Climate Farm School for Healthcare Professionals

Bridging Agriculture, Human Health, and Planetary Well-Being

Explore regenerative farming, earn CME & BRN credits, and transform healthcare through farm-based learning.

Climate Farm School’s CME and BRN-eligible course runs June 9 – 14 2025, in Sebastopol, CA. 

Contact us today to register!

Agriculture, human health, and planetary health are deeply intertwined. Climate Farm School explores this connection through hands-on education on farms. We are the only on-farm, evidence-based, farmer-led experience built for those ready to join the community leading food systems transformation.


Healthcare providers have a unique opportunity to directly impact patient outcomes and drive food systems transformation by learning about and engaging in regenerative agriculture practices through our week-long experiential learning program.

What to Expect

Our Green Valley Farm + Mill course runs June 9 – 14, 2025, and offers:

  • Hands-on regenerative farming: Experience how sustainable farming practices enhance food nutrition and human health.

  • Earn CME & BRN credits: Get 15 hours of CME and BRN credits.*

  • Food & health connection: Understand the inseparable link between food systems and health, and how changing farming practices can improve both.

  • Join a like-minded community: Connect with healthcare professionals committed to sustainable solutions for climate and health crises.

  • Farm-to-table dining: Enjoy fresh, farm-to-table meals prepared nightly by professional chefs (and cook alongside them, if you’d like).

  • Collaborative learning: Participate in fieldwork and hands-on activities that foster meaningful relationships and action-oriented solutions.

Actionable next steps: Leave with clear steps to address the climate crisis and integrate regenerative practices into your work.

Overview

Over 5+ days, you'll live in community on a leading ecological farm, immersed in food systems learning, and visit nearby farmers and projects focused on equitable, climate-resilient food systems. You'll work alongside regenerative farmers, soil scientists, ecologists, and food systems experts, with afternoons dedicated to facilitated discussions on key concepts. Each evening, farm-to-table chefs will guide meal preparation, tying course concepts together before a daily debrief.

  • Before beginning the on-farm week, you will explore our eight online learning modules. These modules will expand your understanding of the food-climate connection, principles and practices of regenerative agriculture, and avenues for systems change.

    You will complete two assignments during the course to help you envision a transformed food system and develop an action plan for your own life.

    Three live sessions will introduce the instructor team, cohort participants, and provide the opportunity for sharing and support.

  • A key feature of Climate Farm School is our incredible alumni and educator network. Graduates join an impressive, genuine, diverse, and caring community committed to building a better food system.

    Participants continue to support each other long after the course week ends, starting businesses, helping one another begin new careers, and coming together over food around the world.

  • At the completion of this course, you will be able to:

    • Describe how farming systems and farm conditions impact farmworker and community health, including exposure to disease, chemicals, and physical stressors such as heat

    • Examine how local food systems, institutional purchasing mechanisms, and public health policies can support or undermine public health and sustainable food and farm systems

    • Discuss the core principles of regenerative agriculture

    • Identify opportunities and challenges for advancing regenerative food production from a systems perspective

    • Examine intersections of equity, climate justice, and social wellbeing in regenerating food systems

    • Evaluate emerging evidence on the relationships between soil ecosystems, plant nutrition, the human gut microbiome, and human health and identify areas for future study

    • Apply evidence based practices related to gardening and soil contact to combat burnout and promote mental health

    • Integrate nutrition education and local food systems into total worker health programs and patient care to address diet-related chronic diseases

    • Build connections with fellow accomplished and aspiring changemakers and join a supportive community

    • Identify strategies for fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and examine the need for all skillsets in transforming food systems

    • Develop confidence and capacity to engage in the transformation of our food system & ecological regeneration.

  • This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the California Medical Association (CMA) through the joint providership of The Center for Occupational and Environmental Health and Climate Farm School. The Center for Occupational and Environmental Health is accredited by the CMA to provide continuing medical education for physicians. 

    The Center for Occupational and Environmental Health designates this blended learning enduring material and live activity for a maximum of 15.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

    Nursing

    Provider approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing, Provider Number 12983, for 15.0 contact hours.

Why Climate Farm School?

“In a world intricately connected by agriculture, farm-based education and research holds an important role at the crossroads of this complex network.” 

– Seeds of Success: Rooting Farm-Based Education and Research Centers in

Evidence-Based Best Practices

Climate Farm School is an ideal choice for healthcare providers seeking to explore the food system "upstream" — from the farm to the kitchen — to understand how food production impacts health.

