For people considering the switch to Off-Grid living there may be some unexpected lifestyle adjustments to consider. In fact, in a recent interview with college students considering Off-Grid living options, there were several surprises that arose when the reality of Off-Grid living was posed to them. When many people think of Off-Grid living they do not think of having to devise refrigeration options, food preparation alternatives, water heating alternatives, heating and cooling alternatives or hygiene alternatives. In order to properly prepare for an Off-Grid living lifestyle or to decide if Off-Grid living is for you, there are several Off-Grid immersion programs available throughout the United States to help you test the waters.
Teaching Drum School
Teaching Drum School is an off grid immersion program located in Three Lakes, Wisconsin. This immersion program offers several types of outdoor immersion options including year long living and training in a completely off grid environment. Electronics, cell phones and even synthetic materials are not allowed as part of the teaching school. Students are given a list of what to bring with them for their journey and this list must be followed strictly. Students are taught the basics of outdoor living survival including how to live a completely off grid lifestyle if they wish to go extreme.
The Pathfinder School
The Patherfinder School is a wilderness immersion and outdoor survival program run by U.S. Army veteran andsurvivalist expert Dave Canterbury. This immersion program is used by many students who are considering outdoor lifestyles, survival or Off-Grid living. The pathfinder school teaches the basics of self reliance as well as outdoor survival including raising your own food to include animals for consumption, herbology for food and medicine, and how to create shelters. Most recently a video series put out by the Pathfinder School was placed on YouTube discussing yurt living. This ongoing video diary by the school’s owner and lead instructor has helped many people decide if they would like to live an Off-Grid lifestyle and how far they want to go with that lifestyle.
Homesteading Classes
There are several organizations including Sirrus Community and various Eco-village immersion communities that are now offering homesteading classes. These homesteading classes are designed to teach people how to live off grid, build their own shelters or how to develop a housing cooperative that runs off the grid and self sufficiently from any modern day energy source. These classes are located throughout the country and are available in one week to one year installsments for the purposes of certification programs. Regardless of the type of immersion program a student chooses to use, each program has its benefits and its disadvantages. Each program will instruct the student on how to live off the grid, convert their current home to Off-Grid living or if Off-Grid living choices are an option for them. They are by far the cheapest way to decide if Off-Grid living is an option or if simply going green is the better alternative.