Matt Berry offers a unique approach to ecological education, blending his interests and expertise in field biology and botany, primitive skills, and Permaculture. Matt has been practicing and teaching primitive living skills and nature awareness for over a decade, and holds a BS in Forestry and Wildlife. With his passion for indigenous skills, he created a Wildcrafting Series at the Regenerative Design Institute, where he was the garden manager for several years. He currently lives in Grass Valley with his wife Rachel and daughter Amara. He works as a seasonal field biologist, continues to teach wild crafting courses, and consults in permaculture and natural building.
Matt teaches for private groups, non-profits, community colleges, and school groups. Some of his venues include: The APPLE Center; The Yuba Watershed Institute; Living Lands Agrarian Network; Regenerative Design Institute; Four Elements Earth Education; Sierra College Grass Valley and Rocklin CampusesSanta Cruz Waldorf School; Marin Waldorf School; The Riekes Center for Human Enhancement; Sustainable Fairfax; Counter Pulse; Woolman Semester; Permaculture First Responder; Marin Art & Garden Center; and Common Ground.
Watch Matt in the field talking about plantain, stinging nettle, and on the Gourmet Hippy show making wild food bars.
Rachel Berry blends her background in community health, women’s health, medicinal herbs, and sustainable living practices to inspire and promote home-scale herbalism. Her herbal training includes programs with Donna D’Terra, Kathi Keville and Candis Cantin; studying health and health care practices among traditional healers in Chiapas, Mexico; and years of self-study and practice in home-scale herbalism. She currently sells locally sourced, handcrafted herbals through Sierra Botanica, and teaches herbal do-it-yourself classes from her home garden.
Rachel holds a Master’s degree in Health Psychology from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, where she worked for many years as university instructor in women’s health and as a public health advocate for women and children. Rachel lived and worked at The Regenerative Design Institute in Bolinas, California for four years, studying permaculture and regenerative living practices. Read more about Rachel at www.SierraBotanica.com