Design with Nature · Listen to the Land · Leave a Legacy
Andy is Co-Founder of The Shambhala Collective, a Permaculture Education Center and Community. Here, we believe permaculture is more than gardening. It’s a philosophy, a way of listening to the land, and a practice of building systems that are regenerative, resilient, and deeply connected to life itself.
Our own journey began with Permaculture Principle #1: Observation.
For a full year, we walked the land before deciding where to place our homes, watching how the sun and shade moved across the meadows and forest edges. We tracked water flow before siting gutters and tanks. We planted trees too early and learned humility when many didn’t survive. And we witnessed the land’s own slow magic of succession: first ragweed on disturbed ground, then chicory, and now dainty white asters dancing along the roadside.
We’ve come to understand that moving slowly is wiser than grinding forward into mistakes. Regeneration takes time. Sovereignty takes patience. And legacy is built one mindful choice at a time.
🌱 What is Permaculture?
Permaculture is a design system based on the patterns of nature. It’s about weaving food, water, shelter, and energy systems into a balanced whole. It helps us design with nature instead of against it, whether for a backyard garden, a homestead, or a community.
For our residents on Shambhala, permaculture is not a “project” but a way of living. It has given us:
- A framework for every decision we make on the land.
- A reminder to slow down, observe, and align with natural timing.
- A language and a community — through gatherings, plant shares, seed swaps, and timeless wisdom from teachers around the world.
Over the last three years, permaculture gatherings have given us new ideas and old principles that still apply. We’ve learned dowsing techniques, shared herbs, and deepened our roots in a community of people who care about regeneration, sovereignty, and living in balance.
✨ Andy’s Unique Approach
I don’t offer cookie-cutter design packages or endless plans that sit in a binder. Instead, I invite you into a living relationship with your land.
As a two-time Certified Permaculture Designer, CSU Master Gardener of 8 years, and long-time herbalist, naturalist and forager, I bring both practical science and intuitive wisdom to the table. My journey began in intentional communities in the 1990s and continues now on Shambhala, where we’ve built our lives around permaculture, herbal medicine, and regenerative living.
I also bring my background in herbalism, meditation, energy work, and Earth-based ceremony to help you not only design systems, but create a soulful relationship with the place you call home.
Think of this as land whispering meets permaculture design.
🌾 Services
Every offering begins with an Observation Walk (on-site or online), where we listen to your land together. From there, you can add a la carte elements based on your vision and priorities.
Core Offerings:
- 🌿 Observation Walk / Land Whispering — $55/hr
- 🌿 Half-Day Consultation — $222
- 🌿 Mini Design Plan (with notes + phased legacy suggestions) — $555
Optional Add-Ons (examples):
- Medicinal Garden Design 🌿 $77
- Food Forest or Orchard Planning 🌳 $88
- Water Catchment Mapping 💧 $99
- Ceremony or Sacred Site Design 🪷 $111
- Seasonal Ceremony Facilitation 🔮 $333
- Earth Acupuncture & Dowsing 🌎 $555
(Final add-ons/pricing may vary depending on time/complexity/landsize — these serve as starting points.)
🌍 Specialty Offerings
For those who want to go deeper, I also offer regional travel, group facilitation, and spiritual landwork.
- Red Pill Sisterhood Land Circles → Half-day gatherings blending meditation, synchronicity teachings, and land listening.
- Retreat-Style Land Work → Full-day group immersion with ceremony, design, and herbal teachings.
- Seasonal & Solstice Ceremonies → Bringing community together to honor the cycles of Earth.
🌿 Why Work With Me?
Because you’re not looking for a quick landscaping plan.
Because your land has wisdom to share.
Because you want a legacy, not just a garden.
Together we’ll:
- Learn what your land is already saying through its plants, light, and flow.
- Co-create systems that support food, medicine, water, and energy sovereignty.
- Build practices that nourish not only the soil, but your spirit.