Erdpuls — Living Laboratory & Makerspace Garden
Version: 1.2
Date: February 2026
| Version | Date | Changes | |———|—————|———————————————-| | 1.2 | February 2026 | BNE compliance update: BNE Criteria Coverage table added; Facilitator Qualification Profile section added (Areas 6.1.1/6.1.2); Continuing Education Requirements section added (Areas 6.2.1/6.2.2 — minimum requirements); Universal Checklist expanded with participant pre-workshop information (3.3.1) and post-workshop follow-up items (3.3.3); Partner Network and BNE Cooperation section added (Area 5.3.1 — minimum requirement); Quality Report minimum content standards added (Areas 5.2.1/5.2.2) | | 1.1 | February 2026 | Institution name updated; license footer added; version updated for OER publication | | 1.0 | October 2025 | Initial release |
This handbook is an operational and organisational document. It addresses primarily the Organisationsqualität sections of the Brandenburg BNE Quality Catalog (Qualitätskatalog für BNE außerschulischer Anbieterinnen und Anbieter, MLUK Brandenburg, April 2023). The table below maps catalog criteria to the sections of this handbook where they are addressed. For the full criterion-by-criterion evaluation with evidence statements, see the BNE-Bewertung und Leitbild.
| BNE Area | Criteria | Where Addressed in This Handbook |
|---|---|---|
| 3.3 — Methods: Supporting | 3.3.1 pre-workshop participant preparation; 3.3.3 post-workshop follow-up resources | Universal Checklist (2 Weeks Before — participant items; After the Workshop — follow-up items) |
| 5.2 — Quality Development: Evaluation | 5.2.1 continuous practice reflection; 5.2.2 systematic self-evaluation | Universal Checklist (After the Workshop); Quality Report Minimum Content Standards |
| 5.3 — Quality Development: Cooperation | 5.3.1 active BNE networking (minimum requirement) | Partner Network and BNE Cooperation |
| 6.1 — Facilitator Qualification | 6.1.1 formal qualification / 6.1.2 personal qualification (minimum: one of these) | Facilitator Qualification Profile |
| 6.2 — Continuing Education | 6.2.1 preparatory continuing education (minimum requirement); 6.2.2 ongoing min. 24h/year (minimum requirement) | Continuing Education Requirements |
Minimum requirements satisfied: All minimum requirements in Areas 3, 5, 6, and 7 as they apply to this operational document.
This handbook is for the person who will actually run the workshops. You have read (or have access to) the Pattern Discovery Toolkit, the four appendices, the twenty living experience guides, and the proxemic integration supplement. Those documents describe what to do and why. This handbook tells you how, when, where, and in what order.
It is organized as a year — your first year of full programming. By the end of this year, every target group will have been served, all four appendices will have been activated, the pattern language will have its first entries, and the quality framework will have its first evaluation data.
The campus operates on a four-season cycle that shapes which workshops are possible, which are optimal, and which require adaptation:
| Season | Campus Rhythm | Dominant Theme |
|---|---|---|
| Frühling (March–May) | Pflanzen und Planen | New growth, first observations, outdoor work begins |
| Sommer (June–August) | Wachsen und Sammeln | Full biodiversity, residency period, outdoor workshops peak |
| Herbst (September–November) | Verarbeiten und Bewahren | Harvest, processing, cross-border exchange, elder knowledge |
| Winter (December–February) | Reparieren und Reflektieren | Indoor focus, repair, reflection, data synthesis, planning |
The calendar below distributes all 20 workshop guides across the year, one implementation per guide. In subsequent years, workshops repeat with new participant cohorts — producing the longitudinal data accumulation that the toolkit depends on.
