The INFOPACK for

Erasmus+ Youth Workers Mobility Project

A 13-day Certified (72h) Permaculture Design Course (PDC)

Age of participants: All ages over 18

5  countries | 17 participants | 4 trainers

At COB eco-project at Nessonas (Larissa), Greece

June 23 - July 5 (excluding travel days)  

Partner Countries: Greece, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, Slovenia

Information Package:

1. General information

2. Accommodation

3. What to bring

4. Travel Information

5. Activities

6. Trainers

7. Disclaimer

8. Confirmation

1. GENERAL INFORMATION

TIMELINE

Arrival Date: 22 June, 2026 (by 20:00 ideally)

Training Dates: 23 June - 5 July 2026

Departure Date: 6 July 2026, during the day when transport is available.

Green Travel Dates (Optional): 21-23 June for arrival / 6-8 July for return

Participants must attend the full duration of the program to be eligible for travel reimbursement.

Please respect the dates of arrival and departure. If you need to come earlier or leave later, please send us an email to our project coordinator efstathia.sideris@gmail.com 

1.2 VENUE 

The COB eco-project is an off-grid, permaculture-based agroforestry farm and intentional eco-community located in central Greece. Founded as a social cooperative for sustainable development, COB began with the vision of becoming an educational center dedicated to natural building, bioclimatic architecture and the responsible use of resources and energy.

Over the years, it has evolved into a living lab of regenerative culture where learning, ecological practices and community life are deeply interconnected. The farm specialises in natural building techniques, regenerative farming, appropriate technologies and sustainable living systems that respect both people and the planet.

COB hosts regular trainings, workshops, short-term and long-term volunteer programs, where youth and adult learners immerse themselves in:

• Natural Building and bioclimatic design
• Permaculture, Agroforestry & Syntropic Agriculture
• Natural farming and healthy, plant-based nutrition
• Renewable energy, appropriate technologies & off-grid systems
• Zero-waste & self-sufficient living
• Non-violent communication and sociocratic decision-making
• community-based and hands-on learning

More than just a training regenerative farm, COB acts as a connector between eco-projects and eco-communities across Greece, the Balkans and Europe creating a network that supports youth workers and young changemakers in deepening their knowledge, refining their values and building the future they believe in.

🌐 For more information, visit: www.cob.gr  📘 Facebook: @buildingwithearth 📸Instagram: @cob_gr

2. ACCOMODATION

This Training Course will take place at the COB eco-community permaculture farm, surrounded by a lush food forest. During your stay, you will be sleeping in shared or individual tents provided by the project (or you can bring your own), nestled within our agroforestry almond orchard. Please bring your own sleeping bag, mat, pillow and any items you need to rest comfortably outdoors (these can be provided if needed).

*Note: Mosquitos are part of the ecosystem - make sure to bring a natural mosquito repellent to stay comfortable.

Facilities on the farm are simple and eco-friendly:

- Compost toilets and outdoor hot showers are available
- We use water consciously, in harmony with the surrounding ecosystem
- Please bring plant-based, fully biodegradable toiletries (shampoo, soap, toothpaste, etc.) so that greywater can safely return to the land. If you don’t have these, a biodegradable eco-toiletry kit can be provided for 7€ (please let us know in advance)

🥗 Meals are lovingly prepared in our off-grid kitchen and are healthy and plant-based (sometimes our farm eggs and honey are included). If you have any allergies or specific dietary needs, please inform us in advance so we can plan accordingly.

📶 There is limited internet access on the farm, mainly near the main house (red house), but we encourage everyone to disconnect from devices and reconnect with nature, people and local community.

🔋 Our energy comes from a solar-powered system, which means electricity is limited. Please charge your devices during the day and avoid bringing high-energy appliances like hairdryers. On cloudy days, energy usage is prioritised only for essentials.

Life on the farm is rooted in simplicity, sustainability and cooperation. We kindly ask that you come prepared to embrace this way of life throughout the training.

