Transforming the Earth:
Deepening Spirit-led Relating, Serving, and Giving in Agricultures
Small Group Biodynamic Agriculture and Nutrition Intensives
in new York with Anthony Mecca
Past and present participants in the EduCareDo Biodynamic Agriculture and Nutrition Course, and others seeking to deepen an existing relationship to biodynamics are invited to join one or more seasonal, small group 5-day intensive retreats at Sun Heart School for Spiritual Agriculture in Stephentown, NY. These intimate gatherings of 7 people will focus on a component of certain lessons which will be sent 6 weeks prior to the gathering.
The retreat gatherings will allow us to deeply work with others committed to healing the earth and humanity through biodynamic agriculture. The gathering will include conversation focused on a particular theme from the course and participant questions. Experiential and artistic exercises in nature and work on the land will also be central elements.
The retreats will take place in August and November 2026, and January and March 2027. We have simple accommodations on the farm and will provide meals.
Based at Sun Heart Farm in Stephentown, New York and the surrounding community in the Hudson Valley of NY. The foundation for the retreats is working with a place, a landscape filled with fields, forest, a pond and stream, plants, animals and a growing community.
Sun Heart School for Spiritual Agriculture
Portions of the small group intensives/retreats will interweave with the Sun Heart School for Spiritual Agriculture, a 7-month on-farm cohort-based program exploring the sacred relationship of agriculture to both the human being and the spirit. From April through November a cohort of students and teachers will gather on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9am to 5pm to work and learn together through a combination of morning classroom experiences and hands-on work on the land as a group, and through independent projects and mentorship.
Read more about the Biodynamic Agriculture and Nutrition course →
Anthony Mecca has been farming for almost 20 years, being introduced to biodynamics early on and working with many experienced farmers and mentors. He has worked in market gardening, small grains, and perennial crops including berries and tree fruit. For 8 years, he managed his own diversified CSA farm, also caring for a variety of animals, including the use of draft horses as the main source of power, caring individually for a 15 cow herd.
The farm and garden as a center of community life has been pivotal in his work. Bringing people into relationship with the wonder, beauty, and nourishment a biodynamic farm can provide, and seeing them grow and develop through this relationship individually and in community over the years has inspired his work.
Anthony is currently the director of Farmer Training for the Biodynamic Association in the USA, which offers (2) year-long programs which integrate the EduCareDo Foundation Course and the Biodynamic Agriculture and Nutrition subject course with direct practical work with a mentor, skills development, journaling, observational exercises, an independent project, additional readings, and weekly cohort conversations via video conference.