Calendar

We are excited to welcome visitors to our Ecovillage each month at our Open Day, as well as at a range of Ecovillage events and workshops. We offer site tours as well as private tours by appointment.

Please watch this page or our Facebook page for updates and new event listings. For further information please contact us on  02 4328-1588 or info@nararaecovillage.com.

Mar
22
Fri
Deep Ecology with John Seed
Mar 22 @ 4:00 pm – Mar 24 @ 4:00 pm
Deep Ecology with John Seed @ Narara Ecovillage

The Rainforest Information Centre presents DEEP ECOLOGY with John Seed and friends

FROM JOHN SEED:

I have worked for worldwide rainforests since 1979. Although many of our efforts succeeded, for every forest saved 100 have disappeared. Clearly, you can’t save the planet one forest at a time. It’s one green Earth or a bowl of dust. Without a profound change of consciousness, we can kiss the forests goodbye, the ones we’ve “saved” alongside the rest.

Deep ecology is key to the change we need. To deep ecology, underlying all the symptoms of the environmental crisis lies a psychological or spiritual root – the illusion of separation from the rest of the natural world which stems from anthropocentrism or human-centeredness.

Conditioned since the Old Testament to “subdue and dominate” nature, the modern psyche is radically alienated from the air, water and soil which underpin life and this is reflected in the rapid shredding of all-natural systems in the name of economic development. Deep ecology reminds us that the world is not a pyramid with humans on top, but a web. We, humans, are but one strand in that web and as we destroy this web, we destroy the foundations for all complex life including our own.

While we maintain a self-image created in the matrix of anthropocentric culture, a shrunken and illusory sense of self that doesn’t include the air and water and soil, we will experience nature as “outside” our self and fail to recognise that nature “out there” and nature “in here” are one and the same.

Many people INTELLECTUALLY realise that we are inseparable from Nature and that the sense of separation that we feel is socially conditioned and illusory.

But as the late Arne Naess, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at Oslo University, the man who coined the term “Deep Ecology” wrote: “it is not enough to have ecological ideas, we have to have an ecological identity, ecological self“.

But how can we nourish our ecological identity? In answer to such questions,  Joanna Macy and I developed a series of experiential deep ecology rituals called the “Council of All Beings” and in 1986, with Arne Naess and Pat Flemming,  wrote a  book called Thinking Like A Mountain – Towards a Council of All Beings (which has been translated into 12 languages). Along with others, we have been facilitating these workshops around the world since then.

In this workshop we remember our rootedness in nature, recapitulate our evolutionary journey and experience the fact that every cell in our body is descended in an unbroken chain 4 billion years old, through fish that learned to walk the land, reptiles whose scales turned to fur and became mammals, evolving through to the present.

We further extend our sense of identity in the Council of All Beings itself where we find an ally in the natural world, make a mask to represent that ally, and allow the animals and plants and landscapes to speak through us. We are shocked at the very different view of the world that emerges from their dialogue. Creative suggestions for human actions emerge and we invoke the powers and knowledge of these other life-forms to empower us in our lives.

One of the rituals we will share is honouring our pain for the world: we grieve for all that is being torn from our world, the species lost, the landscapes destroyed. Only if we can allow ourselves to feel the pain of the Earth, can we be effective in Her healing. This is why the Vietnamese Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh, has said that in order to heal the Earth,  “the most important thing that we can do is to hear, inside ourselves,  the sounds of the Earth crying”.

This workshop enables us to find an end to the illusion of separation and experience our rootedness in the living Earth.

Bookings

Price:

  • Bring your own tent or campervan or air b&b or you can stay in your own home if you live nearby.
  • Tickets are sliding scale from $150-$600  ($150 for students or unemployed, $600 if you’ve got a great job or wealthy, or something in between) b&b $100/night extra
  • 25% of the proceeds will be donated to the Rainforest Information Centre.

Book at https://events.humanitix.com/deep-ecology-with-john-seed-and-friends-narara-ecovillage-march2024

The workshop is not suitable for young children though teenagers are welcome.

All meals will be provided and two-day workshop registrations will be accepted only. The workshop is designed as a two-day immersive retreat so we ask that you arrive on time by 9.30am on the Saturday and stay until 4pm Sunday.