| Week | Workshop | Target Group | Appendix | Duration | Key Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar W2 | Facilitator preparation: read guides, scout transect routes, prepare GIS project, stock Boden-Koffer | — | — | 5 days | All documents |
| Mar W3 | Boden-Begegnung (Soil Encounter) | Adults/Families | A.2 | Half day | Boden-Koffer, field sheets |
| Apr W1 | Erdreich-Entdecker (Soil Explorers) | Children/Youth | A.1 | 3–4 hrs | Boden-Koffer, Feldbogen sheets, magnifiers |
| Apr W3 | Sehen, was wir schon tauschen (Exchange Mapping) | Adults/Families | B.2 | 2.5–3 hrs | A3 worksheets, colored markers, repair tools |
| May W1 | Das Garten-Wirtschaftsspiel (Garden Economy Game) | Children/Youth | B.1 | 3–3.5 hrs | Token cards (4 colors), game materials |
| May W3 | Die Karte unter der Karte (Map Beneath the Map) | Adults/Families | C.2 | Full day | Printed maps (A1), GIS laptop, transect gear |
| Week | Workshop | Target Group | Appendix | Duration | Key Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun W1 | Artist/Researcher residency begins | Artists/Researchers | — | 2–4 weeks | Apartment, studio, equipment access |
| Jun W1 | Boden-Tiefe (Soil Depth) — initial session | Artists/Researchers | A.4 | 2–3 hrs | Field notebook, personal tools |
| Jun W2 | Wert jenseits des Preises (Value Beyond Price) | Artists/Researchers | B.4 | 2.5–3 hrs | Reading materials, writing supplies |
| Jun W3 | Kartografien der Zugehörigkeit — first transect | Artists/Researchers | C.4 | Full day | GPS, field notebook, camera, GIS station |
| Jul W1 | Messen, was zählt (Measuring What Matters) | Artists/Researchers | D.4 | 2.5–3 hrs | BNE framework printouts, evaluation design materials |
| Jul W2 | Wo hört unser Ort auf? (Where Does Our Place End?) | Children/Youth | C.1 | Full day | Aerial photos (A3), compasses, Expedition Record Sheets |
| Aug W1 | Habe ich etwas Echtes gelernt? (Quality reflection) | Children/Youth | D.1 | 1.5–2 hrs | Quality Star poster, Competency Discovery Cards, Portfolio Sheets |
| Aug W2 | Residency mid-review + end synthesis | Artists/Researchers | C.4 + D.4 | 2 + 2 hrs | All residency data, GIS project |
| Week | Workshop | Target Group | Appendix | Duration | Key Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep W2 | Boden-Brücke (Soil Bridge) | Cross-Border DE/PL | A.5 | Full day | Bilingual Feldbogen, transport, Polish partner coordination |
| Sep W4 | Eine Wirtschaft, Zwei Sprachen (One Economy, Two Languages) | Cross-Border DE/PL | B.5 | Full day | Bilingual materials, shared meal provisions |
| Oct W2 | Eine Landschaft, Zwei Länder (One Landscape, Two Countries) | Cross-Border DE/PL | C.5 | 2 days | Cross-border maps (A0), GIS data both countries, transport |
| Oct W4 | Qualität ohne Grenzen (Quality Without Borders) | Cross-Border DE/PL | D.5 | Half day | Framework printouts (DE/PL/EU/UNESCO), Comparison Matrix poster |
| Nov W1 | Boden-Gedächtnis (Soil Memory) | Elders/Intergenerational | A.3 | 2.5–3 hrs | Wide bowls, magnifiers, audio recorder, Kuchen |
| Nov W3 | Der Erinnerungsmarkt (Memory Market) | Elders/Intergenerational | B.3 | 2–2.5 hrs | Memory Offering/Seeking cards, Memory Market Ledger |
| Week | Workshop | Target Group | Appendix | Duration | Key Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec W1 | Die Landschaft erinnert sich (Landscape Remembers) | Elders/Intergenerational | C.3 | 3–3.5 hrs | Historical maps, Memory Map paper (A1), audio recorder |
| Dec W3 | Was ist es wert, weitergegeben zu werden? (Wisdom Circle) | Elders/Intergenerational | D.3 | 2–2.5 hrs | Learning Lifetime worksheets, Gestaltungskompetenz cards |
| Jan W2 | Was macht es wert, wiederzukommen? (Quality co-design) | Adults/Families | D.2 | 2–2.5 hrs | Quality Compass worksheets, flip charts, evidence artifacts |
| Jan W4 | Annual Data Synthesis | Facilitator + volunteer team | — | 2–3 days | All pattern cards, maps, token records, portfolios, GIS data |
| Feb W2 | Year-End Quality Report compilation | Facilitator + Quality Ambassadors | — | 2 days | All evaluation data from D.1–D.5 |
| Feb W4 | Year 2 planning | Facilitator + core team | — | 1 day | Calendar template, budget review |
The calendar follows these principles:
1. Adults first, then children. The spring adults/families workshops (A.2, B.2) establish community familiarity with the Erdpuls approach before school groups arrive. Parents who have attended may then send children with prior context.
