- About Your Instructors
Lindsay Dailey
Course Facilitator
Lindsay Dailey is an ecological designer and educator with over 15 years of experience working to reconnect people to land. A deep student of the wild, she is dedicated to restoring our reciprocal relationship with nature, and is a wildlands firefighter passionate about the use of fire as a tool of regenerative disturbance to heal our landscape.
She is the lead land steward and program manager at the Oak Granary and works as an ecological design consultant with organizations throughout Northern California. Recent clients range from schools and museums to retreat centers and land-based communities.Lindsay has also spent over a decade working as an educator with leading organizations, in her role as the Wildlands Program Director at the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center, Executive Director of the Solar Living Institute, and co-founder of suburban permaculture project Villa Sobrante. She has created curricula for schools, non-profits, and indigenous tribes in California, Mexico, and Australia. Lindsay was a co-founder of Solar Richmond, developing one of the first green job training programs for at-risk youth in the country. She also assisted in the authorship of Roots of Success, an environmental literacy and work readiness curriculum that is now utilized nation-wide in green workforce training programs.
Lindsay received her PDC in 2007 and has studied with permaculture leaders Brock Dolman, Geoff Lawton, Darren Doherty, and David Holmgren. She has also taught permaculture with leading organizations such as the Permaculture Research Institute, Merritt College, the North Bay Permaculture Convergence, The Esalen Institute, and Quail Springs Permaculture.
- Instructors
Currently Being Added... Check Back Here
Brock Dolman
Co-Founder; Program Director - Occidental Arts and Ecology Center
Brock Dolman co-directs the WATER Institute, Permaculture Design Program and Wildlands Program. He has taught Permaculture and consulted on regenerative project design and implementation internationally in Costa Rica, Ecuador, U.S. Virgin Islands, Spain, Brazil, China, Canada, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cuba and widely in the U.S. He has been the keynote presenter at numerous conferences and was featured in the award-winning films The 11th Hour by Leonardo DiCaprio, The Call of Life by Species Alliance, and Permaculture: A Quiet Revolution by Vanessa Shultz. In October of 2012, he gave a City 2.0 TEDx talk. Brock completed his BA in the Biology and Environmental Studies departments at the University of California Santa Cruz in 1992, graduating with honors. For over a decade, he has served as an appointed commissioner on the Sonoma County Fish & Wildlife Commission.
Patricia Franklin
Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians
Patricia Franklin is a member of the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians and a descendant of Coast Yuki, Nomlaki and Cahto Tribes. She served on her Tribal Council for sixteen years and for a portion of that time volunteered for their Cultural Department facilitating the Ye-Ma-Bax Traditional Dance Group. She now works as a consultant for her Tribe as a Cultural Wellness Advocate, Tribal Project Planner and Self Governance Consultant. Her background is in Indian Health Services and she is certified as a Community Health Representative. For the most part, she enjoys teaching cultural classes (basketry, acorn processing, and sewing) and holding educational demonstrations with her children. Art is important to her and she loves learning new art forms. Most recently, basketry has kept her attention and devotion as she hopes to help carry on the culture through her basket weaving like her late aunt, Bonnie Elliott, and late grandmother, Bessie Augustine.
Pandora Thomas
"My Employer is Earth"
Pandora Thomas is a passionate global citizen who works as a caregiver for her mother and globally as a teacher, writer, designer, and speaker with over 25 years of experience. Pandora's work emphasizes the benefits of applying ecological principles to social design. She is currently a designer, teacher, and facilitator at several permaculture and ecological design schools and programs. Thomas' achievements include being featured in the films The Future of Energy and Inhabit, presenting at Tedx Denver and SF, and being awarded internships and fellowships to the Center for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University, Green For All, and the Applied Research Center. Her writing includes a children’s book, various curricula and a manual entitled "Shades of Green" for individuals wanting to teach green building to youth. Pandora studied at Columbia and Tufts University and with several permaculture and ecological design programs.
Christina Bertea
Co-Founder; Program Director - Occidental Arts and Ecology Center
Christina studied social psychology and has worked to shift the culture toward more just and sustainable practices ever since. In 1974 she tested affirmative action and was the first woman apprentice admitted to a CA plumbing union. Later as a plumbing contractor, she plumbed many straw bale and rammed earth residences. In 1990 she designed and built a passive solar rammed-earth cottage in downtown Oakland demonstrating the feasibility of alternative materials for inner city infill.
In 2007 she joined the Greywater Guerrillas in creating a groundswell of support for greywater re-use and in 2009 helped craft a more reasonable state greywater code at stakeholder meetings in Sacramento. She is a guest instructor at OAEC, Merrit College, and other Permaculture courses and directly installs rainwater and greywater systems.
