Create, Connect, and Contribute to a Better Food System

Live, learn, and work on a leading ecological farm, while building a community dedicated to climate resilience, food justice, and ecosystem restoration.

Climate Farm School is the only on-farm, evidence-based, farmer-led experience built for those ready to join the community leading food systems transformation.

Whether you’re a professional looking to level up your career or someone seeking a transformative adventure, Climate Farm School offers an immersive week-long experience where you’ll work, learn, and live alongside experts in regenerative agriculture. From stunning farms to vibrant communities, it’s more than just a course—it’s a chance to discover a new way of life.

"The week spent at Green Valley Farm + Mill was one of the greatest experiences I have ever had. This course has given me so much knowledge, insight, perspective and hope. The course material combined with all the people associated in making it what it is makes it so unique and like nothing else out there."

-Varsha Uthappa, Business Consultant at Coldwater Canyon Provision

What is Climate Farm School?

Ready to reconnect with food, nature, and yourself?

Where & When

  • Paicines, California

     March 31 – April 3, 2025 (short course)

     Cost: $1,350 – $1,950

    Included in all pricing: Lodging, three locally-sourced meals a day, course instruction, and materials.

  • County Cork, Ireland

    April 13 – 19, 2025

    Cost: €3,900 – €4,300

    Included in all pricing: Lodging, three locally-sourced meals a day, course instruction, and materials.

  • Sebastopol, California

    April 14 – 19, 2025
    June 9 – 14, 2025

    Cost: $2,950 – $3,600

    Included in all pricing: Lodging, three locally-sourced meals a day, course instruction, and materials.

  • Tuscany, Italy

    May 19 – 25, 2025
    October 14 – 20, 2025
    Cost: $3,250 – $3,600

    Included in all pricing: Lodging, three locally-sourced meals a day, course instruction, and materials.

  • Ghent, New York

    August 11 – 14, 2025
    September 10 – 13, 2025 (short course).

    Included in all pricing: Lodging, three locally-sourced meals a day, course instruction, and materials.

What to Expect

You will live in community on an ecological farm, learn about food systems, and visit nearby projects focused on climate-resilient agriculture. You will work alongside regenerative farmers, scientists, and experts, with afternoons dedicated to discussions on key concepts. Each evening, farm-to-table chefs will guide meal prep, connecting course ideas before a daily debrief. Groups are limited to 12 participants.

    • Before beginning the on-farm week, you will explore our 8 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.

    • Understand the core principles of regenerative agriculture.

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

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

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

    • Discover the need for all skillsets in transforming food systems.

    • Be empowered to contribute to the transformation of our food system & ecological regeneration.

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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 each 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.

Our Host Farms

Every Climate Farm School host farm is driven by a mission to restore ecosystems while producing nourishing food. They are leaders in regenerative practices—continuously monitoring their impact and seeking improvement.

  • Nestled in the heart of San Benito County, among the sweeping oak-studded hillsides, the historic Paicines Ranch is habitat for wildlife. The ranch mission is to work with the dynamic natural world to regenerate the health of the ecosystem from the soil up while growing delicious, nourishing food for the surrounding community. The ranch consists of approximately 7,000 acres of rangeland, 550 acres of row crop ground, and 25 acres of vineyard, all certified organic. In all three areas, farmers and ranchers are making changes to move towards more perennial systems, more complexity and diversity. The farm also produces 100% grassfed beef, lamb, pork, and turkey.

    Learn More

  • Hawthorne Valley Farm is a 900-acre, biodynamic and organic certified farm producing grass-fed dairy products and meat. The farm consists of fields and pasture growing grass for the dairy herd; 14-acres of vegetable growing for their farmstore, education programs, and New York City and Hudson Valley markets; and 60 acres of grain for their bakery and livestock feed. In addition to maintaining forest on the land and working with an onsite ecology team to enhance beneficial ecological features, Hawthorne Valley has begun a silvopasture project in recent years. The farm is a strong example of a small-scale organic dairy, an increasingly rare farming business threatened by consolidation and industrialized farming. Hawthorne Valley hosts a K-12 Waldorf school onsite, as well as farmer training programs, a farm store, art center, and Farmscape Ecology.

    Learn More

  • Green Valley Farm + Mill is a 172-acre property located on Southern Pomo, Kashia, and Coast Miwok ancestral lands. Its footprint comprises the majority of the headwaters of Green Valley Creek, where salmon still return to spawn, and a large part of what is considered the Green Valley.  The farm is surrounded by neighbors that have lived on and stewarded this land for centuries. The current onsite community is committed to ecological stewardship, education, and vibrant, regenerative farm enterprises. It is a cooperatively owned farm with several on-farm businesses including a raw milk herdshare, a dry-farmed vineyard, a medicinal herb garden, specialty vegetable production, a forest-to-furniture business, and a children’s nature awareness program.

