive a 30% refund.
- If you cancel less than 14 days before the course start date, no refund will be issued. However, you can postpone your participation in the program or choose to join another program. This will be valid within a one year period.
Contact us to check availability and to register:
Email : gaiaschoolasia@gmail.com
WhatsApp :(+66)805791006