Educational Courses

What: Green Care Farms Inc. is excited to be offering our educational workshop series on how to start a care farm! We completed our beta testing course last Spring with Canadian community leaders with great success! This Spring we are delighted to open registration up to anyone who wants to learn How To Start A Care Farm. Over three weeks we will share important information about starting a care farm! The content will summarize our model which is based on the Dutch care farming models all over the Netherlands and parts of Europe. Subjects include:

 

1. Week 1: “The Why” to care farming (Reasons why people might care farm), what the research says and program operations structure; 

2. Week 2: Client populations, staffing, and organizational culture, branding, marketing and media;

3. Week 3: Our day program for people with dementia, about the Sensory Garden, how a care farm can expand and relevant stakeholders.

 

Our example population will be people with dementia however the care farming concepts taught are transferable to many different populations.

 

Why: Our vision, "A Green Care Farm for people with dementia in every community in Canada". Since our inception in 2020 we have learned that many folks want to learn about care farming and that Canada is lacking in teachers! We are committed to growing care farming in Canada and sharing our knowledge with others.

 

Who: The course is delivered in workshop style with a small classroom size and is ideal for anyone who wants to learn about starting a care farm. Folks might desire to either open a care farm of their own or be directly involved in opening one (e.g. working with a farmer). There are a limited number of spots but we plan to continue offering educational opportunities. We welcome anyone who is passionately interested in care farming. This might include, but is not limited to: local professionals supporting vulnerable populations (e.g. older adults including people with dementia) such as Activationists, Horticultural Therapists, Nurses, Personal Support Workers, Recreation Therapists, Social Workers etc. as well as landowners, farmers and community-based groups.

 

Facilitators: This course will be taught by our Founder and CEO Rebekah Churchyard alongside the Green Care Farms core team.  Our work is largely completed with volunteer hours and we appreciate your support!  

 

When: This GCF Course will be offered virtually over 3 sessions from 6:00-7:30 pm on:

Wednesday, April 23, 2025

Wednesday, April 30, 2025

Wednesday, May 07, 2025.

 

​

Where: This course will be facilitated by the Green Care Farms team and delivered virtually via Google Meets. You must have access to a computer with video as well as a stable internet connection.

 

Cost: $299 (10% off before April 9, 2025)​

​