Faculty

Kay Cafasso

B.S., Environmental Geosciences, Boston College
Natural Building and Solar Home Design Certification, Solar Energy International
Permaculture Design Certification, Naropa University
Permaculture Instruction Certification, Dynamics Ecological Design

Kay Cafasso is a natural builder, a certified permaculture design course instructor, and a designer of ecological landscapes. Kay holds certificates in Solar Home Design and Natural Building Construction and has many years of experience specializing in earth plasters and natural finishes for straw bale and other natural buildings. After documenting ecological design applications in homes and landscapes in arid, temperate and tropical climates worldwide, Kay founded Sowing Solutions, offering education and ecological design and consultation services for homeowners and land stewards. Kay practices what she teaches: thoughtful and holistic design of landscapes, agriculture, dwellings, and communities.

Mark Krawczyk

B.S., Environmental Studies, University of Vermont
Diploma of Applied Permaculture - British Permaculture Association

Mark is a permaculture designer, traditional woodworker, natural builder and community organizer who resides in Burlington, VT. After studying Integral Sustainability with Living Routes in Auroville, India and earning his degree in Environmental Studies, he compiled A Directory of Useful Plants of New England - a comprehensive resource detailing the uses and ecological characteristics of over 115 useful plants hardy to Zone 5. Today, he directs Keyline Vermont, RivenWoodCrafts, and Burlington Permaculture and is an active member of Seven Generations Natural Builders, and EcoSystems Design Inc. Mark's teaching credits include Edible Forest Gardening, Coppice Forestry the Re-vitalization of Urban Landscapes, Lawn to Garden Conversions, Farm Scale Agroforestry, and Keyline Design and Soil Building. At RivenWoodCrafts, he produces chairs, agricultural implements and other useful objects from raw logs and also works as both a natural building educator and contractor, specializing in cob, adobe, wattle and daub, light clay, natural plasters and dry stone construction.

Jono Neiger

M.A., Landscape Design, Conway School of Landscape Design, MA
B.S., Forest Biology, SUNY Syracuse College of Environmental Science and Forestry, NY

Jono has a diverse background in ecology, environmental research, conservation, restoration, land stewardship, and landscape design. A permaculture teacher and designer since 1996, he was the Land Steward and Permaculture Apprenticeship Program Director at Lost Valley Educational Center in Oregon for 5 years. Jono is a Conservation Biologist with 17 years experience, is founder of Regenerative Design GROUP, a permaculture design and consultation firm in Leverett, Massachusetts and is a faculty member at the Conway School of Landscape Design. A sought after speaker at events, businesses and workshops, Jono's recent presentations include: Moving Towards Sustainability, Questioning the Invasive Species Paradigm, Urban Permaculture, Northeast Permaculture, and Natural Building Alternatives: Strawbale, Cob and Living Roofs.

Simi Hoque, UMass Faculty Sponsor

Ph.D. Architecture, UC Berkeley; M.Arch. 1st professional degree, Architecture, UC Berkeley
M.S. Civil and Env. Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University; B.A. Design Engineering, Johns Hopkins University

Dr. Hoque teaches environmental systems and sustainable design principles. Her research is focused around the application and development of energy efficient buildings. She specializes in energy modeling, resource efficiency, and systems design and is seeking to improve the way buildings use the earth's resources. Simi is the co-founder of Floodspace, a research and design collaborative, whose mission is to develop strategies for improved housing, infrastructure, and livelihood in communities subject to climate change-related flooding.