2. Simple before complex. Within each target group, the Soil protocol (Appendix A) precedes the Token Economy (B), which precedes Bioregion Mapping (C), which precedes Quality Evaluation (D). Each builds on the capacities developed by the previous.
3. Residency in summer. The longest, deepest engagement (artist/researcher) occupies the season with maximum landscape legibility, longest daylight, and most comfortable outdoor working conditions. The resident’s four guide sessions (A.4, B.4, C.4, D.4) are distributed across the residency period.
4. Cross-border in autumn. The harvest season provides natural content for cross-border exchange (shared meal from shared landscape), and the agricultural cycle makes land-use patterns maximally visible.
5. Elders in late autumn/winter. Indoor-focused formats suit the season. The elder guides depend on memory and storytelling rather than outdoor physical activity. The Kaffee und Kuchen atmosphere aligns with the contemplative winter rhythm.
6. Quality and synthesis in winter. Reflection and evaluation happen when outdoor programming pauses. The year’s accumulated data is synthesized, the Quality Report compiled, and Year 2 planned.
04_teachers_guide.md) and the relevant student guide to the teacher at this point.Complete this for every workshop, as part of the 2-weeks-before preparation.
| Phase # | Phase Name | Duration | Proxemic Zone (Intimate / Personal / Social / Public) | Sensory Channels Active (T=touch, S=smell, Th=thermal, A=auditory, V=visual) | Arrangement (Sociopetal / Sociofugal / Mixed) | Vertical (Level / Facilitator above / Participant above) | Sensory Anchor Object | Cross-Cultural Mediation Needed? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||||||
| 2 | ||||||||
| 3 | ||||||||
| 4 | ||||||||
| 5 | ||||||||
| 6 |
Check: Are there 3+ consecutive phases at Social/Public distance with ≤2 channels? If yes -> insert a hands-on, sensory-reactivation phase between them.
Check: Does every Social/Public phase have a Sensory Anchor Object prepared? If no -> prepare one (a soil sample, a rock, a tool, a plant, a piece of bread).
(BNE Areas 6.1.1 and 6.1.2 — Minimum requirement: one of these must apply)
Every Erdpuls workshop facilitator must meet at least one of the following qualification profiles. Both paths are equally valid for certification purposes.
Path A — Formal Qualification (6.1.1): A completed qualification in education, pedagogy, outdoor education, environmental science, biology, geography, social work, or a related field at vocational training (Ausbildung) level or above. Relevant formal qualifications include: Erzieherin/Erzieher, Dipl.-Pädagogin, B.Sc./M.Sc. Biologie or Geografie, Naturpädagogin, Forstwirtin (with additional pedagogical training), Sozialarbeiterin. The formal qualification must be supplemented by demonstrated familiarity with the Pattern Discovery Toolkit through the preparatory continuing education described below.
Path B — Personal Qualification (6.1.2): Demonstrated practical experience, knowledge, references, and prior activity that are appropriate for the target group, subject matter, learning site, and methodology. Adequate personal qualification for Erdpuls includes: at minimum two years of facilitation experience with the relevant target group, demonstrable place knowledge of the Müllrose / Naturpark Schlaubetal area, ability to facilitate both indoor and outdoor phases, and successful completion of the Erdpuls Preparatory Study program described below.