Sorry no pets allowed.

 

Other Biographies

Tema Milstein has been intrigued by the deep ecology movement since she studied it as part of her PhD program in environmental communication, culture, and change. When she shifted her family from the United States to Australia in 2019 for the love of this country, she was happy to move closer to key thinkers like John Seed in deep ecology, and other leaders in related knowledge systems, including long-standing Indigenous knowledges in Australia, the ecofeminist movement, and permaculture. Tema is program convenor for UNSW’s Master of Environmental Management program and also teaches undergraduate environmental humanities. Her research and teaching focus on ways culture and communication shape ecological understandings, identities, and actions. Her most recent book is the Handbook of Ecocultural Identity.

 

Erika Aligno is a veteran of community legal centres advocating for social justice. She has recently expanded her energy towards environmental justice. Her current work in the environment sector and studies in Environmental Management at UNSW led her to Deep Ecology with John Seed. This inspired her to peel back layers of coping and conditioning she has built over the years participating in a culture that prioritises economics over nature. Through Deep Ecology, she is articulating and exploring the ecological grief she experiences – mourning the wounds inflicted on nature and animals. And, for her, Deep Ecology offers hope put into real action.

Seth Hinkley is in awe of the work of Deep Ecology and the embodied remembering of our belonging with all of life, that it enables. Experiencing Deep Ecology, in community, last year was like coming home to a true refuge for him. With a longing to engage fully with life, from the wisdom and love of the heart, Seth has undertaken study and practice in Buddhism, Non-Violent Communication and Positive Psychology. After having worked in the business world for 20+ years, he is studying a Masters of Gestalt Therapy & an Advanced Certificate in Ecotherapy seeking to align values, purpose & passion in contributing to the healing of people and planet. He is committed to speaking out and acting from the newfound groundedness in his place in the web of life, in service of the protection of life in all its forms. Working casually as an Adventure Guide he also loves getting out on adventures in the Blue Mountains with his 2 boys.

Mar
28
Thu
AUROVILLE An Introductory talk about this experimental City in India
Mar 28 @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

Within the state of Tamil Nadu in India, you will find Auroville… an experimental city founded in 1968 by Mirra Alfassa and designed by architect Roger Anger, and now home to about 3000 people – and a truly remarkable story.

 

 

 

 

This introductory talk about Auroville will be given by the delightful Radhika, who is going to be at NEV for 12-18 months to learn about us and to share her experience with us.

 

Mar
29
Fri
Miracle Choice Games and Facilitation
Mar 29 @ 1:00 pm – Mar 30 @ 3:00 pm

Playing this game is a shortcut that moves you towards new decisions and away from being stuck with negative thinking.  Miracle Choice is your private coach 24/7.

If you:
– K
now how to take care of yourself
– Do your inner work but still struggle to manifest what you really want in life
– Want to be in the driving seat financially and in terms of the impact you want to make

…the Miracle Choice Game can help you. For you to be congruent and whole, your success needs to reflect your inner growth. Experience playing the Miracle Choice Game in a group and find out for yourself how powerful it is and the difference it can make to those areas where you feel stuck.

The game can be used as a personal channel for wisdom, as a group game to create cohesion and also as a coaching tool.

If you’re interested in learning how to lead games, check out the Facilitator Training introduction which is being offered on Sunday.

DATE:

SATURDAY 30th MARCH

Session 1:  1pm-3pm

Session 2: 3.30pm-5.30pm

 

INVESTMENT

$40  (10% discount available to NEVNELN members – please contact us for details)

BOOK AT: https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1181492

Contact Tanya Mottl, tmottl2012@gmail.com for futther details

The Animal Communicator – Movie
Mar 29 @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

What if you could talk to animals and have them talk back to you? Anna Breytenbach has dedicated her life to what she calls interspecies communication. She sends detailed messages to animals through pictures and thoughts. She then receives messages of remarkable clarity back from the animals.  Watch a taste of the movie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wL–zc1KIxk. $10 donation suggested ($5 unwaged)

Animal Communicator

Mar
30
Sat
March Open Day
Mar 30 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
March Open Day @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

Are you interested in Narara Ecovillage or perhaps already considering living here?

