EVENT
Permaculture workshop borrows from nature’s designs
Nature offers us blueprints for designing productive social and ecological systems if we’re astute enough to pay attention. The Theological Commons at MTSO will offer an introduction to this approach in the workshop “Permaculture: What Nature’s Designs Teach Us,” 5-6:30 p.m. April 24 in the Alford Centrum on the campus of Methodist Theological School in Ohio, 3081 Columbus Pike in Delaware.
The event, including heavy appetizers featuring food grown on MTSO’s Seminary Hill Farm, is free and open to the public. No advance registration is required.
The workshop will be led by Kelsey Simkins, who is completing a Master of Arts in Practical Theology degree with a specialization in Ecology and Justice at MTSO. Simkins will begin doctoral studies in the Ohio State University School of Environment and Natural Resources in the fall. She earned her Permaculture Design Certificate in Denver and completed additional training with the support of an MTSO Student Enrichment Program grant at the Institute of Permaculture Education for Children in Portland, Oregon.
“Permaculture design is understanding the patterns and language of nature and using them in the ways we design the world around us,” Simkins said. “For example, in nature we find ecotones, which are the edges between two different ecosystems, such as a forest and a grassland. Ecotones are very productive and biologically diverse spaces. We can employ similar edges in social systems to create opportunities for diverse groups to come together.”
“I want people to walk out the door at the end of our time together understanding what permaculture ethics and principles are and how to incorporate those design tools in whatever they're doing,” she said.
Methodist Theological School in Ohio provides theological education and leadership in pursuit of a just and sustainable world. In addition to the Master of Divinity degree, the school offers master’s degrees in counseling, theological studies and practical theology, along with a Doctor of Ministry degree.
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CONTACT:
Danny Russell, communications director
drussell@mtso.edu, 740-362-3322