Additional requirements for specific workshop types:
Guest facilitators and volunteers: Volunteers and guest facilitators (e.g., artists-in-residence, Polish partner educators) who take on facilitation responsibilities must be briefed on the relevant guide, the Proxemic Audit, and the safety protocols before the workshop. They do not need to satisfy the full qualification profile above, but the lead facilitator who does must be present throughout.
(BNE Areas 6.2.1 and 6.2.2 — Both are minimum requirements)
Before leading their first Erdpuls workshop, every new facilitator completes the Erdpuls Preparatory Study program:
| Component | Format | Minimum Time |
|---|---|---|
| Full reading of the Pattern Discovery Toolkit and Appendices A–D | Self-study | 6–8 hours |
| Full reading of the Proxemic Integration document | Self-study | 4–5 hours |
| Solo walk of all planned transect routes with Ring 0 body calibration | Field | 1 day |
| Attendance at one complete Erdpuls workshop as an observer | On-site | 3–8 hours |
| Completion of a supervised Proxemic Audit for the first planned workshop | Supervised | 1–2 hours |
| Briefing session with lead facilitator or project coordinator | Conversation | 1–2 hours |
Completion of preparatory study is recorded in the facilitator’s personal log and cited in BNE certification evidence. For volunteers: the project coordinator confirms preparatory readiness in writing before their first facilitation engagement.
All Erdpuls facilitators (including volunteers) participate in annual continuing education with explicit BNE relevance, totalling a minimum of 24 hours per year. This requirement is met through a combination of:
| Activity | BNE Relevance | Typical Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Data Synthesis (Jan W4 — mandatory for lead facilitators) | 5.2.1/5.2.2: practice reflection and systematic evaluation | 16–24 hours over 2–3 days |
| Year-End Quality Report compilation (Feb W2) | 5.2.1: continuous reflection; 5.2.2: systematic self-evaluation | 8–16 hours |
| BNE-Akteur*innen Brandenburg network participation (conferences, regional meetings) | 5.3.1: active networking; methodological knowledge | variable, typically 8–16 hours/year |
| Self-directed professional reading with BNE focus (documented in personal log) | Thematic/methodological knowledge | variable |
| Peer consultation with other BNE practitioners (kollegiale Beratung) | Methods reflection | variable |
For volunteers: The minimum continuing education requirement is satisfied by annual participation in the Year-End Quality Report debrief session (typically 2–3 hours) under facilitator guidance, which functions as the Praxisreflexion unter fachlicher Begleitung required by criterion 6.2.2.
Continuing education is documented in each facilitator’s personal log and summarised in the annual Quality Report (see Quality Report Minimum Content Standards below). Facilitators who do not meet the 24-hour minimum in a given year are not eligible to lead workshops independently in the following year until the deficit is addressed.
(BNE Area 5.3 — Minimum requirement: 5.3.1)
The Erdpuls program is embedded in a documented network of national and international BNE partners. Active cooperation with this network is required for certification (5.3.1) and is operationally necessary for the cross-border program (5.3.3).
National partners (ongoing cooperation):
International partners (operational for cross-border program):
Facilitation of cooperation: The lead facilitator is responsible for maintaining at minimum one active BNE networking relationship (5.3.1) and documenting cooperation activities in the annual Quality Report. This includes: attending at least one BNE network event per year, sharing one Erdpuls practice example with the network (in any format), and incorporating one external BNE perspective into the year’s program planning.