    Learn More

  • Spannocchia is a 1,000 acre diversified farm in the Tuscan hills southwest of Siena. The farm is comprised of vineyards, olive orchards, grazing pastures for heritage breed cows and pigs, and small scale vegetable and herb production. Spannocchia preserves an ancient form of life in Tuscany that is based on community, respect for tradition, and a responsible use of resources. The farm serves as an international model for sustainability, and for more than twenty years has hosted interns from around the world to learn about responsible tourism. Participants will stay in a 12th century Tuscan castle and engage in a community of farmers, interns, chefs, butchers, and food processors.

    Learn More

  • This 100 acre organic farm, site of the famed Ballymaloe Cookery School, is located near the sea amidst the undulating landscape of beautiful East Cork. The biodiverse farm, gardens and one acre greenhouses yield an abundance of nutrient dense and delicious fruit, herbs and vegetables throughout the year. Most of the food grown on the farm is used by the Cookery School but the farm also supplies its local community from its onsite Farm Shop and weekly Farmers Market stall in Midleton. Free-range livestock include pigs, beef and dairy cows (Angus, Kerry, Dexter and Jerseys), as well as the many free range hens (650 and counting!) ensuring the Cookery School has a constant supply of fresh, organic eggs.

    This biodiverse family farm has long been at the heart of transformational experiences for culinary students from all over the world with a sustainable mindset who value food education rooted in the land. This exciting collaboration between Climate Farm School and Ballymaloe Organic Farm School is a unique opportunity to have the Ballymaloe experience through a regenerative agriculture and food systems lens.

    Learn More

Paicines Ranch

Green Valley Farm + Mill

Tenuta di Spannocchia

Ballymaloe Organic Farm

Hawthorne Valley Farm

Testimonials

Hear what past participants have to say.

  • "My original hope in attending Climate Farm School was to accelerate my knowledge of food systems and how regenerative farming methods play a role in improving their resiliency. What I gained was so much more. Through Climate Farm School, I learned that regenerative agriculture was not only a tool to rebuild vulnerable food systems, but it was also a tool to restore entire ecosystems. During my on-farm visit at Paicines Ranch, I witnessed the return of native biodiversity through these practices, and better understood how domesticated livestock can mimic previous patterns of nature to bring back its natural rhythm. Being on nature's clock that week also allowed me to find my own restoration and rhythm with nature, which deepened my connection to the land and this program. Highly recommend this experience to anyone seeking a path to reconnect with food, nature, and themselves!"

    - Asha Agrawal, Managing Director at Tin Shed Ventures & Head of Corporate Development at Patagonia

  • "Climate Farm School was an amazing opportunity to learn in depth about regenerative practices and see how these work in practice during the onsite farm experience. I learned so much and am inspired to keep learning and dedicating my energy towards land transformation to support our climate."

    - Anne Spalding, US Programs Director at Trillium Technologies

  • "This is the way to do it for anyone who wants to learn about Farming and Climate because this isn't a boutique experience. Instead, the time spent with farmers shows the real side of farming and how weather and climate affect the farms and farmers. In addition, Ryan and Laney were excellent facilitators who balanced educating the group with listening and learning."

    - Jamilla Jones, Founder of Generational Seeds

  • "Climate Farm school exceeded anything I could have dreamed of! The week I spent living on Midnight's farm showed me what true connection and intention look like in practice. With a combination of hands-on learning in garden bed transitions, composting, rotational grazing practices and farm management, I also got the academic side of regenerative agriculture with daily talks from Soil Scientists and local experts. There is no way to put into words everything I was able to take away from this program. I highly recommend anyone who is curious about climate work to make time to experience Climate Farm School. You won't regret it."

    - Keyana Buckner, Program Manager at King County Department of Natural Resources

  • "Climate Farm School was honestly a life changing experience. This program is for anyone- someone like me in career transition or someone just looking to learn more about where their food comes from. Both the online and in-person educational content were top notch. The on-farm week was a particularly special experience. The conversations we had as a group and with key stakeholders in our food systems were paradigm shifting. While I was excited to connect with others interested in the same topics, I wasn’t expecting to leave the week with new friends. This program is such a great way to build community and prioritize joy and connection while learning how to address some of the biggest social and environmental problems of our time. I couldn't recommend it more!"

    - Lindsey Johnson, Program Coordinator, Soil & Climate Alliance

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.