Canal de Navarres is a mountainous area situated in the Valencia province, one hour away from Valencia city. The Kausay Community was founded in April 2018 in the rural valley of Sayton, in the parish of Enguera. The 3.8 ha plot hosts orchards of mostly olive and carob trees, as well as a vast extension of pine forest situated higher up on  the mountain where nature rules.
The land has a degree of inclination, where terraces provide the space needed for structures, rainwater retention, the growing of edibles by different means, and for creating future plans.

The mountain is relatively untouched and can only be reached from Kausay. This magnificent piece of land provides protection and shelter for wildlife including many bird species, as well as a wealth of native bushes, herbaceous plants, scrub, and fungi. The vestiges of old dry stone terraces built by previous inhabitants show how these farmers were able to create flat spaces from the steep mountain slopes for the planting of fruit trees and crops. These terraces are for the most part intact many decades after construction, and are covered with beautiful flowers, with great views over the wider valley.

Since the Kausay Community was founded in 2018, the site has been developed using Permaculture principles, of which there are many examples that will be explained during the course. For instance, several kitchen gardens on the land provide much of the vegetables for its inhabitants, and the course will provide information on how to create and maintain a sustainable veggie patch, including the use of different composting systems,  as well as learning about how to forage to obtain supplementary foods. Recently a small aquaponics system was also introduced as another way of growing food close to the kitchen.

Kausay is in the process of planting more ornamental and fruit trees for both humans and wildlife. These trees will also provide shade in the summer-time as temperatures can reach around 40 C (104 F) in July and August.

May and June are an excellent months for attending a course in Kausay as the days are long, lovely and warm

Harvesting seeds and sowing flowers are ongoing processes, and there are many medicinal herbs on site used for treating ailments, that we can learn about. Olive oil is one of the products that is provided by the established 200 olive trees. 

As stewards of the site we aim to enrich the development of nature in such a way that any interventions we make really add to the health of the surrounding ecosystem. Thus, we take into account the wildlife and native plant species, as well as the other human inhabitants of the valley. Kausay invests in getting to know our neighbors and sharing with them ideas and practices. 

Learning by observing and experimenting with new ways of providing food and shelter for the place where we live is something we are passionate about.

On the land are around 17 terraces, 5 yurts, and a small house that provide spaces for hosting community members and guests, or are used as practice rooms for yoga, meditation or  courses.

Electric power is provided by solar panels, while (untreated) water is pumped from several boreholes in the Enguera valley.

The host Jeroen Verkaik

Jeroen grew up in the Western Netherlands walking the same path as his father and older brother – very close to nature. Jeroen has been involved in many social projects, and has worked for various institutes, local government, and neighborhood associations. 

Bringing people together and sharing the passion of co-creating  and using possibilities and resources that can be found in our environment is something he really enjoys.

In 2018 he co-founded the Kausay Community, and since then has shared the space with over 80 volunteers who have each brought their own energy and ideas, and a willingness to contribute to the Kausay vision. In december 2021 Jeroen obtained the “green light” for the further development of Kausay. His ideas are based on the huge inspiration and experience gained from many years of traveling, and the almost four years at Kausay.  Making people feel at home is something that is deeply rooted in the way he welcomes people into his life, and connecting with people from all levels of society has given him the inspiration to engage with this project. Jeroen is father to a daughter (12) and a permanent member of Kausay. He aims to live in the present moment as much as possible and transforms his ideas into the concrete realization of a more sustainable way of living together in harmony with all beings.

The Facilitators

Frances Osborn

Frances is an ecologist with a degree in Environmental Sciences from Southampton University, UK, and a PhD in Insect Ecology from the Simón Bolívar University, Venezuela. In 2014, after 10 years working as a research scientist at the Eastern University, Venezuela, she returned to Europe where she did her first PDC in Brighton, UK. She has been studying and practicing permaculture ever since, and graduated with a Diploma in Applied Permaculture in March 2021. She has been teaching PDCs since 2019 at different venues, including Proyecto Rucula in Murcia and the Suryalila Yoga Retreat in Cadiz.  Frances has extensive experience in garden and agricultural systems at different scales, gained from her many volunteering placements, including two years at the first Ecosystem Restoration Camp in the dry highlands to the northeast of the Murcia region in southern Spain. She is particularly interested in soil ecology and restoration. Frances is currently secretary for Urban Street Forest, an association based in Holland and Spain that seeks to reforest degraded drylands, and is an active member of the Permaculture Network in south-eastern Spain. Frances has made volunteering her main lifestyle choice, a path which has led her to minimize her costs rather than maximize her income, and gives her the freedom to take up opportunities as they appear. Travel plays an important role in her life and the bicycle is her preferred mode of transport, as this enables her to slow down, appreciate the scenery, and enjoy the journey.  