⚠️ Community Living & Wellbeing

As this training takes place within an intentional eco-community focused on wellbeing, collective care and conscious living, please note that alcohol and recreational drugs are neither provided nor encouraged within the community space and activity areas.

Participants who wish to consume alcohol may do so respectfully at the cooperative village café operated by members of the COB community in the Nessonas village square.

🍷 Rizes Cooperative Café: Rizes Cooperative Café Instagram

We kindly ask all participants to respect the collective atmosphere, shared spaces and wellbeing of the group throughout the training.

💡 Additional Practical Information

During the training, participants will also have the opportunity to support the project by purchasing some locally produced regenerative products and community-made items from the COB eco-community, such as:
• preserves and farm products
• natural products
• T-shirts and merchandise
• handmade or educational materials

As card payment options may not always be available, we recommend bringing a small amount of cash with you in case you would like to support the project in this way.

2.1 Average Nessonas’ Weather in June

June in Nessonas is warm, sunny and mostly dry, with average daytime temperatures ranging from 25°C to 35°C, and cooler evenings around 18-22°C.

The weather is ideal for outdoor work, camping and evening activities in nature, but participants should be prepared for strong sun exposure during daytime practical sessions. We recommend bringing:
• a sun hat
• light and breathable clothing
• sunscreen
• and a reusable water bottle to stay cool and hydrated.

Occasionally, there may be windy evenings or short summer storms, so having a light rain jacket or an extra warm layer can also be useful.

🌞 Expect long sunny days, warm evenings and plenty of time outdoors immersed in nature, community living and hands-on learning!

3. WHAT TO BRING - PACKING TIPS

Get ready for a sunny, earthy, hands-on adventure! Here's what you'll need for a comfortable and mindful stay during your training:

📌 Essentials for Sleeping Outdoors

• SLEEPING BAG
• Camping MAT or inflatable mattress
• Pillow + 2-3 pillow cases
• Towel for shower
• Swimsuit & towel (for saunas or natural swims)

🌺 Clothing

• Clothes that can get dirty (you will get muddy!)
• Long-sleeved light shirts (for sun & bugs)
• Comfortable pants & shorts
• Warm jumper or jacket (nights can be cooler)
• Raincoat or waterproof poncho
• Comfortable walking shoes + outdoor work shoes
• Hat to protect from the sun

✨ Daily Gear

• Reusable water bottle
• Headlamp or flashlight (with extra batteries)
• Sunglasses
• Sunscreen (eco-friendly)
• Notebook/journal and pens

🏠 Hygiene & Toiletries

• Biodegradable shampoo, toothpaste, soap (if needed, available at the farm: 3.5€ toothpaste / 4€ soap)
• Biodegradable clothes detergent (optional: 3€)
• Natural mosquito repellent
• Personal medications, hygiene needs, tobacco etc. (note: nearest shop is 3km away)

📚 Sharing & Community

• Musical instruments, games, stories, dances
• Any materials you'd like to use for activities or sharing circles
• An open heart & willingness to collaborate!

4. TRAVEL INFOMRATION

The training will take place at our agroforestry farm in Nessonas (Zip code: 40006), a small village in central Greece, just 15 km from the city of Larissa.

📍 Exact location:

COB eco-project – 39°43’44.0”N, 22°32’40.1”E

🔗 Google Maps

✈️ Closest Airports

• Volos airport (VOL) – approx. 84 km

• Thessaloniki Airport (SKG) – approx. 171 km
• Athens Airport (ATH) – approx. 385 km

🚉 Train & Bus Options

➤ From Athens:

• Take the suburban train from the airport to “Larissa Station” (Athens city).
• From “Larissa Station”, take the train to Larissa (Central Greece).

