Introduction to Urban Homesteading
Dates: June 20-22, 2025
Instructor: Christopher Mackessy
Fee: $395.00 + meals and accommodations fees
Term: Summer 2025
Workshop Description
In this course, participants will embark on a wide range of learning designed to give them the skills and knowledge to incorporate some of the basic skillsets of homesteading into their own lives! Whether you live in the city or the sticks; this class will give you the confidence and ability to live a more self-sustaining lifestyle and take ownership of the items you utilize on a daily basis. Mornings will be spent in the field learning about edible and medicinal plants, identifying and deciphering animal sign, and exploring the ecological wonder of the Northern Sierra Nevada. Although these hikes will follow a leisurely pace, participants should ensure that they are able to walk at least 2-4 miles on uneven terrain. In the afternoon, we will engage ourselves in a wide variety of homesteading projects. These will range from, medicine-making, wines, fermentations and food preservation techniques; to soaps and other hygiene products. We will also have discussions on diverse topics such as permaculture/gardening, animal husbandry, and any other skillsets people are interested in learning during our time together.
Instructor Bio
Christopher was born in the outskirts of Los Angeles county, at that magical intersection between city and country. Their earliest memories were of exploring the Oak-laden hills beyond the reach of the roads, wading through Stinging Nettle in shorts and becoming lost in the vast expanse of the landscape from dusk till dawn. This sentiment carries forth to their current locale in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada where they live with their partner, two children and a farms-worth of animals on their permaculture homestead. While building ecological knowledge through ethnobotany is their greatest passion; they also work with elementary-aged learners, combining art, movement and ecology as a STEAM teacher. In addition to these aforementioned roles, they also are the Field Trip Coordinator for the Native Nevada Plant Society, head teacher at Trash Panda Permaculture and other ecological organizations throughout California and Nevada; focusing on deepening the relationships of humans with the wild areas in which we live.
Workshop Details
Workshop Schedule
Plan to arrive at the Sierra Nevada Field Campus on Friday evening by 6pm. We will have dinner and then get acquainted that evening. Class will take place all day Saturday and Sunday morning. The class will end around 1 or 2pm on Sunday.
Workshop Supplies List
Lodging and Camping Supplies
Camping gear if you are staying on campus:
- tent and sleeping pad (unless you are staying in our tent with a cot provided)
- warm sleeping bag
- pillow, toiletries, and towel
- flashlight and lantern
- alarm clock
Field gear for everyone:
- day pack
- sunscreen
- insect repellant
- water bottles
- plastic containers for packed lunches
- sense of humor
You might also want to bring:
- camera
- binoculars
- hand lens
- camp chair
Clothing:
The weather in the Sierra Nevada can vary greatly, even in a single day. Be prepared for chilly temperatures at night, even below freezing early in the summer. Rain is a possibility any time, whether forecast or not. Variable weather clothing that can be layered is best: long pants and a long-sleeved shirt, warm sweater and jacket, t-shirt and shorts or skirt, sturdy shoes or hiking boots, sun hat, rain gear, and a warm hat or gloves for cold weather and/or night activities. And, if you come later in the season, bring your swimsuit for afternoon dips in the lakes!