All levels | In person and online | Wakefield, Québec, Canada | 130h | July 18th – 30th, 2022
Starting at $1750 +tax
Course objectives
Discover & Learn on the land
Take advantage of our 14 years of teaching experience
Regenerate Degraded soil
Even the worst clays, sands can be regenerated.
Drought & Flood Prevention
Holistic solutions for water management.
Fight Climate Change
Discover Carbon Farming.
Create Wildlife Habitats
Watch as nature is reborn with your design touch.
Find solutions inspired by Nature
Use natures 4.9 Billion years of R & D
Edible Landscapes
Discover edible parks and alternative forestry
Natural Building
Techniques used in the oldest building on earth
Alternative Energy
Learn the basics options and alternative new discoveries
The Perks
Live the lessons and build memories
Immerse yourself in permaculture
Peruse the food forest, explore over 900m of swale.
Join in the daily tasks
Alpaca, chicken tractor, food forest, ancient tech & more
Build practical skills
Help with the food forest or the erosion management.
Swim with the fishes
Cool off in the pond filled with frogs, sunfish, birds and more
Tinker with lost tech
Explore the Hydraulic ram pump and trump aeration systems
Experience Life on the Alpaca farm
The routine, the simplicity, the beauty, the work
Grow your Community
Live and learn with a group of change-makers
Make new friendships
Connect with students and grow your network.
Is this for me?
Choose your PDC Package
Meals & Accommodations included. See below for full course details.
PDC Basic
$ 1750 .00
+ tax- 72-hour Internationally recognized PDC
- 28 Hours of additional Hands on content
- 30+ hours Online Pre PDC Prep Course
- Lifetime Access to Online PDC resources, practice exercises, videos, quizzes and tools
PDC PRO
$1900 .00
+ tax- 72-hour Internationally recognized PDC
- 28 Hours of additional Hands on content
- 30+ hours Online Pre PDC Prep course
- Lifetime Access to Online PDC resources, practice exercises, videos, quizzes and tools
- Online courses bundle
- Ecological gardening
- Mushroom cultivation
- Urban permaculture -
- 4 tickets to online Intro workshops of your choice for you or your friends
(live or recorded)
- Get 12 hours of updated PDC content every year with our Fair Share Program
PDC To The Moon
$2270 .00
+ tax- 72-hour Internationally recognized PDC
- 28 Hours of additional Hands on content
- 30+ hours Online Pre PDC Prep course
- Lifetime Access to Online PDC resources, practice exercises, videos, quizzes and tools
- Online courses bundle
- Ecological gardening
- Mushroom cultivation
- Urban permaculture -
- 4 tickets to online Intro workshops of your choice for you or your friends
(live or recorded)
- Get 12 hours of updated PDC content every year with our Fair Share Program
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4 hours of Video consultation (Recording Included)
- 20% off the first 5 hours of onsite* project consultation
* travel fees vary by location
Course Details
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Lifetime access to our 30h online training
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72 hours internationally recognized PDC + 28 hours of extra hands-on content.
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3 delicious daily meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) made from local spray free ingredients
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Camping accommodation for the entire time of the PDC
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Classes and workshops from our main teacher and guest teachers.
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Short homework assignments after each class to consolidate your learning.
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The student handbook to prepare for the course.
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Teaching material presented during class.
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A lifetime online access to various suggested readings, videos, podcasts and other resources for each chapter of the course.
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An online platform to access and submit all your homework, share resources and ask additional questions.
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An opportunity to meet and practice with actors and actresses of the permaculture network in Quebec
Our PDC is made to give students the opportunity to experience what it’s like to live on a real farm.
Our class location will alternate between the farm barn, the field and the forest and we’ll be sharing communal outdoor/indoor spaces during breakfast, lunch, dinners and rest time.
Students will be provided with a campsite but need to bring their own tent and camping equipment. Compost heated showers and toilets available on site.
The 30 hour online training that we ask students to complete prior to the start of the 2 weeks at the farm allows us to make sure students have a shared understanding of the basics of permaculture at the start of the in-person training. This allows us to spend more time in the field and to go deeper on some course topics during our 2 weeks together. Registered students will get access to the online training on April 17th. Here is a list of the topics covered in the online training:
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Understanding the key parameters to build an ecological garden
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Managing and conserving water
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Creating and maintaining healthy soil
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Creating diversity and resilience in the garden
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Creating and using maps for your property
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Understanding the key parameters to build an ecological garden
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Conducting Active Observation
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Functional Analysis
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Defining the Root Cause of a Problem
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Defining the Permaculture Zones
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Conducting a Sector Analysis
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Conducting the Designer's Priority
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Applying a SWOT analysis
The curriculum we follow at P3 is one that was developed by the late Bill Mollison in Australia in the 1970’s, and is today regarded as the standard in permaculture education, recognized and respected worldwide. During the 2 weeks intensive training we go over the following 6 sections:
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Part 1: Permaculture Fundamentals : The Ethics and Principles of Permaculture, Observation and Design Process, Identifying Patterns.