 🕓 Duration: 3-4 hours | 💶 Cost: €13.50 – €41.50
🔗 Hellenic Train info

OR

• From the airport, go to Liosion Bus Station and take a KTEL intercity bus to Larissa.
  🔗 Athens transport info

➤ From Thessaloniki:

1. Take Bus X1 or N1 from the airport to Thessaloniki Railway Station.
2. Then take a train to Larissa (faster than the bus).
   🕓 Duration: 1.5–2 hours | 💶 Cost: €10 – €30
   
   

 OR

3. Use the KTEL bus from Thessaloniki KTEL station to Larissa.
   🔗 Larissa Bus Info
   

🚌 From Larissa to Nessonas (Sykourio)

• Take a local bus to Sykourio village and ask to stop at Nessonas village.
  🕓 Duration: ~20 min | 💶 Cost: ~€2

🔗https://www.ktellarisas.gr/ektakta-dromologia/ 

Once in Nessonas, the farm is just a 3-minute walk. Use GPS or contact us if you need help - we’ll also be checking for new arrivals at the bus stop or at our community cafe Rizes at the village square!

⚠️ Important Travel Notes

✅ Please book your tickets early and keep ALL receipts and originals (PDFs or printed copies).

✅ We can’t reimburse travel without valid tickets showing:

• Name, date, route and cost
• Both departure and return trips

📥 Keep the hard copies, take a picture with your phone and deliver them both to us.

4.1 Green Travel

If you’re coming by bus, train or carpool  you may qualify for Green Travel and receive up to 4 additional travel days total (2 extra each way, so 6 in total). Please check with us before booking.

4.2 Travel Reimbursement

Your travel costs will be reimbursed based on Erasmus+ distance bands.

Use the official calculator to check your distance here:

🔗 Distance Calculator

Note: You MUST be present for the entire training in order to receive a reimbursement.

5. ACTIVITIES

The “Biomimicry in Practice – A Permaculture Design Course (PDC)” Youth Workers Mobility project invites participants into an immersive learning experience focused on regenerative living, ecological design and community-based sustainability.

The main objective of this training is to explore how natural ecosystems function and how we can apply these principles in designing resilient eco-social systems capable not only of adapting to change, but also regenerating landscapes, communities and ways of living.

Through non-formal education methodologies, peer learning, practical implementation and collective reflection, participants will gain both theoretical understanding and hands-on experience in permaculture design and regenerative practices.

Participants will learn not only how to design regenerative landscapes, but also how to cultivate regenerative ways of living, relating and organising.

This training combines:
• practical outdoor activities
• theoretical lessons
• observation in the field
• group design work
• reflection circles
• collective living and shared responsibilities

and offers participants the opportunity to experience permaculture not only as an agricultural system, but as a holistic approach to life.

5.1 What is a PDC?

The Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) is an internationally recognised 72-hour training experience originally developed by permaculture co-founders Bill Mollison and David Holmgren.

Participants who complete the full curriculum receive the Permaculture Design Certificate and become part of a worldwide network of people working towards ecological regeneration, resilient communities and sustainable cultures.

The PDC framework provides participants with tools to:
• understand natural systems
• design regenerative landscapes
• improve resource management
• strengthen local resilience
• and create practical ecological solutions adaptable to many contexts.

Because of the long-term activities and focus of the COB eco-community, this PDC places particular emphasis on:
• Agroforestry
• Regenerative agriculture
• Market gardening
• Natural building
• Water stewardship
• Social permaculture
• Community-based living

5.2 Topics & Learning Areas

The training will cover the following topics and will be enriched through practical activities, observation exercises, group work and reflection sessions:

🌍 Permaculture Foundations

• Ethics and principles of permaculture
• Biomimicry and ecosystem thinking
• Natural patterns in design
• Scale of permanence
• Zones and sectors
• Reading landscapes and map understanding

🌳 Agroforestry & Regenerative Agriculture

• Food forests and forest layers
• Syntropic agroforestry
• Biointensive market gardening
• Plant nursery and propagation
• Seed saving and seed storage
• Pruning and agroforest management
• Organic matter cycles and soil building