Through key partnerships with Will Rosenzweig, founding director of Ideagarden, and Kris Madsen, M.D., a professor of public health at UC Berkeley, we’ve developed CME-eligible programs that connect healthcare professionals to the roots of the food system.

Our unique programs foster relationships between doctors, farmers, and nutrient-dense food, while offering valuable insights into the intersection of food production and health. We are committed to expanding these offerings, making them accessible to healthcare providers and promoting a more sustainable and informed food future.

  • Kris Madsen

    “Regenerative agriculture, grounded in practices that mitigate climate change while building healthy soil, has been shown to reduce harms to farm workers, increase nutrient density of food products, and offer important avenues for human connection to land, food, and health. Climate Farm School is an opportunity to weave regenerative principles and systems thinking into medical training and continuing education, while staying on a farm, deepening our ability to understand the interconnectedness of human and planetary health. Climate Farm School offers healing and rejuvenation to medical professionals, while empowering them to give practical and grounded guidance related to patients on diet-related disease, chronic illness, and related mental health challenges.”

    Kris Madsen, MD MPH; Professor, UC Berkeley School of Public Health

  • Jenny Pandol

    “Our health depends on the health of our soil and the quality of the food we grow. Understanding all aspects of the food system helps us have a better picture of the root issues that need to be addressed to influence the food and health systems. Each cohort brings together people from many backgrounds looking to learn and understand how they can implement what they learn into their respective industries. Some come wanting a new career path, others to implement what they learn into their own farming venture and everything in between. The learning environment is dynamic, inclusive and creative with an abundance of information and resources for everyone. Come with a purpose and you’re sure to find support, whether within your immediate cohort or from the many connections you make in the greater community. It’s an opportunity to cultivate lifelong friendships and connections to meet your goals.”

    Jenny Pandol, RN

Health is Food. Food is Health.

The Climate Farm School Culinary Experience

At the heart of the Climate Farm School experience is gathering around the table to share food that nourishes us and restores ecosystems. During this course, participants work alongside resident farm-to-table chefs to prepare dinner, where chefs not only share their culinary expertise but also explore their creativity and local food systems. 

Regenerative principles shape the nightly menus, and discussions about sourcing local, ecological, and delicious ingredients often spark meaningful conversations at the table.

Meet the Chef

  • Cook at Chez Panisse & Private Chef

    Gary is committed to educating and inspiring change-makers through the lenses of cooking and experiential learning to revolutionize the global food system.

    Studying the literary traditions of the western cannon left him full of theory and starved for the real life experience that is so often missing in academia. The need to learn a practical trade led him to his first kitchen job in his small college town of Chico, Ca. His formative years cooking in Northern California restaurants laid the ground work for an interest in local food systems which ultimately lead to a five year deep dive into farming and direct marketing by working for the Certified Farmers' Markets of Sacramento. There he became intimately connected to the web of producers and consumers the are the lifeblood of California's "farm-to-fork capital".

    In 2016 Alice Waters asked him to join the team of cooks working in the celebrated kitchen of the downstairs restaurant at Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California. He's been happily manning the stoves and tending the hearth there ever since. 

    His goal as a chef is to revitalize the values of slow food by gathering around the table, promoting the values of edible education, regenerative agriculture, and climate-conscious ingredients. To learn more about Gary visit www.garypodesto.net.Growing up in Beijing, her parents endeavored to open a farm-to-table restaurant aligned with the Slow Food Movement ethos in the foothills of the Great Wall. Having observed the community surrounding The Schoolhouse, a revitalized abandoned schoolyard, and the educational opportunities it presented to discuss local sourcing, she was exposed to a hopeful future for food and also the challenges of running a small sustainable business.

    At the heart of her work has always been people, and she’s always believed food to be foundational in building community. In this next chapter of her career, she remains a student of regenerative agricultural practices — she is eager to incorporate locally sourced and freshly milled grains from the East Coast with seasonal ingredients in her exploration of cross-cultural baking and community.

Sample menu

Welcome to Green Valley Farm + Mill

Green Valley Farm + Mill is a 172-acre property located on Southern Pomo, Kashia, and Coast Miwok ancestral lands, encompassing the headwaters of Green Valley Creek, where salmon still spawn. Surrounded by neighbors who have stewarded the land for centuries, the farm is committed to ecological stewardship, education, and regenerative farming. It is cooperatively owned and hosts several on-farm businesses, including a raw milk herdshare, dry-farmed vineyard, medicinal herb garden, specialty vegetable production, a forest-to-furniture business, and a children's nature awareness program.

