New Free Course: Introduction to Ecological Design

Designing with natural patterns and principles in mind can help us to make better, healthier choices for ourselves and the world around us. As permaculture co-originator David Holmgren said, “Design is as natural as breathing and, like breathing, most of us can learn to do it better.” 

In HeatSpring’s new free course, Introduction to Ecological Design, longtime educator and whole systems designer, Creighton Hofeditz gives students a high-level overview to the practices and terminology related to Ecological Design. 

Words like sustainable, regenerative, and resilience are used often across virtually all industries as the world scrambles to address the effects of climate change. Within an ecological design framework, we ask ourselves, “what could it truly mean to build a world that is more harmonious with nature? How could all life be improved when decisions look at whole systems as opposed to acting as though everything is disconnected and independent of each other? How can we truly be sustainable, regenerative, and resilient?”

Ultimately, how we design and create our world comes down to choices. In this framework, designers look towards nature to learn to recognize patterns to guide how we create our world. 

It’s important to note that these principles can be applied to everything we do, and you don’t need to consider yourself an ecologist to engage in this work. Ecological design is a practice that transcends any field or industry. It’s a mindset and way of thinking that considers the interconnectedness of everything around us.

Join Creighton Hofeditz as he teaches tools and techniques to begin applying this thinking to your everyday life. The discussion board will be open and available to continue the conversation with Creighton and the HeatSpring community who are interested in applying these principles in their work, homes, and communities.

About the Instructor

Creighton is the Lead Organizer and Facilitator of the Denver Permaculture Design Course and Director of Perennials and Permaculture at Denver Urban Gardens. He has 10 years of experience designing everything from home landscapes to public projects to school curriculums. 

About the New Subject Area 

Introduction to Ecological Design is a part of a new subject offering area from HeatSpring. For now, we’re calling it “Regenerative, Nature-Based” coursework, but we anticipate this area to be ever evolving. The HeatSpring mission has been to build and power a cleaner future through education. We see regenerative, nature-based solutions as a piece in the puzzle to creating a better world. Expect to see more coursework in this area in the future. Please reach out if you have any feedback or thoughts to share!