🌾 Soil & Compost

• Soil ecology and microbiology
• Composting systems
• Worm composting• Biochar and biofertilizers
• Natural fertilisation methods

💧 Water Management

• Water retention landscapes
• Keyline design
• Rainwater harvesting
• Earthworks and water management systems
• Natural ponds

🍄 Ecosystems & Appropriate Technologies

• Fungi and mushroom cultivation
• Renewable energy systems
• Appropriate technologies
• Waste-water management
• Compost toilets and greywater systems

🏡 Natural Building

• Introduction to natural building
• Bioclimatic architecture
• Sustainable material use
• Ecological infrastructure systems

👥 Social Permaculture & Community Living

• Cooperation and collective organisation
• Community-supported agriculture (CSA)
• Non-violent communication (NVC)
• Sociocracy and participatory decision-making
• Group processes and collective responsibility

5.3 Design-to-Community Module

A key part of the training is the practical application of permaculture design in real-life contexts.

Participants will work in groups to develop small permaculture intervention proposals connected to real lands, communities or projects.

Examples may include:
• school gardens
• community compost systems
• food forest micro-designs
• regenerative community spaces
• participant-led land or project ideas

Each design will include:
• clear objectives
• identified beneficiaries
• implementation steps
• potential for replication in other contexts

5.4 Tangible Outputs

Each group will produce:

🧩 1 Permaculture Design Poster (PDF)
A visual summary of their design proposal.

🖥 1 Short Presentation (slides)
Initially presented during the final days of the course and later further refined into a final documented version to be shared with the organising team.

These outputs aim to:
• support local implementation after the training
• strengthen participants’ ability to apply permaculture in real settings
• contribute to a growing pool of replicable ecological solutions across Europe

5.5 Community Life & Collective Experience

Participants will also engage in the everyday life of the COB eco-community through:

• community cooking
• cleaning and care for common spaces
• shared responsibilities and teamwork
• collective decision-making processes
• reflection and feedback circles
• co-living and mutual support

This is not a festival or eco-tourism experience, but an intensive educational and community-based training involving active participation and collective responsibility.

And much, much more 🌱

🌀 Daily Flow (overview)

Each day will combine:
• morning circles & intention setting
• theoretical lessons and design sessions • hands-on practical activities
• observation in the field
• reflection and group processes
• shared meals and community living

The rhythm of the course is designed to balance learning, practice, cooperation and rest, while allowing flexibility according to weather conditions, group energy and the needs of the land and activities.

5.6 Indicative Daily Schedule

(may vary depending on weather, workflow and group needs)

07:30 – 08:30 → Breakfast & morning circle
08:30 – 14:00 → Practical activities / field work / observation sessions
14:00 – 16:00 → Lunch & rest time
16:00 – 17:00 → Theory session / permaculture design / group work
17:00 – 19:30 → Practical implementation / reflection / sharing sessions
20:00 onwards → Dinner, free time, music, informal activities & community life

Some evenings may also include:
• documentary screenings
• participant-led workshops
• presentations
• design work
• music & cultural sharing
• sauna or pond evenings

A more detailed timetable will be shared with the selected participants before the activity.

6. TRAINERS

Christos Kontomanos: Agronomist & Permaculture Trainer (Regenerative Food Systems)

Agronomist (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki) and permaculture designer leading COB’s food forest and market-garden work. Christos steers Cob-aeiforia and the Green Basket short-supply-chain, turning design into daily farm practice and viable logistics. His focus spans soil regeneration and composting, Keyline-inspired agroforestry layouts, seed systems, irrigation planning and CSA/micro-CSA scheduling from crop plans to distribution. He has facilitated 30+ workshops, guiding youth through design, implementation and monitoring (soil/water indicators) and linking productive landscapes with built elements so outputs function as working agro-ecosystems.

