Level 1 Live Online Indigenous Food Sovereignty Workshops
Level 2 Live Online Indigenous Food Sovereignty Workshops
Workshop Tours
Custom Program Packages
In Person Program Packages
Packages & Pricing
Indigenous Food Systems Planning and Design Program
Consulting & Design
A Note From Your Instructor
About This Program

The goal of this program is to empower Indigenous communities working towards food sovereignty by offering unique, adaptable training, services and tools to build capacity, foster community champions, and ensure long-term food system viability in a way that honours both culture and the land.
Educational program content is intended to be highly flexible in order to meet the diverse needs of communities in different bio-regional and cultural contexts, and different places on their food sovereignty journeys. If you have suggestions or would like to discuss a customized program, please reach out and we can develop something together.
Below you will find a list of courses that are offered by Avalily Permaculture and The Earthskills Institute, along with information about online and in-person program structures and pricing. In order to have a well-rounded, culturally relevant Indigenous Food Sovereignty Program, we have also included suggestions for topics that should be taught by local knowledge keepers or experts, and other course ideas that can be offered through one of our partners or sourced independently.
Now Open For Registration!
Level 1 Live Online Indigenous Food Sovereignty Workshops
These are introductory level live online workshops that contain Indigenous knowledge and are geared towards application in Indigenous food systems in BC and Alberta.
Courses are recorded for later viewing if you can’t make the live class. Recordings are available for viewing on our website for 1 month following each workshop. You’ll get instructions on how to create an account and access recordings before your class. Courses are $35 each, or bundle and save!
Purchase 3 to 5 courses for $33 each with coupon code BUNDLE3
Purchase 6 to 11 courses for $31 each with coupon code BUNDLE6
Purchase all 12 courses for $29 each with coupon code BUNDLE12
Group rates are also available upon request for 20 or more participants.
Level 2 Live Online Indigenous Food Sovereignty Workshops
Designed for Indigenous Food Systems leaders and project managers, these programs offer in-depth technical knowledge and some solutions to challenges commonly faced in building resilient, regenerative Indigenous food systems.
Courses are recorded for later viewing if you can’t make the live class. Recordings are available for viewing on our website for 1 month following each workshop. You’ll get instructions on how to create an account and access recordings before your class.
Short courses are $35 each or 3 for $33 each with coupon code BUNDLE3
3 hour courses are $90 each or
3 for $250 using coupon code
5 for $385 using coupon code

Workshop Tours
Several Workshop Tours are being planned across BC and Alberta for spring and summer 2024, and they are filling up quickly! If you are interested in booking a workshop on one of our tours, send us an expression of interest.
Tours include quick, one-day stops in communities along a set route to teach 1.5 to 3 hour programs. This could be structured as a single 1.5 hour course, or a 1.5 hour course plus a hands-on component or onsite community project tour, or two 1.5 hour courses back to back, or an in-depth 3 hour course.
Rates for tour stops are $1900 for a 1.5 hour program, and $3,200 for a 3 hour program for up to 30 people.
Host Responsibilities: Communities or organizations who booked the tour stop are responsible for securing a venue, promoting their event, filling seats, communicating with program participants, ensuring all necessary participant paperwork and information is collected and provided to us, securing materials for hands-on components (if any), and ensuring timely communication with us (unless otherwise agreed upon).

Please note that 3 hour programs must be booked during the morning or afternoon on tours. There is more scheduling flexibility for the 1.5 hour programs. A 25% deposit is required upon booking to hold your spot on the tour. Cancellations must be made a minimum of 2 week prior to the workshop date for a full refund.
Partnering with neighbouring communities and organizations to host a workshop is a great way to save and fill seats! If the cost or performing any of the host responsibilities poses a barrier or is not within your capacity, please reach out with details and we will try to assist in finding a solution that works for both parties. We want these programs to be accessible!
Custom Program Packages
Packages can be online, in-person, or a combination of both. Online and combination programs can be more cost efficient than in-person workshops. For online or combination package pricing please send us an email.
For all programs, host communities or organizations are responsible for securing a venue, promoting their program, filling seats, communicating with program participants, ensuring all necessary participant paperwork and information is collected and provided, securing materials for hands-on components (if any), and ensuring timely communication with Avalily or course instructors (unless otherwise agreed upon).
If the cost or performing any of the host responsibilities poses a barrier or is not within your capacity, please reach out with details and we will try to assist in finding a solution that works for both parties. We want these programs to be accessible!
In Person Program Packages