(BNE Areas 5.2.1 and 5.2.2)
The Year-End Quality Report (compiled in February, based on the Annual Data Synthesis in January) is the primary instrument for BNE Area 5 compliance. It must contain the following minimum content to satisfy the catalog criteria:
| Section | Content Required | Criterion |
|---|---|---|
| Program Summary | Workshops delivered (number, type, date); total participants by target group; workshops cancelled or modified with reason | 5.2.1 |
| Facilitator Reflections | Summary of the 15-min post-workshop reflections written throughout the year; recurrent themes; what changed in facilitation approach as a result | 5.2.1 |
| Proxemic Audit Analysis | Review of all Proxemic Audit forms from the year; which proxemic patterns recurred; which interventions were most effective | 5.2.1 |
| Participant Outcomes | Compiled Quality Star ratings (D.1), Quality Compass summaries (D.2), Elder Quality Criteria (D.3), Residency Quality Reflections (D.4), Framework Comparison findings (D.5) | 5.2.2 |
| Citizen Science Outputs | openSenseMap data contributed; iNaturalist/GBIF records submitted; GPS tracks completed; Pattern Cards added to archive | 5.2.2 |
| Token Economy Summary | Total token transactions recorded; distribution across four elements (Cooperation/Reciprocity/Mutualism/Regeneration); patterns and anomalies | 5.2.2 |
| Continuing Education Record | Hours and activities completed by each facilitator toward the 24-hour annual minimum (6.2.2); summary of preparatory study completed by new facilitators (6.2.1) | 6.2.1/6.2.2 |
| Partner Cooperation Record | Network activities participated in; cross-border partnership status; any new partnerships established or ended | 5.3.1/5.3.3 |
| Identified Improvements | Minimum three specific improvements identified from the year’s experience; implementation plan for Year 2 | 5.2.2 |
| Year 2 Programming Plan | Draft calendar for Year 2 with rationale for any changes from Year 1 sequence | 5.1.1/5.1.2 |
The Quality Report is shared with the Quality Ambassadors (participants who completed the BNE Quality Framework guides D.1–D.5) before Year 2 planning is finalized — this constitutes the internal quality review process required by 5.2.2.
The following materials are referenced across the 20 guides. Each is described below with enough detail to produce a print-ready version. They are grouped by type.
1. Boden-Entdecker-Feldbogen (Soil Explorer Field Sheet) Referenced in: A.1 (Children), adapted in A.2–A.5
2. Expedition Record Sheet (Bioregion Mapping) Referenced in: C.1 (Children)
3. Learning Portfolio Sheet (Quality Evaluation) Referenced in: D.1 (Children)
4. Quality Compass Worksheet Referenced in: D.2 (Adults)
5. Learning Lifetime Worksheet Referenced in: D.3 (Elders)
6. Exchange Mapping Worksheet Referenced in: B.2 (Adults)
7. Transect Documentation Table Referenced in: C.1 (Children 13+), C.2 (Adults), C.4 (Artists/Researchers)
8. Competency Discovery Card Referenced in: D.1 (Children)
9. Token Cards (Four Colors) Referenced in: B.1–B.5
10. Memory Offering and Seeking Cards Referenced in: B.3 (Elders)
11. Quality Star Poster Referenced in: D.1 (Children)
12. Framework Comparison Matrix Poster Referenced in: D.5 (Cross-Border)
13. Memory Market Ledger Referenced in: B.3 (Elders)
14. Pattern Card Referenced in: Main Toolkit, Section 3.1
Each of the five campus zones has a proxemic character that shapes what kinds of learning happen naturally within it. This section provides spatial design guidance for each zone, drawing on the sociopetal/sociofugal distinction and the proxemic audit framework.
Proxemic character: Strongly sociopetal. The shared worktable is the center of gravity — participants gather around it, pass tools and materials hand-to-hand, diagnose problems collaboratively. The Repair Café table is the toolkit’s primary site of personal-distance economic exchange.
Spatial design recommendations:
Proxemic profile: Intimate (hands-on repair) to Personal (collaborative diagnosis). All sensory channels active: touch (materials), smell (heated plastic, old electronics), thermal (heat gun, iron), auditory (tool sounds, conversation), visual (close inspection).