The Open Day Talk & Tour shows what Narara Ecovillage is all about, and shows how we are putting our ideas around ecological, social and economic potential into action:
* shared food growing, natural retreats and Permaculture spaces
* shared community and workplaces
* examples of highly efficient low-carbon homes now and in the next stage

Talk & Tour tickets
* $15 standard per adult
* NELN members free
* Kids free

Booking

$15 per person – please book at https://march-2024-open-day.lilregie.com
Kids free!

Looking forward to welcoming you to Narara Ecovillage!

Contact

If you have any problems accessing the booking site, email info@nararaecovillage.com and precede the Subject title of your email with the words “Open Day”.

Apr
5
Fri
Interspecies Communication
Apr 5 @ 7:00 pm – Apr 7 @ 4:00 pm

FRIDAY: 7pm-9pm  |  SATURDAY: 9am-5pm  |  SUNDAY: 9am-4pm

Animal or Interspecies Communication is a direct two-way information exchange between human and animal, or human and plant.   When you learn Animal Communication – also known as Animal Whispering – you will understand exactly how your animals think and what they feel.

These two-way conversations let you fully understand your animals, their behaviour, health issues, likes and dislikes.  You can also find out why they are anxious, timid, boisterous and help them to adjust that behaviour.  You can find out all about their wishes and their purpose in life.  Animal communication can be used to improve training techniques, support them with health issues and help animals to settle into a new home quickly and easily.

This course is for all animal lovers, whether you have animals as companions or you work with them every day.  It can be used to great benefit by horse and dog trainers & groomers, animal therapists, rescue workers, veterinarians as well those who share their homes with animal friends.

Engaging with how to hear these subtle messages is a pathway to connection with the natural world and the wild ones who live alongside us, restoring a deep relationship with all of life.

OUTCOMES:

  • Help animals become more confident, calm and relaxed
  • Support animals to cope with changes in their lives and daily routines
  • Help rehabilitated animals to settle into a new home more quickly
  • Produce faster and more effective training results
  • Understand clearly what animals are communicating
  • Ask questions in ways that they can understand & understand their responses
  • Have a deeper relationship with all animals, both domesticated and wild

Further details about course content, outcomes, benefits and what’s included: www.understandinganimals.org

ALL COURSES INCLUDE:

  • Tea, coffee & light refreshments
  • COURSE MANUAL containing all meditations, activities and practices from the workshop
  • Certificate of Attendance
  • FREE first session with Understanding Animals’ online Practice Group (Zoom)
  • Membership of Understanding Animals’ private online practice group (Facebook)

WHAT TO BRING:

  • a notebook and pen
  • lunch (both days)
  • suitable weatherproof clothing
  • a sit mat or folding chair (for use outdoors)

SESSION TIMES:

FRIDAY: 7pm-9pm  |  SATURDAY: 9am-5pm  |  SUNDAY: 9am-4pm

INVESTMENT:

$320 Early bird (book before 21 March)  | $350 full price  |  $600 for two people booking together (save $50 each)
10% discount available for NEV/NELN members, please email us for the discount code.
Pay 50% deposit to reserve your place now.  Bookings close at midnight on Thursday 2nd April.

Children aged 10-16 accompanied by a parent are welcome.  Children 16 and above may attend,

Apr
10
Wed
Canadian Roots Troubadours Scott Cook & Pamela Mae
Apr 10 @ 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Canadian Roots Troubadours Scott Cook & Pamela Mae @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

After having seen Scott Cook several times – most recently at Port Fairy Folk Festival – we’re delighted to bring him to our ecovillage, with his partner Pamela on her first-ever visit to Australia.  Doors open at 6:30pm for a 7pm start, done and dusted by 9.  The coffee cart will be open for tea, coffee and cake; everything else is BYO. Space is limited so please book in advance.

