REJUVENATE LANDSCAPES AND WATERWAYS
WITH YOUR OWN TWO HANDS
DISCOVER HOW TO
HEAL LAND THROUGH
WATER CYCLE RESTORATION
STARTS MARCH 31
WHAT IS THE
CORE COURSE?
Real Experience, Real Results
We’ve spent more than a decade implementing projects around the world - learning from some of the legends of ecosystem restoration along the way. We compiled all of the best lessons, approaches, and strategies into this course.
But there’s more!
This course also provides the details that are so often left out. How to connect with nature, managing contractors and clients, equipment and materials, becoming a voice for the voiceless, budgeting and expenses, refining your offering, and so much more.
This course takes you beyond theory, into practice.
A transformational experience that will reshape your relationship with water, land and life.
This course provides you with everything you need to start engaging in water cycle restoration in a meaningful way.
From reading the book of nature, to the technical aspects of implementing decentralized water retention, to the personal development to be effective, to the business roadmap to ensure your success, the 4 phases of growth throughout the course deliver results.
Whether you’re already an expert, or a total novice
This course will propel you towards your goals
Still not sure if the course is a good for you? Schedule a 15 minute call with a former student to see if it's right for you.
Act now an you'll also unlock the
Enrollment Closed - Advanced 2024 is Full
The Advanced Core Course is now full. The following videos are released throughout the advanced course.
Our Advanced course will open again in 2025
Construction Detail - 6 Pond System with Terraces
Full construction detail of our biggest and most complicated project to date. Includes; earthen dams, spillways, crossings, docks, monk pipes, water gardens, spring tapping, terraces, diving boards, and more...
$595 Value
Spring Tapping for Drinking Water
Learn how to safely and naturally develop a spring for drinking water. Learn this traditional Austrian approach that maintains the highest quality of water for your use.
$595 Value
Detailed Project Tour - 6 Pond System with Terraces
A nearly 3 hour in-depth project tour, explaining the process for designing and implementing these kinds of features. Get a taste of what's possible by seeing a recently developed project with a little time to grow in.
$485 Value
Earth Dam Key Construction
See our preferred process and equipment for the highest quality and most efficient methodology for creating a small key-way earthen dam. This video follows the development of a water body showing the dam construction process and details.
$485 Value
Pond Project Moisture and Materials Case Study
This project had no clay on site and as such provides a great example for mixing, clay ratios, and moisture - all critical components to successfully implement projects.
$485 Value
Consultation Walk-Through
Experience this example consultation to see how the process works, the general flow, and what kinds of solutions you might suggest, with a 1500 acre organic farm in Tuscany, Italy as the example.
$230 Value
Reading Land Examples
What to look for and where to look when it comes to reading land. Join this real world example as Zach explains in detail how he thinks and works during a consultation, following three different water courses throughout a property.
$230 Value
Restoring the Tuscan Watershed
The result of a workshop in Italy, this video goes through some of the key leverage points to consider when looking at regional scale water cycle restoration - using Tuscany as an example.
$85 Value
Urban Water Retention
This project shows a simple way to help hold water on the land from an increasingly hardened uphill landscape. As a result it created an abundant oasis of life in the concrete jungle, even during the winter.
$80 Value
WHO IS THE
CORE COURSE
PERFECT FOR?
Advanced Course 2024
WHY SHOULD
YOU JOIN?
Whether to safeguard your property from flood, drought, and fire, create a lush oasis in your own backyard, or develop or start a meaningful vocation in ecosystem restoration, this course propels you towards your goals, opening a world of possibilities along the way.
Our world is inundated with environmental and humanitarian crises, and yet the power to heal our planet, providing prosperity and peace, is within our grasp.
This course isn't just about learning water cycle restoration, it's about becoming an agent of change for a better common future. By understanding and implementing these practices, you'll play a vital role in rejuvenating our ecosystems and safeguarding the future of life on Earth.
Empower yourself with the knowledge and tools needed to make a tangible difference on your landscape, in your community, and beyond. Together, let's embrace the opportunity to create a world where the water cycle thrives, nourishing all living beings in its path.
Enrollment Closed
The next Advanced Core Course
will take place in 2025
This isn't about giving you a fish, or even teaching you how to fish. It's about training you to create healthy environments wherever you go, so the fish will thrive; benefitting the whole landscape with your efforts!
It's an investment in yourself, your community, and mother earth.
Feedback from Students
Tomás GarcíaWhat I have learned in Water Stories has truly changed my perception of what is possible, and I am very grateful to have been able to join this family of water cycle restorers.
Brian KerkvlietThe content topics and videos were awesome. The professional design sessions were invaluable to touch base with other students and see how things are going.
Water nourishes every living being on our planet.
When we nourish water, it benefits all of life.
Transform your relationship with
water, land and life.
Impact Of
The Core Course
We live in a time of crisis; drought, flood, wildfire, water scarcity, mass migration, species extinction, and climate extremes. These problems are massive and can feel overwhelming, yet there are so many things we can do to have a tangible impact when we start working with water and nature. The Core Course takes you on a practical journey, teaching you what to do, how to do it, and even how to make a career out of it.