Proxemic character: Mixed — depends on the activity. Individual garden beds are sociofugal (each person faces their own row). Communal harvest areas, the washing station, and the Boden-Labor outdoor stations are sociopetal.
Spatial design recommendations:
Proxemic profile: Intimate (soil handling, plant contact) to Social (garden overview). Full sensory spectrum when close to the ground; vision-dominant when standing and surveying.
Proxemic character: Tends sociofugal. Workbenches with individual solder stations, screens, and components create isolated attention bubbles.
Spatial design recommendations:
Proxemic profile: Personal (soldering, close-up work) to Social (screen display, group discussion). Visual and haptic channels dominant; auditory channel carries instruction.
Proxemic character: Machine-centered, tends sociofugal. Each machine (3D printer, laser cutter, CNC) demands individual attention.
Spatial design recommendations:
Proxemic profile: Personal (machine operation) to Social (design review). Visual-dominant during fabrication; multi-sensory when handling materials.
Proxemic character: Strongly sociopetal. This is the Erzählcafé, the Wisdom Circle, the shared meal, the Memory Market. Every spatial arrangement should draw people inward.
Spatial design recommendations:
Proxemic profile: Personal (circle, shared meal) to Intimate (fire, storytelling, object passing). All channels active. This zone should feel like the heart of the campus — the place where everything converges.
You have the documents. You have the campus. You have the equipment (or the shopping list to acquire it). Now you need to prepare the space and yourself.
Week 1–2: Walk every transect route you plan to use this year. Alone. Slowly. Do the Ring 0 body-calibration at the start of each walk. Take notes on transitions. Photograph every point where you would stop with a group. Measure walking times. Identify hazards. This is your embodied preparation — you cannot facilitate what you have not experienced.
Stock the Boden-Koffer. Print the first season’s field sheets, worksheets, and cards. Prepare the QGIS project. Test all electronic equipment. Set up the soil observation stations in Zone B.
Week 3–4: Your first workshop — the adults/families soil encounter (A.2). This is deliberately your opening act: adults are the most forgiving audience, the most likely to give you useful feedback, and the most capable of articulating what works and what doesn’t. Their feedback shapes your facilitation for the entire year.
The rhythm establishes itself. Children arrive with energy and fresh perception. Adults return for the token economy workshop. You learn what your campus can support: how many people fit at the soil stations, how long the garden loop takes, where the GIS projector works best.
The pattern cards begin to accumulate. The first token transactions are recorded. The QGIS project gets its first participant-contributed data layers.
Pay attention to transitions. The moment between soil observation and indoor mapping. The moment between individual reflection and group synthesis. The moment between the game and the debrief. These transitions are where engagement lives or dies — and they are all proxemic moments (moving from intimate to social distance, from sociofugal to sociopetal arrangement). Your Proxemic Audit will help you plan these; your experience will help you feel them.
The residency is your deepest engagement. Walking the first transect with the resident is one of the most rewarding experiences the program offers — a full day of sustained attention to landscape, shared with someone whose discipline reveals what you cannot see.
The children’s bioregion mapping day (C.1) is logistically the most demanding workshop of the year: off-campus transects with multiple teams, GPS tracking, safety management, and a synthesis session that requires both analog and digital mapping. Run it in July when you have spring experience under your belt.
The Quality Star session (D.1) at the end of the summer children’s program produces your first formal evaluation data. Take it seriously: photograph the Star, compile the Portfolio Sheets, write your facilitator reflection. This is the seed of your Quality Report.
The most logistically complex workshops of the year. Begin coordination with your Polish partner organization in July. Confirm bilingual facilitation, transport, and shared meal provisions by August.
The cross-border soil encounter (A.5) is the emotional center: the moment when participants from two countries kneel in the same soil and discover it is identical. The proxemic significance of this moment — shoulder-to-shoulder across a cultural boundary, mediated by the earth — is the deepest pedagogical mechanism you will deploy all year. Let it breathe. Don’t rush.
