Pacifica Graduate Institute

Pacifica Graduate Institute is set on eleven idyllic acres overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Santa Barbara. This historical estate was once owned by Max Fleishmann, a well known philanthropist. The campus is layed out with a one-way, circular drive which loops through the campus and is bordered by Coast Live Oak trees forming a canopy. The Oak Woodland Garden has been re-established incorporating shade loving California native plants.

Near the heart of the campus a series of regional gardens incorporating plants from California, the Mediterranean, Australia, South Africa and Chile nestle into the rolling terrain. The goal is an ideal balance between people and the spiritual and natural worlds – a vision come to life in the balance of buildings, pathways, food production and creative landscapes. Each garden attracts different birds and insects, the Australian garden with its old Eucalyptus trees is home to great horned owls, red tail hawks and hundreds of migrating monarch butterflies. Native riparian plants in the stream bed attract woodland birds. Farmed areas include an acre of vegetables, a grove of lemon trees and 2 acres of low-chill fruit trees (peaches, pears, apples, figs, nectarines) providing the institute with food grown using sustainable organic methods.