Thursday, February 15
6 - 8pm
Bioregional Lecture Series: What is a Bioregion?
FREE! Please RSVP by calling 607-273-6260
A new lecture series on the third Thursday of each month will highlight different elements of our Finger Lakes Bioregion in order to paint a picture of the place we call home. Steve Gabriel of FLPCI will provide an overview of the bioregional concept and introduce the topics that will be presented throughout the year.
Sunday, February 18
10am - 2pm
Cayuga Coffeehouse: Celebrate Local Food in Winter!
Adults $9/$12 Children $5/$6
10:00 - 12:00 - Brunch with live music and a chance to sign up for Full Plate Farm Collective CSA shares!
11:00 am - Sugarbush tour and Introduction to Home Scale Maple Syrup Production with CNC Staff
11:00 am - Information Session about Full Plate Farm Collective
12:00 pm - Winter Botany walk with CNC Board Member Bill Chaisson
Cayuga Coffeehouse is back and better than ever! On the third Sunday of each month we will offer a
healthy brunch and a variety of activities for the whole family. We will serve local and organic eggs,
home fries, pancakes, and a special dish, too!
We hope to make this a monthly tradition - please join us!
Saturday, February 24
9am - 5pm
Teaching Permaculture Creatively
$45 members/$50 non-members (sign up for any four and pay $150)
The art of teaching creates a challenge: how do we appeal to the unique learning styles of individuals? How do we effectively promote hands on or action learning? This workshop will explore the theories of wholistic education and give students an opportunity to work on presentation skills.
Sunday, February 25
9am - 4pm
Cultural & Spiritual Applications of Permaculture
$45 members/$50 non-members (sign up for any four and pay $150)
When the word "permaculture" was coined in the 1970s, co-originator Bill Mollison encouraged the separation of the spiritual and metaphysical in order to preserve the universal appeal of the system to worldwide audiences. Yet spiritual and cultural issues are at the core of sustainability; in this class we will examine our personal beliefs and how we might bridge differences to create a cooperative whole.
Saturday, March 10
9am - 5pm
Urban and Village Design (NOTE: This class will be held in downtown Ithaca)
$45 members/$50 non-members (sign up for any four and pay $150)
The city is a challenging ecosystem where humans dominate the landscape and pollution and waste are never ending problems. We will use the backdrop of Ithaca to examine concepts of urban renewal, forestry, and neighborhood governance. Students will also participate in an active re-design project.
Sunday, March 11
9am - 4pm
Natural Paints; Color and Form
$45 members/$50 non-members (sign up for any four and pay $150)
Fun with non-toxic earthen paints and earthen plaster, learn the basics of making your own paints from natural materials. We will mix and apply coats of earthen plaster and clay paint, as well as lime-based color washes.
Thursday, March 15
6 - 8pm
Bioregional Lecture: Celebrating the heritage of Maple Syrup in the Finger Lakes
FREE! Please RSVP by calling 607-273-6260
Join Cornell Cooperative Extension's Jim Ochterski for a discussion on the history and context of maple sugaring in the Finger Lakes. Also joining will be CNC staff and local producers to discuss the challenges of production and its future in our area.
Saturday, March 17 - Sunday March 18
Cayuga Nature Center's 2007 Maple Fest!
see www.cayuganaturecenter.org for details
Come join us as we boil the sap, tell stories, listen to music, and sample from the years harvest! FLPCI will be on hand with information about upcoming events and will be demonstrating a low energy rocket stove in the sugar shack as well as offering sessions on home scale maple syrup production.
Saturday, March 31 - Sunday April 1
9am - 5pm
Introduction to Design
$90 members/$100 non-members
Much of the problems surrounding us can be attributed to one thing; bad design. Poor planning results from incomplete goals, lack of foresight, and skewed priorities. We will spend this weekend learning the permaculture design process that can be applied to homes, businesses, and landscapes on any size scale.
Wednesday, April 4
7 - 9 pm
What is Permaculture?
FREE! Pre-registeration required at Greenstar
As part of Greenstar Co-ops "Meet the Practitioner" series, FLPCI Program Coordinator Steve Gabriel will present an overview of the permaculture system and describe how permaculture is helping develop a long term plan for the Cayuga Nature Center land.
Saturday, April 7 - Monday April 9
9am - 5pm
Permaculture Design PRACTICUM
$90 members/$100 non-members
Students will be divided into groups and given a design problem from the CNC site and work on creating a design from start to finish. Great experience working in groups, solving challenging problems, and exploring the design process.