Denise Rushing
Renewable Energy Pioneer
Denise Rushing is a certified Permaculture designer and has been applying permaculture to garden, farm, ecological and community projects for almost two decades. An entrepreneur and pioneer in the energy industry, she has led and advised some of the world's most innovative energy technology companies, accelerating the market adoption of clean, efficient energy. She launched award-winning energy efficiency initiatives and renewable energy initiatives adopted by companies around the world. While serving two terms on the Lake County Board of Supervisors, Denise championed two of the largest public solar energy installations in the western United States. She is perhaps best known locally for her environmental advocacy and community revitalization. Denise is also a cofounder of New Paradigm College
Seth Wachtel
University of San Francisco Architecture and Art
Seth Wachtel is the Director and Associate Professor of Architecture and Community Design in the Department of Art and Architecture at the University of San Francisco, and Co-Directs the USF Garden Project. He completed his professional degree at UC Berkeley in 1987 and has worked in architecture and construction in India, Colombia, Haiti, Israel, Mexico, Nicaragua, Nepal, and Zambia as well as the San Francisco Bay Area. His focus is low-cost building and urban landscapes in underserved communities, and the development of innovative construction techniques and community building approaches that produce sustainable and culturally appropriate buildings for human environments. Seth is also a cofounder of New Paradigm College
Roy Arthur Blodgett
Naturalist, Writer
Roy Arthur Blodgett is a naturalist and writer currently settled in the Laguna de Santa Rosa. He is a graduate of three years at Weaving Earth Center for Relational Education, where he studied nature connection, social and environmental justice, permaculture, and traditional ecological knowledge, among other devotions. He is a certified wildlife tracker, novice woodcarver, writer of poetry and prose, and enamored apprentice to all that animates this world
LEGAL DISCLAIMER AND TERMS OF USE This website and associated publications contain the opinions, research and experience of its authors. It is offered with the intent to educate readers with helpful and informative information on the topics covered. We make no representation that results are typical and in fact may not be typical due to many factors such as characteristics as well as the abilities of the student. Any publications are offer with the understanding that the techniques and strategies covered in the publications and associated materials may not be suitable for everyone and are not guaranteed to produce results. New Paradigm College and its partners, may, from time to time, may generate some revenue through affiliate marketing and while the information contained in this website is for general information purposes only, and all products recommended have been used by the recommender personally, the promotion of specific products and services may pay us a percentage of each sale from individuals that have followed our links and recommendations. We will indicate this when products are offered. Whilst we work to keep the information up-to-date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the information, products, services, or related graphics contained in the website or publication for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk. In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of or in connection with the use of this information. Through this website there are links to other websites which are not under our control. We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them. You may direct questions, comments or reports through our contact form
PRIVACY POLICY This Privacy Policy governs your use of this web site and affiliated websites. By accessing the website, you are acknowledging and accepting this policy. These terms of use are subject to change by New Paradigm College, or Romero Institute (hereinafter “Organization”) We generally do not share personally identifiable information (such as name, address, email or phone) with other companies. We take reasonable steps to secure your personally identifiable information against unauthorized access or disclosure. We encrypt transmission of data on pages where you provide payment information. However, no security or encryption method can be guaranteed to protect information from hackers or human error. Information we collect may be stored or processed on computers located in any country where we do business. We do not allow advertising companies to collect data through our service for ad targeting. We use technologies like cookies (small files stored by your browser), web beacons, or unique device identifiers to anonymously identify your computer or device so we can deliver a better experience. Our systems also log information like your browser, operating system and IP address. We also may collect personally identifiable information that you provide to us, such as your name, address, phone number or email address. With your permission, we may also access other personal information on your device, such as your phone book, calendar or messages, in order to provide services to you. If authorized by you, we may also access profile and other information from services like Facebook. We may use this information to provide you with updates or special offers via email, direct messaging or social media. We do not share or sell this information. Our systems are not designed to associate personal information with your activities (such as pages you view or things you click on or search for). We do not knowingly contact or collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have inadvertently collected such information, please contact us so we can promptly obtain parental consent or remove the information. We do not use or collect your precise geographic location. You can sign into your account to see any personally identifiable information we have stored, such as your name, email, address or phone number. You can also contact us by email to request to see this information. Our systems are designed to retain log data for up to 90 days after it is collected. We remove personally identifiable information (such as your name, address, email or phone number) and other preferences associated with your account promptly after you delete your account. In order to serve you, we may share your personal and anonymous information with other companies, including vendors and contractors. Their use of information is limited to these purposes, and subject to agreements that require them to keep the information confidential. Our vendors provide assurance that they take reasonable steps to safeguard the data they hold on our behalf, although data security cannot be guaranteed. Analytics companies may access anonymous data (such as your IP address or device ID) to help us understand how our services are used. They use this data solely on our behalf. They do not share it except in aggregate form; no data is shared as to any individual user. If you have any questions or concerns about our privacy policies, please contact us via our contact form.