These packages are intended to be highly flexible and can be structured using a combination of 1.5 hour and 3 hour courses as well as hands-on components. For example, a 3 hour program could be structured as a 1.5 hour course plus a hands-on component or onsite community project tour, or two 1.5 hour courses back to back, or an in-depth 3 hour course.
Hands-on and land-based learning components are a great way to provide an enriched learning opportunity and get some work done for a community food system project.
Some examples of hands-on project and land-based learning integration include:
- Designing a food forest, touring a food forest, or assisting with maintenance of a food forest in tandem with a Food Forest or Pruning course.
- Conducting onsite soil tests and assessments, assisting with soil preparation on a new garden site, or building a sheet mulch bed or hügelkultur as a supplement to a Soil course.
- Building a composting system or a thermophilic compost pile after a Composting course.
Packages & Pricing
Mileage rates of $0.69/km apply to each 2024 program. Most trips will be leaving from Invermere, BC, but sometimes we can piggy back off of another program and the mileage will be less. Contact us for details on this.
The “Small Step Package” is $3500 plus mileage for a 3 hour program for up to 30 people plus 1 hour of consulting or hands-on learning over 1 day.
The “Basic Package” is $6000 plus mileage for a 6 hour program for up to 30 people plus up to 2 hours of consulting or hands-on learning over 2-3 days.
The “Foundational Package” is $11,000 plus mileage for a 12 hour program for up to 30 people plus up to 4 hours of consulting and/or hands-on learning over 4-5 days.
The “Complete Package” is $24,000 plus mileage for a 27 hour program for up to 30 people plus up to 5 hours of consulting or hands-on learning over 8-10 days (2 weeks).
Use the table below to plan your program topics and structure.
Avalily Course Topics | 1.5hr | 3hr | Online | In-Person |
Introduction to Indigenous Permaculture (3 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Seed Starting (1.5 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Greenhouse Design (1.5 hrs) | x | These can be combined into a 3hr course | x | x |
Greenhouse Growing and Operation (1.5 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Food Forests (1.5 hrs / 3 hrs) | x | x | x | x |
Building Healthy Soil (1.5 hrs / 3 hrs) | x | x | x | x |
Composting (1.5 hrs / 3 hrs) | x | x | x | x |
Crop Planning & Companion Planting (1.5 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Gardening for Beginners (1.5 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Gardenless Growing Options (1.5 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Raising & Keeping Chickens (1.5 hrs / 3 hrs) | x | x | x | x |
Seed Saving (1.5 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Integrating Systems for Greater Efficiency (1.5 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Diversifying Income & Economic Supports (1.5hrs) | x | x | x | |
Indigenous Food System Planning (1.5 hrs / 3 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Creative Capacity Building (1.5 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Pruning, Grafting and Propagation (1.5 hrs) | x | x | x | |
Butchering Basics – Game or Livestock Processing (3 hrs) | x | x | ||
Wild Food and Medicine Ethnobotany Walk * | x | x | x |

As Indigenous cultures are extremely diverse, and cultural teachings about traditional food and food systems are equally diverse, it is important to include teachings from local Knowledge Keepers, Elders or experts in order to truly have an Indigenous Food Sovereignty Program. Some topics we feel are best delivered by local sources or traditional Knowledge Keepers are listed in the table below.
Communities are encouraged to organize these teachings on their own, however we would be thrilled if some of these topics were shared during our time in the community to create a more cohesive learning experience.
Locally Sourced Teachings |
Harvesting Traditional Food & Medicine Plants |
Traditional Food Preparation & Preservation Methods |
Medicine Making |
Hunting & Fishing |
Butchering & Game Processing |
Canning, Drying, & Freezing Preservation Methods |
Because we can’t be good at everything (yet), and there are so many different options food system components, we’ve compiled a list of a few other workshop topics that we don’t currently offer, but that might be of interest. Communities are welcome to source instructors for these topics independently, or we can offer some suggestions and put you in touch.
Outsourced/Partner Sourced Topic Ideas |
Aquaculture |
Aquaponics |
Hydroponics / Aeroponics |
Microgreen Production |
Integrated Pest Management |
Regenerative Livestock Systems |
Water Management & Irrigation |
Passive Solar Greenhouses |
Permaculture Earthworks |
Rainwater Systems |
Greywater Systems |
Alternative Energy Systems |
Equipment Maintenance |
Root Cellar / Cold Storage |
Commercial Food Processing |
Grant Writing |
Social Enterprise |
Food Safe |
Cooking/nutrition |
Indigenous Food Systems Planning and Design Program
This program combines consulting and design with education to build capacity and community buy-in for Indigenous food system projects. The goal is to generate and empower community champions to take ownership over the planning and design of their local food system by involving them in the process. The program aims to teach participants basic principles and techniques for planning and designing regenerative Indigenous food systems for 7 generations and beyond, while facilitating community consultation and site assessment, and guiding participants through the process of planning and creating a design for a functioning food system for their community.