The two-day bioregion mapping (C.5) is the most ambitious workshop of the year. It requires crossing the border, walking on both sides, and synthesizing data from two countries into a single map. If you can do this, you can do anything in the program.
The tempo changes. Slower. Warmer. Quieter. The elder workshops require a different facilitation presence: less directive, more spacious, more patient. The Kaffee und Kuchen is not a break — it is the proxemic center of the elder experience. Invest in good cake.
The Memory Map (C.3) and the Wisdom Circle (D.3) produce irreplaceable data. Record everything (with consent). Transcribe promptly. These workshops cannot be repeated with the same participants — every elder’s contribution is unique and time-limited.
The year’s data is spread across pattern cards, field sheets, maps, token records, portfolios, GPS tracks, audio recordings, and photographs. The Annual Data Synthesis brings it together.
Compile:
The Quality Report is your BNE certification evidence and your program improvement guide. It answers: What did we do? Who did we serve? What did they learn? What should change?
Then: plan Year 2. The calendar repeats, but with new cohorts, accumulated data, and the lessons of experience.
Challenge: Participants lose interest during the mapping synthesis (C.2, C.5). Proxemic diagnosis: They have moved from intimate/personal distance (the transect walk) to social/public distance (standing around a projected map) without transition. Three sensory channels closed at once. Solution: Bring transect artifacts into the mapping room — soil samples from transition points, rocks from geological boundaries, plants from vegetation edges. Place them on the map at their geographic locations. Now the map has things to touch and smell, and the participants are back in personal proxemic relationship with the territory.
Challenge: Teenagers are embarrassed by the soil protocol. Proxemic diagnosis: The soil protocol requires intimate proxemic behavior (kneeling, smelling, handling earth) in front of peers — a high-vulnerability zone for adolescents. Solution: Frame it professionally (“this is how geologists work”). Pair participants so they share the vulnerability. Demonstrate first without commentary. Reduce the group observation moments (don’t make anyone smell soil in front of 25 peers). The embarrassment usually dissolves within 10 minutes if the facilitator is matter-of-fact.
Challenge: The elder Wisdom Circle is dominated by one or two voices. Proxemic diagnosis: Sociopetal space (the circle) invites participation but doesn’t distribute it. Dominant voices fill the social proxemic field. Solution: Use a talking object (a stone, a tool, an artifact) passed hand to hand. The object is a proxemic mediator: only the person holding it speaks. Its physical weight and warmth create an intimate proxemic relationship between the speaker and the circle’s attention.
Challenge: Cross-border participants cluster by nationality. Proxemic diagnosis: People default to their cultural proxemic norms, which align with language. German speakers stand with German speakers at familiar German proxemic distances; Polish speakers do the same. Solution: Assign cross-national pairs from the start. Give each pair a shared physical task (dig soil together, walk a transect together, prepare food together). The shared task is the proxemic mediator that overrides the cultural default.
Challenge: The GIS exploration feels disconnected from the rest of the day. Proxemic diagnosis: The GIS screen creates a sociofugal, public-distance, vision-only environment. It is the most proxemically impoverished phase of any workshop. Solution: Never run GIS for more than 20 minutes without a proxemic intervention. Toggle a layer, then pass around a physical sample from that layer. Show a watershed boundary, then pour water on a tilted tray and watch it flow. The GIS is powerful for synthesis but lethal for engagement if it monopolizes the sensory field.
| © 2025–2026 Michel Garand | Erdpuls — Center for Sustainability Literacy, Citizen Science & Reciprocal Economics |
Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)
You are free to share and adapt this material for any purpose, including commercially, provided you give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, indicate if changes were made, and distribute any adaptations under the same license.
All software components referenced in this document are licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 (AGPL-3.0)
This document and its translations were developed with assistance from Claude (Anthropic PBC). All strategic decisions, philosophical positions, and project commitments are those of the author.
Contact: erdpuls@ubec.network · https://erdpuls.ubec.network
Alle Dokumente und ihre Übersetzungen / All documents and their translations. February 2026