Annachiara Bucci: Environmental Engineer (Appropriate Technologies: Water & Energy)

Polytechnic University of Milan graduate bringing rigorous yet accessible engineering to self-sufficiency systems. Annachiara designs and teaches low-tech labs in biogas, greywater treatment with reeds, water purification and off-grid energy, always pairing prototyping with O&M routines, safety and simple performance monitoring so participants can read data, troubleshoot and iterate. She translates designs into functioning infrastructure on the farm and co-facilitates Erasmus+ modules, ensuring that water/energy systems are both technically sound and teachable across partner contexts.

Christos Karystinos: Social Permaculture trainer

Christos Karystinos is a passionate environmental and political activist, who is particularly interested in community life. In 2017 he was introduced to Permaculture and in 2018 he did his first PDC, certified with Same Parker Davies and a Permaculture & Social Permaculture trainers training inspired by the work of Rosemary Morrow by Alfred Decker and Giuseppe Sannicandro. She has lived and visited eco-communities around the world (Sunseed, Lakabe, Auroville) and volunteered in various permaculture projects across Europe. He is particularly interested in Energy Management as he graduated as an Electrical Engineer from the National Technical

Kostas Kontomanos, Lead Trainer in Natural Building

Kostas Kontomanos studied Economics, but his path took a radically different turn when he bought a piece of land in Nessonas in the mid-1990s, hoping to become a farmer. In 2001, he built his first natural house there with a close friend and never looked back.

Since then, Kostas has become a pioneer of natural building in Greece, dedicating the last two decades to spreading ecological construction, regenerative living and community-based education. He is the founder of the COB eco-project, a model farm and eco-community showcasing bioclimatic architecture, off-grid technologies and sustainable food systems.

“We came to learn how to build with earth but we also built trust, community and new ways of living and learning together.”

-From the COB community

7. DISCLAIMER 

7.1 Health & Travel Insurance

All participants are required to have valid health insurance coverage for the duration of their stay in Greece.

If you are an EU citizen, please make sure to bring your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) with you. It allows you to access public healthcare in Greece during your stay, under the same conditions as local citizens. If you are from a non-EU country, or your country does not participate in the EHIC scheme, you are responsible for arranging private travel and health insurance before your departure.

We also recommend that all participants ensure their insurance covers:

• Medical emergencies
• Travel disruptions or delays
• Personal liability

Please consult your sending/supporting organisation if you are unsure what kind of coverage you need.

8. CONFIRMATION 

To apply for this project you need to fill up this form:

   *APPLY HERE *

Application deadline: 22 May 2026

Results max by: 24 May 2026

8.1 Self-Funded Participation Opportunities

In addition to the Erasmus+ funded participant spots offered through partner organisations, a limited number of self-funded places are also available for participants from other countries or independent applicants who resonate with the project.

The course is European co-funded, allowing us to offer reduced participation costs compared to a standard certified Permaculture Design Course.

Contribution Options for Self-Funded Participants

A) 320€ — “Supported Participation”
For participants with financial difficulties or limited economic opportunities.

B) 350€ — “Fair Contribution”
The price we consider balanced and fair for both the participants and the organising community.

C) 380€ — “Supportive Contribution”
For participants who are able to contribute a bit more and further support the sustainability of the organising venue and future educational activities.

The contribution includes:
 • participation in the full 13-day certified PDC
• accommodation during the activity
• daily meals
• training materials
• facilitation and organisational costs

⚠️ Travel costs are not included for self-funded participants.

📝 Reservation Deposit

A downpayment of 50€ is required in order to reserve a place in the course.

Please note:
• the deposit is non-refundable within 15 days before the beginning of the activity
• the remaining amount is paid upon arrival at the venue (preferably in cash)

As places are limited, early confirmation is strongly recommended.

You will wait for confirmation or you will be asked for more information.

Once accepted, you’ll need to send your travel plans by 30 May 2026 .

Please inform us about your arrival time via email or whatsapp.Thank you!

We look forward to welcoming you to the COB eco-community!