Gaia Youth Certification Application

Certification Application Instructions

Thank You for your interest in offering a Gaia Youth Certified programme. The course is based on Gaia Education Whole-Systems Design Tool also known as Gaia Mandala and its 4 dimensions- social, ecologic, economic and worldview - and 20 modules, which represents a universal pattern language for Education for Sustainable Development. In order to receive Gaia Education certification, Gaia Youth courses must meet the following criteria:

A minimum of 40 contact hours (e.g. 20 course days; 2 hours/day)
A strong intention to cover all 20 modules within each of the four dimensions of sustainability
A minimum of 10 hours devoted to applying design methods and processes into real-life scenarios
A skilled team of educators with sufficient knowledge and experience and at least one mentor who has completed a Gaia Education certified programme
An appropriate environment, ideally taking place in community or school projects demonstrating integrated application of design for sustainable settlements
A commitment to complete and submit course evaluations and reports
A commitment to follow international branding guidelines
A commitment to contribute to Education for Sustainable Development activities in your region

Please, be aware that APPLICATIONS...
• received between January 1 - April 30 will be reviewed by June 30
• received between May 1 - August 31 will be reviewed by October 31
• received between September 1 - December 31 will be reviewed by February 28

REQUIREMENTS FOR GAIA YOUTH CERTIFICATION:

In order to apply for Certification, please send all the documents listed below to certification@gaiaeducation.org

Applications will only be accepted if ALL the following materials are received by the application deadline:

• Complete and submit this application
• Anticipated daily schedule of course including a breakdown of hours within each of the 4 dimensions and for design work; and time allocated for orientation, regular reflection and evaluation.
• Max. one-page resume for each primary faculty and EDE graduate mentor, with gender indicated, highlighting of the EDE date and host site/venue the mentor has joined.
• A brief description of the Host site (60 words maximum)
• 2-3 high-resolution digital images of the host site, from the inside and outside facilities, excluding people, in jpg format
• A receipt of payment of the application fee - £100. Please follow this link to complete the payment. Be sure to include your name, email address and the name of your EDE in the space provided on the payment form called Special Instructions.

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* 1. Contact Information:

Primary Contact: *

Host Site/Organization:

Address: *

Address2:

City/Town: *

State: *

ZIP/Postal Code: *

Country: *

Email Address: *

Phone Number:

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* 2. General information

Name of Gaia Youth Course

How many actively engaged members/staff?

What are the main languages spoken?

What are the intended dates this programme will be offered?

Do you intend to offer more than one Gaia Youth programme within a year?

Website for host site/community/organisation (if available):

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* 3. What is the mission statement of the host site/community/organisation?

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* 4. What ECOLOGICAL resources can the programme offer (e.g., Appropriate Technology: mud or solar ovens; Energy: wind, hydro, solar power; Waste: water re-use, composting toilets; Food: agroforestry permaculture gardens; Shelter: natural building)

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* 5. What SOCIAL resources can the programme offer (e.g., decision making, communication skills, health care)

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* 6. What ECONOMIC resources would the programme offer (e.g., local currency, social enterprise, cottage industries)

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* 7. What existing WORLDVIEW resources would the programme offer (e.g., ceremony, meditative practices, art and creativity)

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* 8. Students

What is the min/max number of students this course can accommodate?

Will this course draw student from other countries?

- If so, will international students require visas?

What language(s) do you intend to teach the course in?

- Do you expect language to be a barrier for any students?

- If so, how will you accommodate these students?

Are you prepared to accommodate students with special needs (e.g. physical disabilities, dyslexia, chemical sensitivities, dietary restrictions)

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* 9. Accommodations (for residential courses)

How many students per room? (ideal 2-3/room if longer than one week)

How close are student facilities to central facilities?

Are students within walking distance of each other?

Is there close access to nature and/or wild spaces?

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* 10. Food

What is the typical diet? Can special diets be accommodated?

Where will the food come from for the course?

Would students help prepare meals?

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* 11. Money and Access

What do you intend to charge for this course?

Will you offer scholarships?

