We Immersion
COVID-19 UPDATES
These are strange and difficult times! We hope that you and your families are navigating this pandemic as well as you possibly can. Sonoma County is currently under shelter-in-place orders, which Weaving Earth is adhering to. This means that for the time being we have postponed all in-person WE programming until further notice. This includes the WE Immersion and the Wild Tenders Youth Program. The Teen Backpacking trips are officially cancelled for 2020.
Although we don’t as of yet know when it will be possible to run the Immersion program, applications will remain open during this time. For anyone considering joining this program in the future, we encourage applying now. We will be keeping all applicants informed of program updates as they occur. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
Warmly,
The WE team
What is the immersion?
What is the Immersion?
Why Does
It Exist?
Why Does
It Exist?
Core curriculum
Core Curriculum
Program Outcomes
Program Outcomes
Who
Joins?
Who
Joins?
How Does
It Work?
How Does
It Work?
When and
Where Is It?
When and
Where Is It?
What Does
it Cost?
What Does
it Cost?
WHAT IS THE WE IMMERSION?
The Weaving Earth Immersion is a nature-based journey into the core practices of Relational Education. The WE Immersion has three main goals for participants:
immerse participants in nature-based experiences that remind them of the interrelationship of all life
educate participants on how to more effectively interrupt unjust social systems that have pushed communities and ecologies to the brink of collapse
Take actions that meet the imperative to care for both people and the planet
WE IMMERSION VIDEO
WHY DOES THE WE IMMERSION EXIST?
Human domination of the Earth is inextricably linked to cultural systems that value separation and domination. As shorthand, we are calling these interwoven systems supremacy culture, recognizing that each strand has specific dynamics. U.S. supremacy culture includes extractivism (oppression of the Earth), ableism, ageism, anti-immigration, anti-Semitism, cis-genderism, colonialism, fat-phobia, heterosexism, Islamophobia, nationalism, racism, religious persecution, and sexism. We view climate change as a result of supremacy culture.
Education shapes our perceptions and beliefs, both through what is taught (content) and how it is taught (context). The institutions in mainstream U.S. society, including education and mass media, foster profound ignorance about how supremacy culture shapes belief, behavior, power, and opportunity. Supremacy culture is pervasive — we can’t choose whether to participate. But we can choose how to participate, which is key to systems change.
The intention of the WEI is to learn how to change “the how,” supported by a community of practice in which participants and staff explore, make mistakes, and grow through human-to-human-to-nature relationships. Using the educational tools above, we aim to critically deconstruct inherited stories of separation and domination, and at the same time responsibly recollect a deeper human inheritance: stories of interrelationship, belonging, dignity and respect. We believe this orientation supports the conditions for systems change so needed at this time.
The ten core pillars of Relational Education are featured below. Click any of the photos to learn more about our Core Curriculum.
PILLARS OF RELATIONAL EDUCATION
Through the practices of relational education, we aim to critically deconstruct inherited stories of separation and domination, and at the same time responsibly recollect a deeper human inheritance: stories of interrelationship, belonging, dignity and respect. We believe this orientation supports the conditions for systems change so needed at this time.
PROGRAM OUTCOMES
1. Foster direct personal connection to nature
2. Support responsible sharing of skills, stories, and information
3. Support the vitality and resilience of living systems
4. Teach responsible tending, harvesting, and use of essential natural resources
5. Broaden and deepen awareness of the relationships within and between ecosystems
6. Provide experience in holistic leadership and mentoring
7. Respect and honor cultures and lineages of learning
8. Deepen rootedness in personal and systemic stories of ancestry and lineage
9. Enable more skillful navigation of interpersonal human dynamics
10. Expand understanding of your individual role in interrupting systems of oppression
11. Liberate creative, accountable and authentic cultivation and offering of your personal gifts
12. Support integration of these tools into your lives and communities of practice to catalyze your individual and collective change in the world
WHO IS THE WE IMMERSION FOR?
Activists, educators, entrepreneurs, naturalists, systems thinkers and changemakers (ages 18+) who are interested in experiential learning, nature connection, social justice and systems change.
Over the years, we have seen firsthand the value of intergenerational learning environments. While the majority of our participants are in their 20s, 30s, and 40s, we have also been fortunate to work with participants in their 50s, 60s, and 70s. We treasure the diversity of perspective and wisdom that these additional decades of life experience can bring.
participant Testimonials
Applications are open During this time. timing Updates will be offered as they occur
HOW DOES THE IMMERSION WORK?
The Immersion is a dynamic learning environment that is shaped by the interests and energies of each participant and member of the teaching team. This relational fluidity is an important part of how the program responds and evolves — like nature, the Immersion is emergent. Also like nature, there is an operating system underlying the dynamic, relational experience. See our Core Curriculum and Relational Education pages for more information.
One essential part of the Immersion eco-system is layered participation. Students have the option to participate for one, two, or three years, which generates opportunities for leadership development, facilitation training, peer mentoring between the years, and ongoing opportunities to practice embodying the curriculum. These years are not hierarchical — they are ecological.
foundations
The Foundations (Year 1) track is about exposure to the curriculum/container and the beginnings of embodiment. The emphasis in Year 1 is “going on the ride.” TIMING TBD. Click here to see the pre-COVID calendar plan for a sense of how the Foundations track is typically laid out.