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Part 2: Understanding Ecosystems : Climates / Water Systems, Trees and their Energy Transactions, Soil Systems
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Part 3: Special Topics: Earthworks and Earth Resources, Aquaculture & Aquaponics
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Part 4: Specific Climates: Drylands / Cool Climates / Tropics
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Part 5: Global Strategies: Strategies for an Alternative Paradigm
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Part 6: Final Design Project
Each day we spend 5 hours exploring permaculture theory either in the field or in class and 2 hours doing some hands-on work related to the learnings of the day.
We have packed this PDC with 28 additional hours of hands-on workshops. Here are some of the topics we will cover:
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Compost (thermophilic, mesophilic, vermicompost and Johnson-Su Bioreactor)
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Herb spirals
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Lasagna Gardens
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Cold frames
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Water filtration
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Food Forest basics
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Pond maintenance
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Coppice forestry
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Erosion management
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And more
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You’ll learn “whole-systems thinking”: Instead of trying to solve problems by addressing individual components which leads to creating new problems down the road that we often refer to as externalities, you’ll be able to analyze how the parts and pieces connect together and how to interact with those relationships to improve the whole system. Systems thinking is key to find solutions to the complex environmental, economic and social challenges we face today.
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Specifically you will learn how to observe a problem or situation, identify its strengths weaknesses opportunities and threats, with this you will be able to design solutions. Examples of some solutions we learn are drought prevention, flood control water management passive solar design, alternative architecture, alternative social systems and so much more.
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You’ll acquire a toolbox to create beyond sustainable designs: Although we do go deep in many subjects covered in the PDC (see course content presented above), you won’t become an expert in any of them. The goal of the PDC is to introduce you to all the disciplines required for permaculture design and to show you all the relationships and synergies that exist between them. At the end of the PDC, you’ll have acquired the toolbox that you need to design beyond sustainable systems. You’ll have learned how and when to use each tool and you’ll be able to go deeper into each of them depending on your needs and interests.
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You’ll find a community of people that care: In this course you will meet people that share your concerns and want to be part of the change as much as you do. You’ll be inspired by them and get the chance to form new friendships and collaborative relationships. Based on feedback from our alumnis, we’re confident to say that it’s very likely that this experience will be life changing for you.
Many participants find the PDC life-changing, they develop new world views, solidify action plans and enhance their social network. Thinking as a permaculturist helps you to make appropriate social and ecological interventions in any field you dedicate yourself to; it may, in fact, completely change your relationship to the areas you have been exploring for years. Taking a PDC allows you to develop new thinking patterns that allow you to create designs that tend to use fewer resources, work more efficiently, and are easier to maintain.
Many P3 alum choose to start their own business as permaculture designers, consultants, and implementers. Permaculture opens doors to all kinds of paths, including social entrepreneurship, natural building, food forestry, passive-solar building design, natural agriculture, community organizing, research & development, and many more.
Here is a non-exhaustive list demonstrating how you can benefit from a PDC (Toby Hemenway, 2019):
Homeowners, gardeners, and farmers learn to increase the value and productivity of their property and to create home and land environments that better support their own needs as well as nature’s.
Real estate, construction, and development professionals are able to better address the public’s growing concern for the environment and to reduce resource use and impacts.
Educators learn to integrate permaculture design into their curriculum in ways that have been proven to raise student performance.
Planners and public officials find holistic solutions to land-use and resource issues, and will identify and solve bottlenecks and impediments to implementing their programs.
Energy, water, and waste-systems workers will learn holistic management strategies for integrating their projects into the larger community.
Very Early Bird | Save 15% by registering and paying in full 4 months or more in advance. | Only 5 spots at this price | Discount code : VERYEARLY15
Early Bird | Save 10% by registering 3 months in advance. | Only 5 spots at this price | Discount code : EARLY10
Friends with Benefits | $50.00 each when 2 register together | $100.00 each when 3 register together | $150.00 each when 4 register together | To get the friends with benefit discount, buy 2 or more PDC Deposits and we will automatically apply this discount to your final invoice.
Note that discounts cannot be combined, and the deposit of $250.00 + TX is required to reserve your place. Make sure to enter the code of your desired discount when you buy your PDC spot. If the code has expired it means all the very early bird and/or early bird spot have already been taken.
