Learning on, by, and for the land and the people who tend it
Immersive education for people who want to understand, read, and care for the places they steward.
Land Camp
Come curious. Leave with new eyes and new tools.
Land Camp is an immersive experience for people who want to understand and care for land more deeply.
Built around an intuitive premise: soil, water, plants, biology, and landscape are one interconnected system. Learning to read that system changes how you see everything.
This is not a lecture series. It is a learning community — a small cohort of up to 15 people moving between field and classroom, observation and conversation, question and experiment. The facilitation is coaching-based. The goal is to draw out what participants already know, layer in frameworks and field experience, and help everyone develop a practice of land observation they can carry forward in their own context.
You’ll leave with new eyes, new tools, and a one-hour follow-up coaching session with Casey to help you apply what you’ve learned on your own land.
What we Cover
Six domains. One interconnected system.
People
The human dimension woven through every day: curiosity, observation, collaboration, and the personal practice of land stewardship.
Soil
Best for immediate clarity, second opinions, and solving a specific challenge without overcommitting.
Microbiology
Create a clear, confident starting point for future management decisions.
Plants
Deep systems insight for land health, operational performance, and long-term resilience.
Water
Deep systems insight for land health, operational performance, and long-term resilience.
Landscape
Measure progress over a full calendar year and beyond, validate management changes, and track whether interventions are creating the desired outcomes.
What a Day Looks Like
The first day begins with arrivals, introductions, and getting into the right mindset, though there is plenty to do from the start.
For the rest of the week, days run 8 am to 5 pm with a shared catered lunch. Mornings open with reflections from the day before. From there, the day moves between discussion, lecture, group activities, and field work — different modalities used to frame and deepen experiences rather than transmit information statically.
Hands-on activities are central: soil transects, contouring exercises with A-frame and bunyip levels, microscopy, clay landscape modeling, field walks, succession games, and more.
Technical content and the personal dimensions of land stewardship are woven together throughout because they are intimately connected.
Who Is This For?
Land Camp is designed for landowners, farmers, managers, designers, and practitioners — and anyone looking for a deeper understanding of and connection to the land they steward.
If you have accumulated knowledge in pieces but want a coherent framework for observation, monitoring, and stewardship, this is for you. No specific experience level is required. Participants come from different backgrounds, which enriches the experience for everyone. That diversity is an asset — everyone is great at something, and the group learns from itself as much as from the facilitator.
Philosophy and Approach
A few principles that shape everything at Land Camp:
Everyone is an expert in something. The room knows more than any one person in it. Part of the facilitator’s job is to surface that and put it to work.
The land is the teacher. We are facilitating a conversation between people and place. The field is not a backdrop…it is the curriculum.
Questions over answers. The best land stewardship begins with curiosity. Land Camp is structured to develop the practice of asking better questions, not just accumulating more information.
Mix of modalities. People learn differently. Every day moves between field, classroom, individual reflection, and group work because no single format reaches everyone.
FAQ
Do I need prior experience with land stewardship? No. Participants come with a wide range of backgrounds — some have been working the land for decades, others are just beginning. The program meets people where they are, and the diversity of the group is part of what makes it work.
Is this right for me if I don’t own land yet? Yes, if you’re actively working toward it or currently working on someone else’s land. The observation skills and frameworks you develop here apply regardless of tenure or land size.
What is the format — is it mostly lectures? No. Lecture is one tool among many. The day moves between field work, hands-on activities, group exercises, discussion, and reflection. About three quarters of the time is technical content. The rest touches on the personal dimensions of land stewardship, because those cannot be separated from the work.
How many people will be in the cohort? Up to 15 participants. Small enough that everyone gets attention and the group functions as a real learning community.
What does tuition cover? Tuition covers instruction for the full program and lunch each day. Accommodation is arranged by Into the Soil but billed as a separate line item from tuition — options range from on-site lodging and camping to commuting from off-site. See the Register Now form for current pricing.
What comes after camp? Each participant receives a complimentary one-hour remote coaching session with Casey following the camp to help apply what was learned in their own context.
How is Land Camp different from a PDC or other courses? Land Camp and a PDC cover some similar terrain (water, plants, soil, landscape), but they approach it differently. A design course teaches you a framework and methodology for designing systems. Land Camp is focused on observation and assessment first: developing the ability to read what’s already happening on a piece of land before deciding what to do with it. The facilitation is coaching-based rather than curriculum-based, meaning the experience is built around the people and experience present rather than solely a fixed body of knowledge to transmit. The facilitator’s job is to draw that out and layer in frameworks and field experience from there. Land Camp complements other courses and training well, while being unique in its approach.
Upcoming Dates
Land Camp — September 2026
- September 10-14
- Synergia Ranch and Retreat Center
- Santa Fe, New Mexico
- Up to 15 participants
- Click register now to see current pricing and to reserve a spot!
Every participant receives a complimentary one-hour remote coaching session with Casey following the camp. This is a chance to apply what you’ve learned in your own specific context.
Other Workshops
Looking to the Future
Land Camp is the first of several educational offerings planned through Into the Soil. Future workshops will explore focused topics in soil microbiology, composting, overall soil health, and land stewardship — ranging from single-day intensives to multi-day programs.
Have a topic you’d love to see covered, or are you interested in a workshop for your organization or community? Get in touch!