Carles García de Valcárcel

Carles is a Technical Agricultural Engineer with professional experience in civil engineering works, gardening, landscape design, organic agriculture and permaculture.

Although he was born in an urban environment, Carles spent much of his childhood in the countryside. In 2007 started his own smallholding project, inspired by the idea of creating a woodland in a hectare of barren field. Some months later he came across the REPESEI (Southeastern Spanish Permaculture Network) that provided him with the tools he needed to learn from, experiment with, and develop the project.
In 2013 he moved permanently to the smallholding and so started a more active phase, including hands-on work, further training and teaching. During this time he was given the opportunity to share experiences with Jairo Restrepo and Nacho Simón on their way round Spain giving courses on regenerative agriculture techniques.|
In 2014, Carles completed a PDC on his smallholding during which different designs were proposed, and which have served as a base from which to further develop the project. Currently, Carles combines the management of his smallholding with workshops, courses and consultancy work for other farmers or companies. He participates actively in several associations and groups related to Permaculture, participative certification, and the local economy. 

Adriana Garcia Aparicio

Adriana is a biologist and a botanist, holds the certificate on Permaculture Design and Ecovillage Design from Gaia Education, she has been trained on classic sociocracy and sociocracy 3.0 as well.
She was born in a big city in the middle of Iberia and escaped to the countryside. She has lived in different eco-projects and ecovillages all around Europe, learning and teaching about self sufficiency and sustainability. It has been a journey of implementing and exploration of many different tools from the richness of Permaculture. The vision of a society with more evenly-distributed power, collaborative, inclusive and nature connected, brought her to this learning path of useful skills to be shared with people.

She facilitates PDCs with  Circle Permaculture in different venues, with Wendy Howard at Quinta do Vale and with the Ruculero team in Murcia. Currently she is studying group facilitation with IIFACe and completing her portfolio for her Permaculture Design Diploma. She collaborates with the organization Sunseed Desert Technology.

Fascinated by the wild world of plants, as bio-indicators, medicines, foods and teachers, she is also a great partner for acroyoga and dance … everywhere!

Dates

May 21 till June 4 2023

A pick up will be arranged on Saturday May 20th at the train station in the city Xativa at 4:00pm, if coming by car you can arrive between 4:00pm and 6:00pm.
Classes will start on Sunday May 21st, and the course will end with the design presentations and celebration on Sunday June 4th.  It is possible to arrive a day earlier and/or stay a day longer at Kausay if that helps you with your travel planning. 

There will be one free day mid-course. Classes will start daily at 9:00am after breakfast and end at 8:00pm before supper. We always start the day with a morning circle to check-in with each other, inform about the day’s programme, and any logistics.

 Pricing 

The energy exchange for the complete 15-day PDC course at Kausay Community will be € 979,- and includes:

• Shared rooms (a spacious Mongolian yurt (sleeps 10)s, or bell tent (sleeps 2) and full board (there is also space for you to bring your own tent if you like)
• Teaching (theory and practice)  by three passionate permaculturists that share their years of experience in different fields and different parts of the world with you to give a broad view on how to design for sustainability
• An officially recognised certificate at the end of the course to take home. 
• We provide warm and cold showers and there is room to do collective laundry.
• At Kausay there is lots of space to be on your own or to walk through the beautiful valley and ravine. Telephone coverage within a 3 minute walk from Kausay.

Food and Beverages.

All food and (non alcoholic) drinks will be provided during the whole course. We serve vegetarian food at Kausay, but please talk to us about special wishes for food or allergies.
Coffee, herbal tea, and drinking water will be available throughout the course, as well as extra treats from the kitchen. You can also bring private snacks and treats for your well being with you.

Covid-19 

The course will be given primarily outdoors and with plenty of space to move around in. Nevertheless, there may be indoor sessions with participants sharing the learning space. In addition, there will be group work with all participants occupying the same table. Participants will also be sharing a yurt.
Each participant can decide for themselves whether they would like to use a mask and keep to social distancing; we hope that everyone is respectful of the choices and needs of the others. Please make sure that you have understood and accept these conditions before reserving your place on the course.

Contact
Kausay Community
Pta. Sayton, Enguera
Valencia, Spain
www.kausaycommunity.com
info@kausaycommunity.com
tel. +31 619297675 (Telegram or Whatsapp only)