(NOTE: Intro to Design Prerequisite required: 3/31 - 4/1)
Sunday, April 15
10am - 2pm
Cayuga Coffeehouse:
Adults $9/$12 Children $5/$6
10:00 - 12:00 - Brunch with live music
10:00 - 2:00 - Fundraising Garage Sale in CNC Courtyard
11:00 am - What is Permaculture? - discussion in the Great Room
12:00 pm - All Peoples Trail Design Presentations with Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute students
1:00 pm - Exploring Land Use at CNC - Hike with program coordinator Steve Gabriel
Cayuga Coffeehouse is back and better than ever! On the third Sunday of each month we will offer a
healthy brunch and a variety of activities for the whole family. We will serve local and organic eggs,
home fries, pancakes, and a special dish, too! Live music and events for the whole family will follow.
We hope to make this a monthly tradition - please join us!
Thursday, April 19
6 - 8pm
Bioregional Lecture: Beyond an Inconvenient Truth
FREE! Please RSVP by calling 607-273-6260
The movie, "An Inconvenient Truth" with Al Gore woke up many Americans to Global Warming. Ian Shapiro, (President of Taitem Engineering in Ithaca, a firm involved in green building design and energy studies), has trained with Al Gore to give educational talks on this issue and will focus on what we can do here in Ithaca and Tompkins county to address global climate change.
Saturday, April 21
10am - 2pm
Build a Composting Toilet
$10 non-members/$8 members
Learn all about setting up an effective, sanitary, and smell free composting toilet while building one! We will meet at the CNC farm and discuss the benefits of humanure composting while constructing facilities for the farm.
Sunday, April 29
10 - 12pm
Turn your lawn into a Garden
$10 non-members/$8 members
Learn inexpensive (almost free) and effective ways to convert your lawn into garden space through sheet mulching - a permaculture technique using cardboard, compost, and straw. Participants will actively engage in helping CNC staff mulch our lawn for the coming summer.
Tuesday, May 1
10:00 am
May Day Groundbreaking Ceremony at the CNC Farm
FREE! Please RSVP by calling 607-273-6260
Join us as we celebrate new programming and projects aimed at revitalizing our 40 acre farm property! Representatives from CNC Staff, Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute, and Compos Mentis will be on hand to share their goals and answer questions. A 2007 map and plan outline will be presented along with the progressing 5 year development plan.
Friday, May 4
7 - 9 pm
Forest Walk
FREE! Please RSVP by calling 607-273-6260
Join Land Use Manager Steve Gabriel for a walk and discussion of land use strategies in the CNC forest lands.
Saturday, May 5
10am - 2:30pmBasketmaking on the land
Sliding fee: $30-$45
Sustainably harvest vines or shoots to create beautiful melon-style baskets. Master-craftsman, Darrell Birchenough, from Holley, NY will facilitate. Co-sponsored by The Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute and Earth Arts. The class will meet at CNC farm on Garrett Rd.
Friday, May 11 - Sunday May 13
Friday 6:30 - 9:00 pm
Saturday 9:00 - 4:00
Sunday 9:00 - 4:00
Permaculture Fundamentals
Sliding Scale $100 - 250
Spend a weekend learning the basic principles of permaculture design through presentation and hands-on design work. Walk away with a toolbox of ecological design principles after practice on sites at the Cayuga Nature Center.
Thursday, May 17
6 - 8pm
Bioregional Lecture: Geology of the Finger Lakes
FREE! Please RSVP by calling 607-273-6260
Friday, May 18
7 - 9 pm
Farm Tour
FREE! Please RSVP by calling 607-273-6260
Join Land Use Manager Steve Gabriel for a tour of the farm and a look at the upcoming restoration projects.
Sunday, May 20
10am - 2pm
Cayuga Coffeehouse
Adults $9/$12 Children $5/$6
10:00 - 12:00 - Brunch with live music
11:00 am - Mushroom Inoculation workshop (take a log home for $10)
11:00 am - Team Challenge Games on the lawn
12:00 - 2:00 pm - High Ropes Play Day
Cayuga Coffeehouse is back and better than ever! On the third Sunday of each month we will offer a
healthy brunch and a variety of activities for the whole family. We will serve local and organic eggs,
home fries, pancakes, and a special dish, too! Live music and events for the whole family will follow.
We hope to make this a monthly tradition - please join us!