We live in a time of crisis; drought, flood, wildfire, water scarcity, mass migration, species extinction, and climate extremes.
These problems are massive and can feel overwhelming yet there are so many things we can do to have a tangible impact when we start working with water and nature.
The Core Course takes you on a practical journey, teaching you what to do, how to do it, and even how to make a career out of it.
Create Your Own
Water Abundant Landscapes
The Core Course is your gateway to the fundamental skills needed to retain water on landscapes and recharge aquifers. You might want to create a water abundant landscape on your land, or start a meaningful career building water retention systems, or be a champion of water cycle restoration in your community.
Whatever your background, this course will teach you the how and why of water cycle repair and provide you with the foundational understanding of how to re-hydrate landscapes - no matter how degraded. You will learn the what, why, and how of water cycle repair.
A mind-shifting journey
Actions that lead to experience
Beyond sharing the practical stories and videos, the core course is designed to help you undergo an even more important mental shift that will help you see the landscape in a new way. Each module has a series of actions and activities for you to implement. This is where the real learning will take place, and where you’ll gain the confidence you need to proceed. In the community we share our experiences and learn from each other's approaches and results - a community of practitioners helping, and supporting one another.
The training you need to succeed
Explore the Course
Learn more about the content and format of the course, the enrollment options, and what you can expect from the experience. We’ve designed this course to provide you with everything you need to become a water cycle restoration practitioner and restore the health of your lands, waters, and communities.
Your Teacher
Meet Your Instructor
Protégé of revolutionary Austrian farmer Sepp Holzer, Zach is the first person to earn the Holzer Practitioner Certification directly from Sepp - through a rigorous two-year apprenticeship. Since his certification, Zach has worked in 23 different countries spanning 6 continents, covering a wide range of climates, contexts, land-forms, and ecosystems implementing Decentralized Water Retention Earthworks.
One Course
Two Different Formats
The Core Course is offered as Essentials and Advanced to support the diverse needs, goals, and schedules of our students. Both options include the same core video content, modules and lessons. Where they differ is in the class experience. Essentials is self paced access to the content, while Advanced is with a class cohort including live sessions and a workbook of actions to be completed for certification. Certification is only available to those that complete the advanced course.
Essentials
Completely Self-Guided
Online and At Home Course
4 Phases of Growth
12 Video Modules
Bonus Video Content
Advanced
6 Month Live Online Training
Class Cohort with Other Students
Workbook Journal to Support Your Actions
Live Sessions Every Other Week
Certification
Access to the Alumni Membership
Everything in Essentials
Purchase Anytime
Core Course Essentials
The Essentials program is a self-guided online course. Students will have access to the foundational content of the Core Course, which is the 12 module video library. The course library consists of 80+ educational videos on restoring water cycle health through mindset, ecological awareness, community engagement, planning and building water retention features, and offering water cycle restoration services.
Enroll anytime. You don’t have to wait for the next course to start, begin your journey immediately.
Self paced. All of the modules are open immediately, go through the content as quickly or slowly as you like.
12 month access. Watch the course at your own pace, you have a full year’s access to all of the content.
Enrollment Closed - Course Full
Core Course Advanced
The Advanced program is a live 6-month training with a class of other students around the world. Students have access to all of the content of essentials, plus a workbook with guided actions and feedback and live bi-weekly sessions with Zach. Course modules and bonus videos are released every week, over a 6 month period. Successful completion of the advanced program results in Water Cycle Restoration Certification.
Graduates are celebrated and promoted through the Water Stories network and listed in our directory of practitioners. Graduates also have the option to join a monthly membership that includes continued access to all of the content, professional development sessions, bonus videos, and the evolving content of the course. They also gain access to additional one on one sessions and direct mentorship.
6 month course. Go through the course over a 6 month timeline with other students from around the world.
Opens once per year. Enrollment is open now through March 31. Once the course starts it won't be offered again until 2025
Live sessions. Every other week throughout the 6 month course are live sessions for questions and discussion for each module.
Journal actions. Work through our guided actions for each module that will lead you towards becoming a practitioner.
Certification. Gain certification in Water Cycle Restoration based on your pathway, either as an Advocate, Steward, or Professional
Alumni Access. Join a community of practitioners with professional development sessions and student meetups
The Time Is Now
Change is only achieved through Action
True change is only achieved through action. No one has ever changed the world by sitting on their couch and wishing that someone would do something. The Core Course teaches you how to revive water systems in order to create healthy land, abundant water, and strong regions for generations. Be that someone, do that something. Get started with the Water Stories Core Course.
Begin Your Journey
Become a Water Cycle Restoration Practitioner
Joining this course is a major step towards fulfilling your calling to heal our waters, lands, and communities.
Whether as a professional, steward, or advocate, this training program will help you reach your goals.
Preview
The Core Course
Want to get a better feel for the course? Watch the introduction videos to the course to get a better feel for the content and format, what to expect, and what we expect of you.