The program can accommodate up to 12 advanced participants who have already completed some training, or have experience, in food systems. It is recommended that participants take some of Avalily Permaculture’s other Indigenous Food Sovereignty Programs (particularly the Introduction to Indigenous Permaculture course and any other programs relative to the project) prior to registering for this program.
Included in the program: professional facilitation of 2 community food system engagement and consultation sessions, a technical site assessment for the host community/project, up to 10 hours of Food Systems Planning and Design workshopping (the group is guided to create a rough project plan and design), and up to 3 hours of post-program mentorship for the host community to support project implementation.
Participants are expected to be actively involved by attending engagement sessions, consulting trips, and workshops, and contribute to planning and design development by carrying out delegated tasks on time. This is an intensive program, and work will be required outside of workshop hours.
Timeline: This program will take place over the course of 10 days (2 weeks).
Day 1: Community engagement and consultation session #1, and technical site assessment
Day 2-5: Instruction and workshopping for 2 hours each day, leaving lots of time for participants to gather information and work on their holistic context, project design, and implementation plan.
Day 6: Participants will finalize a draft design, estimated budget, and rough implementation plan
Day 7: Community engagement and consultation session #2 (design and plan presentation and feedback)
Day 8-9: Guidance and workshopping for 2 hours each day to integrate community feedback and create a final design and implementation plan
Day 10: Presentation of final design and implementation plan to community
Consulting & Design
Community engagement, food sovereignty vision planning, regenerative food systems and permaculture design, project guidance and mentorship, and technical services are all things we offer. If you’re interested in learning more about these services, please send us an email.
A Note From Your Instructor

Tansi pi tawaw! Nimeytaen ainwapimitan!
Kalista Pruden dishinikawshon, pi en famme Otipemisiwak niya. Invermere, BC niwiken pi Cochrane, AB dooschiin. Pruden, Rowland, Desjarlais, Beauregard, Patasagawis, Ballenden, Cardinal, Kwarakwante (Callihoo), Okimaskwew, pi Maskegon (Frobisher) ni parentii kayash, ooschi niya.
Hello and welcome! I am glad to see you!
My name is Kalista Pruden, and I am a proud Métis woman. I live in Invermere, BC (for almost 20 years), and I grew up in Cochrane, AB. My Indigenous family names are Pruden, Rowland, Desjarlais, Beauregard, Patasagawis, Ballenden, Cardinal, Kwarakwante (Callihoo), Okimaskwew, pi Maskegon (Frobisher). I have a diverse mix of European settler ancestors as well as Nêhiyaw (Cree) and Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) ancestors.
I was privileged enough to grow up spending lots of time out on the land hunting, fishing, harvesting food and medicine plants, and tinkering in the garden with my parents and grandparents. This instilled in me a great love for the land and all my relations, which is why I chose the career path I have.

Like many people of mixed ancestry, I was only taught a little bit about my Indigenous culture, as much of it was lost or hidden in my grandparent’s era to avoid having children taken to residential school or drawing unwanted attention. Nonetheless, I have always felt a strong connection to my Indigenous heritage, and have been on a great journey of cultural reclamation, not just for myself, but also for my 3 children (two Métis, and one Inuit + Métis).
On this journey, I have come to realize that I am deeply invested in reconciliation and helping Indigenous peoples heal from intergenerational trauma, regain sovereignty, revive culture, and build healthy relationships in our modern context. I feel that the best way I can do this is by offering my expertise in the field of permaculture and regenerative food systems. There is great opportunity to bring people together, build deep connections to the land, offer purpose, and share culture through food systems, all of which are good medicine.
In my classes I offer knowledge gained from 18 years in the field of Environmental Science and 13 years in the fields of permaculture, as well as teachings I have received and knowledge I’ve gleaned from Indigenous resources with respect to growing, tending and harvesting food, caring for the land and community, and some modern perspectives that honour traditional values and cultural practices in food systems. I will also share some solutions to challenges that many Indigenous communities face that I have observed through experience working with Indigenous food system projects across the province.

Although I have much knowledge to share, I have not had a guiding Elder in my life to teach me traditional knowledge, so I am not a “knowledge keeper.” I subscribe to being a lifelong learner, and am committed to doing things in a good way. I would be grateful to learn, and not just teach, in this program.
I am very invested in the importance of this work, but I am also very invested in my family and greatly value my time with them. I am making some big life changes to be able to offer these programs and still spend as much time as possible with my family to keep my heart full and my flame burning bright, so I have lots of good energy to share in these programs. You can expect to find my family accompanying me on many of my trips, and they may pop in from time to time. I hope you will welcome us all, and I look forward to working with you.
Marsee pi meena kawapimitin!
(Thank you and see you soon!)