- If so, what is your total allotment?

- If so, how will you allocate and disburse this money?

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* 12. Meeting and Study Space

Can the space accommodate the expected course enrollment?

Can the space be dedicated to the programme for the entire course?

Is there a black/white or chalk board?

Is there computer access? (ideal: 1 computer per 4 students)

Is there reliable internet access? (at least once/week)

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* 13. What other opportunities are there for learning (i.e. Service Learning Projects, Independent research, Internships, etc.) Please list as many as possible (name, phone, email):

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* 14. What other resources are in the surrounding area? (within one hour's drive). List potential sites, contacts, and notes (sustainable farms, organisations, wild areas)

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* 15. After the Gaia Youth programme, do you have any learning /integration / group activities planned for the participants to take part-in? If so, pls describe and also indicate how you plan to keep in touch with your youth participants.

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* 16. Health and Safety

What is the access to health facilities?

- Name and telephone

- Address

- Distance from primary meeting site

Is the host community/site in a healthy and safe physical environment?

- Is there access to clean water and food?

- What is the risk level from political turmoil?

- What is the environmental risk level?

Does your community/organisation have liability insurance?

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* 17. Course Commitments

Can you commit to following Gaia Education Branding guidelines?

Can you commit to running a safe & non-violent course for all participants?

Can you commit that primary faculty will study the latest version of the EDE curriculum, at least the dimension(s) they are holding?

Can you commit to immediately submitting (accomplishing online) the Course Evaluation supplied by Gaia Education and available here, for each participant, prior to issuing the Course Certificates?

Can you commit to using as is and without alteration, the Gaia Education pre-assigned certificate numbers enumerated in the Participant List Template that you will receive, and assign these numbers for your student certificates

Can you commit to sending names and emails of course participants within 15 days after the course ends?
*We take the protection of the data of anyone under the age of 18 extremely seriously. We will only contact individuals over the age of 18 with news of our courses, where they have given the consent to do so.

Can you commit to submitting the Main Trainer / Facilitator Course Evaluation supplied by Gaia Education within 30 days after the course ends?

Can you commit to submitting a Final Report, designed by students, within 30 days of the course ending, allowing it to be publicly available?

Can you commit to sending 5 high resolution pictures (.jpeg format) of the programme along with the Final Report?

Can you commit to a reasonable gender balance among primary instructors (not less than 3:1)?

Can you commit that facilitators/teachers will not enter into sexual relationships with participants during the course?

Can you commit to equal employment and educational opportunities for all persons regardless of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability, or place of birth?

Can you commit that organisers and teachers will abstain from using illegal substances and not abuse legal substances during the course and that students will be requested to follow the same protocol?

Please confirm that you have read and can commit to Gaia Education’s Safeguarding policy and Code of Conduct?

Can you commit to Gaia Education's Privacy Policy?

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* 18. Supporting Material Check List (certification applications will only be accepted if ALL the following materials are received by the application deadline) - please email to certifications@gaiaeducation.org

Have you included your anticipated daily schedule of course, including a breakdown of hours within each of the 4 dimensions and for design work; and time allocated for orientation, regular reflection and evaluation?

Have you submitted the resumes of all primary faculty, with their gender indicated and have you highlighted the EDE date and host site/venue where the primary instructor with an EDE has graduated?

Have you reviewed and agreed to use the Course Evaluation form supplied by Gaia Education and available here?

Have you included other materials (brochures, posters, institutional leaflets of the host site) you have available about this course?

Have you included a high-resolution picture of the primary instructor with a completed EDE, in jpg format?

Have you included 2-3 high-resolution digital images of the host site(from the inside and outside facilities, excluding people, in jpg format) and a brief description (60 words max)?

Have you paid your certification fee and sent us a copy of your payment receipt?

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* 19. THANK YOU for taking the time to answer these questions. Please also feel free to comment on this form and the certification process as we hope to continue to adapt it to better meet everyone's needs. Please direct any further questions to certification@gaiaeducation.org

* Gaia Education Privacy Policy
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