Our Youth Education Philosophy

We come from nature, we belong to nature, we are nature. Being on land connects us. In a society that seeks to take our awareness and disconnect us, our programs offer a healthy and hopeful narrative of connection to land, ourselves, and each other. We seek to reawaken the wild and most alive parts of ourselves through rebuilding lost cultural elements such as growing food, foraging, cooking, making tools and homes from earth materials, fire-tending, singing, dancing, and celebrating seasons.

The Land School at Agraria offers adult, youth, & all-ages educational programs that:

• Cultivate Deep Observation & Ecological Awareness

• Build Regenerative Skills

• Provide Historical & Global Context

• Promote Immersive Nature Play

Our programs are rooted in Bioregional Regeneration, a holistic way of defining and understanding the place where we live, with the purpose to live sustainably and equitably in harmony with natural systems. Bioregionalism is a way to represent, identify and acknowledge a place and its history and culture, through ecological features such as watersheds, landforms, and ecosystems.

Deep Observation & Ecological Awareness includes topics such as land mapping, reading bird language, identifying plants & animals, collecting data and using science tools, soil testing, and studying land over time.

Regenerative Skill-Building includes topics such as gardening & foraging, cooking, wildcrafting, composting, orienteering, outdoor survival skills, storytelling, community building & communication.

Historical & Global Context includes intellectual analysis and critical thought, exploration of historical and global trends, discussion of local and regional developments, focus on movements for change, and creative solutions at all scales.

Immersive Nature Play, For Youth Education: provides valuable unstructured playtime in natural areas, creek walks, insect hunts, land exploration, and spontaneous youth-directed activities. These are fun, tactile experiences that connect people to place and build creativity and confidence in children. For Adult & All-Ages Education: offers opportunities for creative expression, meditation, healing experiences, and transformative personal growth in nature.