Accommodations & Pricing

Accommodation options and prices:

Private room – $3,600

Shared – $3,250

Camping – $2,950

Offsite – $2,950

FAQs

  • Climate Farm School is designed for individuals of all backgrounds, including doctors, nurses, current and aspiring food system professionals, investors, tech workers, entrepreneurs, policymakers, marketers, nutritionists, educators and artists among others. The strong intersection between food systems, human health, and planetary health explored in this course is particularly applicable to healthcare professionals who have the ability to immediately integrate their learnings into their practice and advocate for systemic a shift in healthcare that recognizes the importance and benefits of regenerative agriculture.

  • For doctors and nurses, our April Green Valley Farm + Mill is currently the only course approved for CME and BRN credit.

    Other factors that we recommend considering are the timing and location of the course. If there is a farm that is relatively local to you, that is a positive thing to consider as you are more likely to be able to engage in follow up visits or collaboration with the farm if it’s within your regional food system. However, depending on your goals and motivation, learning from a farm that is a bit further away, or international, can provide a great experience as well. One last factor to consider is the farm’s relative areas of expertise. All of our host farms deliver a common ‘core curriculum’ for participants, but each farm has various areas of expertise that they bring on top of that core foundation. Explore the farm-specific pages, which reflect areas of specific expertise for that host farmer.

  • To ensure that our farm partners do not suffer losses due to last-minute cancellations, we have the following policy for participant cancellcations:

    • If you cancel 2 months ahead of the online course start date, you will receive a 100% refund.

    • If you cancel less than 2 months ahead of the online course start date, you will receive a 90% refund

    • If you cancel in less than a month but more than two weeks ahead of the online course start date, you get a 50% refund.

    • If you cancel within two weeks of the online course start date, we will not be able to offer you a refund.

    Though unlikely, it is possible that circumstances could result in the cancellation of a course, or rescinding of an acceptance by either Climate Farm School or a host farm. In this event:

    • Participants will receive a full refund of their course payment

    • We are unable to reimburse for travel or accommodation bookings, and encourage participants where possible to book flexible travel options

  • As long as you’re able to take at least 1 week off from your job for the farm stay, you will be able to participate in the full program. There is limited WiFi available at the farms and the in-person schedule is designed to be flexible so that if you do have to check in on work or take an important meeting, you can do so while living, learning, and working on the farm. If you can’t take time off, there is an all-online version of the course content coming soon. Get in touch with our Terra.do team if you are interested in this option.

  • The host farm sites have comfortable, rustic farmhouse bedrooms with shared bathrooms. There will be clean sheets and towels available, and basic bathroom products but please bring any personal items you need to be comfortable. There are indoor and outdoor showers, and indoor bathrooms as well as composting toilets on many farms. Camping on the farm is available for a lower per-night rate at some host farms.

  • Pricing ranges from $2600 - $3600 based on the host site and accommodation type. Private and shared rooms on the farm range from $3000 - $3600, and camping or offsite range from $2600 - $3000. We strive to make the course as accessible as possible and offer a limited amount of financial aid. We encourage you to apply even if you cannot afford the full course cost and we can explore if financial aid is available.

  • We want this program to work for learners of all stripes, regardless of individual or organizational ability to pay. Please apply—we will make every effort to accommodate the circumstances of qualified students with scholarship funds, within the limitations of ensuring that hard costs of running the program and making payment to farmers are met.

  • Many organizations have learning or professional development budgets for their employees. We encourage you to enquire about and utilize this budget to attend the course, as a number program alumni have done in the past. Climate Farm School can help you get reimbursed for the course by providing an invoice, a certificate, and any other documentation you need. If you have approval from your company, we can also arrange for your company to pay directly.

    Past participants have also received scholarships from their graduate or undergraduate programs, and we encourage applicants to pursue this option.

  • You will receive a suggested packing list upon payment/confirmation of your spot in the course. Comfortable clothes for working outdoors, suitable footwear, and sun protection are key items to bring.

Join us at Climate Farm School

Can't join us in June* but still interested in the program? Please fill out our Interest Form!

We have additional spring, summer, and fall course offerings. 

*Please note, the June course is currently the only CME-accredited option.