The Foundations track of the WE Immersion is designed to introduce participants to the basic elements of Relational Education, with an emphasis on imparting a deeply embodied experience of the core curriculum. First year participants are invited to join in a multi-year container, learning alongside 2nd and 3rd year participants, which offers the opportunity to engage in a form of “intergenerational transfer” and peer-to-peer mentoring across program years. All aspects of the program are aimed at enhancing awareness, skill building, cultivating the self, and strengthening connection. It is a transformative journey focused on reinvigorating the tools and practices needed to help ensure a resilient and equitable future for all.
fire tenders
The Fire Tenders (Year 2) track is about circle leadership and service to the community. Completion of Foundations is a pre-requisite for joining Fire Tenders. TIMING TBD. Click here to see the pre-COVID calendar plan for the Fire Tenders track.
The second-year training is a carefully held individual and group process intended to support the unique leadership expression of each person in the circle. Second year participants help create surface area for learning, working side-by-side with the first year group, supporting their learning journeys, asking good questions, offering stories, and facilitating some curricular pieces. As participants step more fully into their unique leadership, they often encounter their learning edges. Our well-trained staff are practiced in helping individuals meet this growth in healthy and productive ways. Second years arrive early and stay late to support this process.
bridge builders
The Bridge Builders (Year 3) track is about dirt time, holistic tracking, continued circle leadership development, and deeper support from staff on how to apply this training to future endeavors. Completion of Foundations and Fire Tenders is a pre-requisite for joining Bridge Builders. TIMING TBD. Click here to see the pre-COVID calendar plan for the Bridge Builders track.
For those who are called to more fully embody these teachings, to further apply the learning in their lives, and to take this model out and share it with others, the Bridge Builders track adds a definitive layer to the WE Immersion journey. The third year is an individually designed combination of deep nature-connection experience, real-world service learning opportunities, and distinct, personalized mentoring. The Bridge Builders are stretching the edge of awareness for the rest of the circle with the stories they gather from the land. They are also the camp leaders, who are anticipating needs before the arise, practicing the skill of putting their gifts and awareness to work, and looking out for the greater good of the whole.
Students have the option to participate for one, two, or three years, which generates opportunities for leadership development, facilitation training, peer mentoring between the years, and ongoing opportunities to practice embodying the curriculum.
WHEN AND WHERE IS THE IMMERSION?
When
April 2020 through January 2021. Click here to see a detailed calendar.
The program is comprised of:
11 multi-day in-person sessions
5 bioregional days
6 Personal Mentoring Sessions
Fire Tenders and Bridge Builders participate in one additional multi-day session at the start of the year to prepare for beginning with the full group.
Where
Sonoma County, CA on occupied, unceded Southern Pomo territory, with additional off-site field trips.
Time
Unless noted otherwise on the calendar, all weeks begin with dinner at 6 PM on Wednesday evening and end no later than 7 PM on Sunday. Second and third-year participants have a slightly different schedule that will be discussed in-person with each group. The 4 group calls will be scheduled at the beginning of the year and Personal Mentoring sessions are set up individually with participants. Additionally, there are two 10-day intensives during the year that follow a different pattern. See the calendar for details.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
SLIDING SCALE of $12,500 – $25,000
The following sections explain our sliding scale, Equity Funds, and other mechanisms to support our participants. Please read this section thoroughly, and if you still have questions, contact dave@weavingearth.org.
THE SLIDING SCALE
Tuition includes catering, camping, program supplies and admission to all special events unless otherwise noted in the calendar. Because some people have more financial means than others, we have created a sliding scale fee system to accommodate a range of economic realities. We ask you to self-assess the price point that is appropriate for you. The high-end of the scale reflects the value we believe the program holds, and the low-end offers a more accessible entry point while ensuring we cover all costs. By choosing a higher price point, you are helping make the program more accessible to others for whom the low-end may be cost-prohibitive. If you pick a higher price point, you can designate the additional tuition to support one of our Equity Funds, described below.
*Weaving Earth is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Our federal tax ID number is 83-1110798. Anything you choose to pay beyond the entry-level price point is considered a tax-deductible charitable contribution for tax purposes.
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE
We also recognize that the low-end of the sliding scale might be cost-prohibitive. If this is true for you, please be in touch to begin the conversation about financial assistance. Payment plans, financing options, and some financial aid are available. Contact dave@weavingearth.org for more information.
EQUITY FUNDS
Weaving Earth has established two Equity Funds to support members of the community who hold targeted identities.
The first is a Reparations Fund to support Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) participants to attend the Immersion. We offer these reparations with a prayer toward collective liberation. Given our collective inheritance and its relationship to displacement and disconnection, we do not want BIPOC participants to have to pay for the reclamation of connection to land/nature/place. Please see our Commitment to Reparations for more information.
The second is a Multiplicity Fund, which we established to provide financial support for queer, trans, and non-binary folx who are interested in attending the Immersion. We offer this funding as an act of resistance against the oppressive system of cis-heteropatriarchy, which prioritizes and empowers cis-heterosexual men at the expense of everyone else.
While these efforts are small compared to the enormity of systemic white supremacy and cis-heteropatriarchy, we believe that uplifting the voices of those most targeted by these systems, plus tangible demonstrations of educational equity, can inspire significant change.
We acknowledge that there are many life circumstances and identities not covered by these Equity Funds that also deserve financial support to attend the Immersion. We are doing our best every year to make our programs more accessible to more people, financially and culturally.
In addition, we have a Reparations Fund to support Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) participants to attend the Immersion. We offer these reparations with a prayer toward collective liberation.
WHAT DO WE EAT?
All regular weeks of the Weaving Earth Immersion are catered by Carin Mckay of Culinary Magic This includes dinner on Wednesday, breakfast, lunch and dinner from Thursday to Saturday, and breakfast and lunch on Sunday. Certain special events within the WE Immersion are non-catered. Details about non-catered events are listed on the calendar page.
NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS!
Priority deadline is March 1st, 2020
For more information about this program, please contact dave@weavingearth.org to set up a conversation with one of the Immersion staff members.