OAEC supports diverse communities to design their own regenerative systems at the regional and local scale.
Our cookbook is a collection of inventive recipes inspired by seasonal eating from our biodiverse Mother Garden, orchards and Wildlands Preserve.
Experience the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center through beautiful slideshows of our Guest Houses, Meeting Hall, Kitchen, Garden, Wildlands and more.
OAEC serves as a retreat center for networks, public agencies, foundations and other groups working towards social and environmental change.
Our 100% Certified Organic plant nursery specializes in open-pollinated perennials including edible landscaping plants, rare and endangered food crops, drought tolerant ornamentals and habitat plants - all tested in our onsite gardens and appropriate for our bioregion.
OAEC offers the longest consistently running two-week Permaculture Design Certification course in the West. Immerse yourself in information, ideas and inspiration on how to design sustainable, regenerative systems in balance with your home ecosystem.
Project update 9/28/2016 – After 2 years of negotiations, OAEC is excited to partner with our county and regional agencies with the acquisition of an “Alternate Methods and Materials” research permit to install and trial composting toilet systems in our beautiful new guest accommodations as part of our Conservation Hydrology Demonstration Site. We believe that composting toilets promise an age-old/cutting-edge solution to the most pressing environmental issues of our time including water quality and quantity, peak energy, and soil degradation. We are so thrilled to utilize our site, knowledge and community network to help usher composting toilets into widespread adoption.
The aim of this collaborative project is to work side-by-side with regulators to evaluate this technology for multi-unit and medium-scale commercial facilities, such as hotels and apartment buildings. Since the majority of our growing population lives in dense, urban settings, this is where solutions will have the greatest impact and where research is most needed. With the help of soil scientists from UC Davis and Stanford, the compost will be laboratory tested for pathogens, nutrient content and other contaminants. When research concludes, we will prepare a technical report of findings to present to our Sonoma County partner agencies. We hope to provide the hard data they need to make informed policy decisions that guarantee both public health and ecological integrity.