Learn, Connect, and Grow:
A Hands-On Permaculture Workshop – May 2-4

Education: Learn permaculture principles, soil building, water harvesting, food forests, and social systems design.
Applied Learning: Gain hands-on experience by contributing to a real-world permaculture site plan.
Building Community: Connect with like-minded individuals in a collaborative and supportive environment.
Local Gourmet Food: Enjoy 5 farm-to-table meals made with local, organic ingredients.
Hydrotherapy: Rejuvenate in our wood-fired hot tub, freshen up in the cold plunge, and decompress in the sauna.

This Workshop Is for You If…

You want to grow more food with less effort in a backyard, community garden, or farm.
You are a homesteader, gardener, or aspiring land steward seeking a more sustainable system.
You’re interested in water harvesting, soil health, and regenerative techniques.
You want to integrate animals into a productive, land-restoring system.
You’re curious about passive solar design and natural building for energy efficiency.
You want to apply permaculture principles in urban, suburban, or rural spaces.
You are an educator, environmentalist, or community organizer seeking practical knowledge.
You want to connect with a like-minded community focused on sustainable living.
You are looking to gain hands-on skills, even if you don’t yet have land.

This workshop provides real-world experience and practical tools for applying permaculture anywhere.

About the Course

WE NEED YOUR HELP!
This unique 3-day practicum is your opportunity to connect with the land, your community, and the principles of regenerative design. Together, we’ll shape a site plan for Orion Farmstead, our immersive farm stay project, drawing inspiration from Montana’s natural beauty and ecosystems.

What You'll Learn

Permaculture Principles
Social Systems Design
Site Goals & Design Methods and Process
Creating Food Forests
Soil-Building Strategies
Capturing Water and Fire Mitigation
Collaborative, team-based creation of a master site plan for Orion Farmstead with hands-on help from Kareen Erbe

Why Join Us?

Montana is at the forefront of the regenerative living movement, and this practicum is your chance to:

Gain skills to apply on your own land or community projects
Contribute to a meaningful local initiative
Network with like-minded Montanans passionate about regeneration and resilience

About Kareen Erbe

Kareen Erbe is a certified permaculture designer and has been teaching permaculture and gardening workshops through her business, Broken Ground, for over a decade. She and her husband live on a suburban cold climate permaculture homestead in Bozeman, Montana. She has a BSc in Environmental Science and completed an advanced permaculture program taught by Geoff Lawton. Learn more about Kareen at brokengroundpermaculture.com or her youtube channel at youtube.com/c/BrokenGround.

"My experience at the permaculture workshop was transcendent. It gave me a full perspective of how there is no separation regarding our resources and communities. All of it is part of the same ecosystem and it requires balance, knowledge and collective collaboration."

Meg Koenig

Workshop Participant

Why Orion Farmstead?

Situated in Montana’s breathtaking Blackfoot River Valley, Orion Farmstead aims to become a beacon of regenerative hope. By joining this practicum, you’ll be part of shaping an immersive farm stay rooted in local ecology and designed for community connection and education.

Workshop Details

Dates: May 2-4, 2025

Time: 4PM Friday – Approximately noon on Sunday

Location: Orion Farmstead, 40740 HWY 200, Ovando, MT 59854

Cost: In an effort to improve accessibility, the cost to participate will be on the honesty system and a sliding scale. The range is $300-$550. Additionally there will be up to two work-trade scholarships available. More details below.

The Food: Homemade dinners, lunch, and breakfast from locally sourced and organic ingredients (2 dinners, 1 lunch, 2 breakfasts are included with the workshop). Folks with severe allergies should be prepared to provide their own food. There will be vegetarian and non-vegetarian options at each meal.

Included:

Materials and an immersive design experience
Gourmet meals featuring local ingredients
Access to our sauna and cold plunge
Fishing on Monture Creek (on the property)
Spending time fireside with new friends

Capacity: Limited to 20 participants to ensure a collaborative and personalized experience.

Accommodations: A total of ~~three~~ one on-site rentable options available on a first come, first served, or you can BYOT (Bring Your Own Tent) which is obviously free.

Click here for information about our onsite accommodation options.

Additionally, the Ovando Inn has 7 total rooms available and is less than 5 minutes driving from our farm.

Weather: Be prepared for inclement weather.

"The permaculture design practicum with Kareen jump started our design process and helped us identify our priorities, inspired us to dream bigger, and connected us with other like minded people. With multiple creative minds at work with our land as their template, the potential of our property was revealed on a whole new level. In many ways, it felt like a blessing or invocation connecting us to the land, its animals, and our basic potential as human beings. HOME was redefined as ECOSYSTEM. FAMILY was expanded to include our animals, and the many people helping to make our dreams a reality."

Molly Armour Carter

Landowner

Don’t miss this opportunity to deepen your connection to Montana’s land and community. Spaces are limited—reserve your spot today!

Cost Structure: Making Regenerative Design Accessible

At Orion Farmstead, we believe that everyone should have the opportunity to engage with permaculture and regenerative design. To improve accessibility, we’ve designed a cost structure based on honesty and a sliding scale.

Sliding Scale: $300–$550

We encourage participants to contribute within this range based on their financial ability. This approach allows those with greater resources to support the program while making it more accessible for others.

Why a Sliding Scale?

A sliding scale helps create a more inclusive environment where participants from diverse financial backgrounds can join and contribute. By choosing an amount that feels right for your situation, you help sustain this project and make future events possible.

Work-Trade Scholarships

We are offering up to two work-trade scholarships for individuals who may not be able to afford the cost but are eager to participate.

Scholarship recipients will contribute 20 hours of their time toward assisting us implement the plan. The 20 hours can be earned over the course of 3 months max. We will work with you to create a plan that works for us and for you.
To apply, please click here to complete an interest form.

How to Choose Your Contribution?

When registering, simply select the amount that feels right for you within the $300–$550 range. Your honesty and generosity directly support our efforts to foster regenerative practices and create an inspiring community at Orion Farmstead.

If you have questions about the cost structure or scholarships, please don’t hesitate to contact us via phone or email.

"The permaculture workshop was a life-changing experience! Kareen is a brilliant, passionate instructor who brings permaculture alive through engaging activities that connect the participants to each other, compelling and valuable information, and hands-on applications that all combine to instill in her students a drive to participate in the permaculture movement, a movement to build beneficial relationships and live in better harmony with this amazing planet that sustains us! I highly recommend this workshop–very affordable and worth every penny!"

Jen Justis