Scott Cook and Pamela Mae – www.scottcook.net

Scott Cook sings sturdy, straight-talking songs that see the good in you.  Born in West Virginia and raised on the Canadian prairies, in 2007 he quit his job teaching kindergarten in Taiwan to move into a minivan and embark on the life of a full-time troubadour. Since then he’s toured almost incessantly across Canada, the US, Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere, averaging over 150 shows and a dozen summer festivals a year, all the while distilling his experiences into empathetic, keenly observant verse. His seventh and latest recording Tangle of Souls was recorded in Australia and comes packaged in a cloth-bound, 240-page hardcover book of road stories and ruminations. The album spent two weeks at #1 on Alberta’s province-wide community radio network CKUA, and earned Scott his third Canadian Folk Music Award nomination, for English Songwriter of the Year. Its second single “Say Can You See” was the second most-played song of 2020 on Folk Alliance International’s folk radio charts, and took top honours for the folk category in both the 2020 UK Songwriting Competition and the 2020 Great American Song Contest. Scott has already completed nine tours of Australia, including talked-about performances at Woodford, Port Fairy, Cobargo, Candelo, Cygnet, Healesville, Mullumbimby, Newstead, Kangaroo Valley, Dorrigo, Maldon, Illawarra, the National, and Yackandandah folk festivals. He’s been back on the road full-time since January of 2022, living in a campervan named Roadetta with his sweetheart Pamela Mae on upright bass and vocals, and this year he’s bringing her for her first visit to Australia.

“Scott Cook’s seventh ‘love letter’ to the world is all strings and beauty, a 12-song agnostic endorsement of love over fear…  It doesn’t condemn, it summons to one fire…  Of all his records this one simply feels the best. ✭✭✭✭✭” –The Edmonton Journal

“Damn, this is a gorgeous album. Scott Cook’s voice –– vocally and lyrically –– is as clear-eyed, optimistic, and straightforward as ever…  Tangle of Souls is the medicine we could all use right now.” –Adobe and Teardrops

“He sings his heart and soul, and in doing so lets light flood into your own… He has a good eye for imagery, a gentle human touch, a wry sense of humour, a whole lot of integrity, a warm, rugged voice and a bunch of memorable lines… Truly one of Woody Guthrie’s children.” –RnR Magazine 

Apr
28
Sun
April Open Day
Apr 28 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
April Open Day @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

Are you interested in Narara Ecovillage or perhaps already considering living here?

The Open Day Talk & Tour shows what Narara Ecovillage is all about, and shows how we are putting our ideas around ecological, social and economic potential into action:
* shared food growing, natural retreats and Permaculture spaces
* shared community and workplaces
* examples of highly efficient low-carbon homes now and in the next stage

Talk & Tour tickets
* $15 standard per adult
* NELN members free
* Kids free

Booking

$15 per person – please book at https://april-2024-open-day.lilregie.com
Kids free!

Looking forward to welcoming you to Narara Ecovillage!

Contact

If you have any problems accessing the booking site, email info@nararaecovillage.com and precede the Subject title of your email with the words “Open Day”.

May
25
Sat
May Open Day
May 25 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
May Open Day @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

Are you interested in Narara Ecovillage or perhaps already considering living here?

The Open Day Talk & Tour shows what Narara Ecovillage is all about, and shows how we are putting our ideas around ecological, social and economic potential into action:
* shared food growing, natural retreats and Permaculture spaces
* shared community and workplaces
* examples of highly efficient low-carbon homes now and in the next stage

Talk & Tour tickets
* $15 standard per adult
* NELN members free
* Kids free

Booking

$15 per person – please book at https://may-2024-open-day.lilregie.com
Kids free!

Looking forward to welcoming you to Narara Ecovillage!

Contact

If you have any problems accessing the booking site, email info@nararaecovillage.com and precede the Subject title of your email with the words “Open Day”.

Jun
30
Sun
June Open Day
Jun 30 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
June Open Day @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

Are you interested in Narara Ecovillage or perhaps already considering living here?

The Open Day Talk & Tour shows what Narara Ecovillage is all about, and shows how we are putting our ideas around ecological, social and economic potential into action:
* shared food growing, natural retreats and Permaculture spaces
* shared community and workplaces
* examples of highly efficient low-carbon homes now and in the next stage

Talk & Tour tickets
* $15 standard per adult
* NELN members free
* Kids free

Booking

$15 per person – please book at https://june-2024-open-day.lilregie.com
Kids free!

Looking forward to welcoming you to Narara Ecovillage!

