Little Black Bear Teaching Lodge in co-operation with
The Algonquin Tea Co. presents
the 2008 Earth Wisdom Workshop Schedule

Phone: 613-625-1106 Email: workshop@vianet.ca

In this time of dramatic change many of us are feeling the need to be grounded, and connect with the Earth. To move forward and not be in fear; to be aware of the ecological short sightedness of 'modern' existence, and that we are passengers on this industrial juggernaut that's hurtling towards a cliff of economic downfall. And then with this horrible knowledge have the courage to act, to co-create our part in a new Earth-culture, based on the wisdom of the ancestors. We change the world by changing ourselves, so we all have to relearn how to take care of our daily, practical concerns in an ecologically/spiritually integral way so that we can come back into alignment with the Earth. To do this we need to look at how and where we live, what we do with our time, what we eat and drink, how we get healed.

The Little Black Bear teaching lodge facilitates a spectrum of traditional and eco-alternative Earth wisdom workshops. We offer five-day workshops as we have seen through experience that this amount of time allows for people to slow down, which in turn creates space for more synergies and a deeper healing experience with nature to occur. Three of the most amazing and rewarding aspects common to all the workshops are the location, the food and the company. We live in a 156 year old log cabin on 200 acres of mixed bush and wetlands. We have a small CSA and grow most of our own food, have chickens for eggs and get raw milk from a local cow-share. The meals are made from fresh organic heirloom species, and indigenous wild species, including treats like mushrooms, wild leeks, fiddleheads, trout lilies, and many more healing plants. Megan (with the help of participants and apprentices) creates incredibly tasty nutritious meals with what we harvest. 100% real food. Because the workshops are limited to 12 people, no one gets left behind; each group ends up forming what can only be described as a tribe with each person having their place in this circle of humanity. It's enough to give us a glimpse at our ancestral life, or at what life could be like when everyone cares for everyone, and everyone as they are has their special honored place.

SPRING :: May 11 to 16th

Primitive Living

Immerse yourself into the Earth culture, and connect with the spirit of Spring. Join us, for a week of teachings and full body experience of our ancestral way of life; foraging and processing wild spring plants for food and medicine; sprouting; seeding methods for starting to grow food in the greenhouse and garden; Tracking and nature awareness, bow drill fire starting; bowl burning; stone and fire cooking; making and living in, 'primitive' shelters. These so-called primitive skills are highly evolved and sustainable forms of Earth culture, which have come down to us through the millennia. When they become familiar again we feel a deep sense of being home, and free from the clutter and corruption of our present culture.

SUMMER :: June 22 to 27th

Sustainable Building

Get down and dirty with the Log-Earthship Building Bee, then cool off at a nearby pond or beach. While the focus of this workshop will be the hands-on building of a round cob and log 'kiva-like' Earthship', we will also have a local tour day where we visit an Earthship and a Strawbale home and meet the folks living the dream. During the week we will also learn about and explore other forms of sustainable living such as grey-water and compost toilet systems, passive solar, heat sinks and greenhouses, wild edible and medicinal plants, as well as different forms of gardening. We guarantee that good organic food, and the teachings we'll receive from each other and the Earth, will abound, making the week an unforgettable experience.

SUMMER :: July 20 to 25th

The Art of Agriculture and Wildculturing

We cover it all, from windowsill and backyard growing to greenhouse and field production. Experience hands-on learning, from the basics to the professional organic growers secrets; outdoor vegetable and herb growing; seasonal and year round greenhouse production; Creating magic compost; Community Shared Agriculture; No-till and French Intensive methods, Perma-culture, Native gardening, Forest Gardening, Polyculture and Shift-agriculture, Wildculturing.

SUMMER :: August 10 to 15th

Lucid Dreaming, Spiritual Vision and Healing Workshop

Come with us to a river of dreams and help pick dream tea by canoe. The peak of summertime affords us some leisure from physical work, giving us the time and space to focus on healing and strengthening our inner self. We'll work with basic mediation and yoga to open ourselves to deeper journeying. As we learn to slow down there are opportunities to move into other dimensions of collective and Earth consciousnesses. We will also set-up for and practice dreaming techniques; dream recall and intuitive 'right-brain' artistic expression of the subconscious. Begin to learn how to co-create 'miracles' of self healing and healing others, intuitively with the help of the plant kingdom, sound healing and ethereal touch. Learn how to safely journey through the Elemental gates of the Earth, Air, Water, and Fire, to the Dreamtime. And come back with teachings for a lifetime.

FALL :: September 14 to 19th

Fermentation, Food Culturing and Medicine Making with Sandor Katz

This is the time of bounty when we prepare for winter, harvesting and storing food to get us through the lean months. Learn about our honey bees; and outdoor bread-oven; Forage for roots, collect seeds and participate in food and medicine preservation; canning, fermenting and dehydrating. Make beer and wine, vinegar, kombucha, kimchi and sauerkraut, many other fermented products; Learn about drying, storing and processing of different herbs, and how to make salves and tinctures for your winter stock. We like to share the preserves and herb products we make, as well as our live cultures of keifer, and sourdough bread starter, so you'll leave richer then you came. Please bring mason jars, and tinted glass containers if you can.

One of our fermenting days will be spent with Sandor Katz, author of Wild Fermentation: The flavour, Nutrition and Craft of Live-Culture Foods and self proclaimed 'fermentation fetishist'. Sandor will share with us some of his extensive experimenting knowledge, as well as some basic fermentation tips. For more on Sandor see wildfermentation.com. This day will be open to people able come to Sandor's workshop only.

The cost of these workshops is affordable; we can accommodate all tastes and budgets. The food is fresh and grown on the farm, wild, organic or local, no processed food. You can tent, stay in a dorm, or in a nearby luxury B&B according to your budget and personal needs.

COSTS

Cost of the workshops are $300. This includes organic food and rustic accommodations (tent or dorm bed), For B&B info please contact us.

LOCATION

The workshops all take place in the Upper Ottawa Valley near Golden Lake, Killaloe and Whitney. We always start at the Algonquin Tea farm just north of Golden Lake, which is accessible by bus. The distance to drive is about 1.5 hrs from Ottawa and 4.5 hrs from Toronto or Montreal.

FOOD

We're vegetarian, but flexible and can accommodate vegans as well as most allergies. We encourage participation in meal preparation and clean up; as we have found cooking and eating together has been an important part of the experience for participants. We find a rich balance in the outdoor kitchen, through everyone's eclectic taste and experience, nutritional information and political views balanced by the simplicity of what's coming out of the ground.

CONTACT

For booking or other question please call us at
613-625-1106 or email workshop@vianet.ca