EN | PT | ES

Ecovillage Design Education

Ecovillage Design Education programmes, often referred to as ‘EDEs’, provide participants of all ages with the knowledge and practical skills to design a society which uses energy and materials with greater efficiency, distributes wealth fairly and strives to eliminate the concept of waste.

Our immersive Face-to-Face programmes are known to have transformed lives. Previous participants have become agents of positive culture change in their communities and regional economies, they’ve co-created social enterprises and cooperatives, started community projects and became trainers for sustainability themselves – to name only a few paths you can take afterwards. The course will equip you with skills and knowledge you will be able to put into action in any field or sector you are involved with.

Participants become change agents and sustainability designers, taking active roles in transitioning their existing communities, institutions and neighbourhoods, to more sustainable patterns of production and consumption, as well as leading more joyful, more meaningful and healthier lives.

What You Study?

Our Presence in the World

  • Programmes in 55 countries around the world
  • We have more than 24,000 students globally
  • More than 350 EDE programmes in the world
  • We have 110 host sites in the world

Since 2006, Gaia Education has successfully supported the delivery of more than 350 programmes in 54 countries over six continents, reaching over 22,000 students. Our EDEs have been offered in settings ranging from tribal and traditional communities to intentional ecovillages, from urban slums to universities and training centres.

The duration of these programmes are around 125 hours over a full month, or 20 immersion, although this may vary slightly depending on where and when they are taken. Please have a look at the Current Programmes page to find out more about the current EDE programmes taking place worldwide.

How to run an EDE?

Several of our EDE graduates have carried on organising EDE programmes in their local areas, and you are warmly encouraged to do so after completing your course.

The recommended time frame of an EDE is four weeks, however this is not fixed and varies with each individual programme.

The material can be condensed into smaller workshops, spread out over a longer period, or distributed in blocks at different times and locations.

EDE Programme Reports