Contact

If you have any problems accessing the booking site, email info@nararaecovillage.com and precede the Subject title of your email with the words “Open Day”.

Jul
27
Sat
July Open Day
Jul 27 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
July Open Day @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

Are you interested in Narara Ecovillage or perhaps already considering living here?

The Open Day Talk & Tour shows what Narara Ecovillage is all about, and shows how we are putting our ideas around ecological, social and economic potential into action:
* shared food growing, natural retreats and Permaculture spaces
* shared community and workplaces
* examples of highly efficient low-carbon homes now and in the next stage

Talk & Tour tickets
* $15 standard per adult
* NELN members free
* Kids free

Booking

$15 per person – please book at https://july-2024-open-day.lilregie.com
Kids free!

Looking forward to welcoming you to Narara Ecovillage!

Contact

If you have any problems accessing the booking site, email info@nararaecovillage.com and precede the Subject title of your email with the words “Open Day”.

Aug
31
Sat
August Open Day
Aug 31 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
August Open Day @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

Are you interested in Narara Ecovillage or perhaps already considering living here?

The Open Day Talk & Tour shows what Narara Ecovillage is all about, and shows how we are putting our ideas around ecological, social and economic potential into action:
* shared food growing, natural retreats and Permaculture spaces
* shared community and workplaces
* examples of highly efficient low-carbon homes now and in the next stage

Talk & Tour tickets
* $15 standard per adult
* NELN members free
* Kids free

Booking

$15 per person – please book at https://august-2024-open-day.lilregie.com
Kids free!

Looking forward to welcoming you to Narara Ecovillage!

Contact

If you have any problems accessing the booking site, email info@nararaecovillage.com and precede the Subject title of your email with the words “Open Day”.

Sep
29
Sun
September Open Day
Sep 29 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
September Open Day @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

Are you interested in Narara Ecovillage or perhaps already considering living here?

The Open Day Talk & Tour shows what Narara Ecovillage is all about, and shows how we are putting our ideas around ecological, social and economic potential into action:
* shared food growing, natural retreats and Permaculture spaces
* shared community and workplaces
* examples of highly efficient low-carbon homes now and in the next stage

Talk & Tour tickets
* $15 standard per adult
* NELN members free
* Kids free

Booking

$15 per person – please book at https://september-2024-open-day.lilregie.com
Kids free!

Looking forward to welcoming you to Narara Ecovillage!

Contact

If you have any problems accessing the booking site, email info@nararaecovillage.com and precede the Subject title of your email with the words “Open Day”.

Oct
26
Sat
October Open Day
Oct 26 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
October Open Day @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

Are you interested in Narara Ecovillage or perhaps already considering living here?

The Open Day Talk & Tour shows what Narara Ecovillage is all about, and shows how we are putting our ideas around ecological, social and economic potential into action:
* shared food growing, natural retreats and Permaculture spaces
* shared community and workplaces
* examples of highly efficient low-carbon homes now and in the next stage

Talk & Tour tickets
* $15 standard per adult
* NELN members free
* Kids free

Booking

$15 per person – please book at https://october-2024-open-day.lilregie.com
Kids free!

Looking forward to welcoming you to Narara Ecovillage!

Contact

If you have any problems accessing the booking site, email info@nararaecovillage.com and precede the Subject title of your email with the words “Open Day”.

Nov
30
Sat
November Open Day
Nov 30 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
November Open Day @ Narara Ecovillage Village Hall

Are you interested in Narara Ecovillage or perhaps already considering living here?

The Open Day Talk & Tour shows what Narara Ecovillage is all about, and shows how we are putting our ideas around ecological, social and economic potential into action:
* shared food growing, natural retreats and Permaculture spaces
* shared community and workplaces
* examples of highly efficient low-carbon homes now and in the next stage

Talk & Tour tickets
* $15 standard per adult
* NELN members free
* Kids free

Booking

$15 per person – please book at https://november-2024-open-day.lilregie.com
Kids free!

Looking forward to welcoming you to Narara Ecovillage!

Contact

If you have any problems accessing the booking site, email info@nararaecovillage.com and precede the Subject title of your email with the words “Open Day”.