If you are unable to afford your full tuition you can apply to be accepted as a worktrader where you will be asked to arrive onsite 1-2 weeks early to help with setup of the site for the PDC. Your acceptance is conditional to having skills we need and these change for each course offered, also we will have a video or in person meeting to assess your ease of integration into the organisational team.
Upon acceptance your trade is valued at 15$ per hour up to a maximum reduction of 50% of your tuition. The discount will be calculated up to 2 days prior to the PDC start and the remainder will need to be paid before the first day of class.
To apply, please send us your CV and motivation letter. Please specify in your motivation letter the reasons why you are applying for a worktrade and the skills you could share with the P3 Team.
Skills needed for PDC 2022
- Physical labour
- Construction
- Farm labour or tasks
- Food Forest maintenance
- Pond maintenance
- Photography and video
- General Maintenance
Just like we did for our summer 2021 PDC, we’ll take all the health precautions required to ensure our students and staff safety. Here is a list of the measures that will be in place for this summer 2022 PDC:
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Everyone is asked to stay at a 2 m distance at all times (classroom, lunch time, etc)
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It is mandatory to wear a mask during group activities and when in the food serving area.
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Hand sanitizer is made available all day and everybody is asked to sanitize their hands before entering the classroom and the food serving area.
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Bathrooms will be washed and disinfected multiple times every day.
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Students presenting covid symptoms prior to the start of the in person training will be required to show negative covid test results before being allowed to join the group at L’Alpakiade.
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Full refunds will be issued to students who cannot join the in person training due to covid related issues (ie: travel restrictions, covid symptoms or positive test results).
Full refunds will also be issued to students that cannot attend the course due to covid-19 restrictions (ie: students that face travel restrictions, students that present covid symptoms and/or have tested positive for the virus). All other refund request will follow our regular refund policy: Students asking for a refund should do so at least one month prior to the start of the course, furthermore the $250 +tax registration fee is non-refundable
In the event that we must cancel the course due to governmental restrictions all students will have the option to be fully refunded OR to join our 2023 PDC. The price difference between the July 2022 PDC and the 2023 PDC will be refunded to students.
Reconciliation & Equity in Action
We are committed to doing more than acknowledging that our courses are held on the unceded unsurrendered territories of the Kanienkehaka, or Anishinabewaki.
We also acknowledge that we are living today in a society that is structured to privilege white patriarchy. As such we are taking many steps to adapt and grow. In every course we offer 4 spots at 50% off for those individuals who live with systemic barriers in their daily lives (more specifically Indigenous people and people of Colour). Regardless of your identity, if you are a person in need of additional financial support we can discuss options to support your learning.
Contact us to for more information
We also donate 1% of our profits to Indigenous led Land defender Organizations.
About Our Teachers

Graham Calder Founder & Chief Designer P3 Permaculture
Graham has more than 13 years experiencing teaching permaculture and ecological design. In 2009, he finished his BA in Environmental and Ecology Studies at Concordia University, (Montreal, Qc). Dissatisfied with the traditional environmentalist approach and its ability to meet the challenges of our time, he turned to permaculture. In the same year he obtained his Permaculture Design Certificate, (PDC) from Jesse Lemieux at Pacific Permaculture. Afterwards, he became an apprentice of one of the great names in the field, Geoff Lawton, at the Permaculture Institute of Australia, (PRI).
He founded P3 Permaculture in October of 2009 and has ever since been teaching and consulting with the goal of making it accessible to everyone. To date, Graham has certified over 375 students in permaculture design and has offered design services in more than 9 countries around the world; from urban gardens in Montreal, to the 7000 Hectares in the deserts of Gansu in China, and the tropical rain forests of Costa Rice and Cameroon.
He is dedicated to creating new courses and projects that will inspire and facilitate the transition to regenerative solutions for our society.

Liza Charbel Co Founder Jardin sans Frontiers
After 10 years in the corporate world in Dubai, Liza moved to Montreal where she pursued a Masters in Business Administration, (MBA). Soon after, driven by a new found passion for social innovation and a longing for personal growth, she co-founded the social enterprise Gardens without Borders in 2011 after completing her PDC with P3 Permaculture. Through Gardens without Borders, she has developed urban and rural community-food projects in a diversity of social contexts and climates; including locations in Montreal, Ecuador, Senegal and Lebanon.
She shares her experiences in social innovation and food sustainability through conferences and workshops related to permaculture. She also has training in geo-biology, and integrates art and spirituality into the projects she co-creates. As a mother of a 3 year old, she's an aspiring urban homesteader and is now exploring permaculture as a parenting and education tool.
Permaculture Design Certification
July 18th – 30th
All levels | In person & online | Wakefield, Québec, Canada | 130h
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