Education

Half measures won't cut it! Business as Usual is out.

At the 2009 Gaining Ground Summit in Vancouver, speaking on the topic "Planning Down; What if Can Do... Can't? " Bill Rees the co-creater of the Ecological Footprint had much to say about the challenges we face. I paraphrase his main takeaway points below;>>Read more »

Abundant Neem Harvest at the Farm

I spent another Saturday at Maggie's Herb Farm in St. Augustine teaching an advanced soapmaking class for Creating Shampoo Bars and Spa/Salt Soaps. The class itself when very well. I had some mild anxiety on the way up that I had maybe not packed all the ingredients that we needed, but everything was packed and it was a very smooth class. >>Read more »

A Tasty Thyme at Maggie's Herb Farm in St. Augustine: Sharing a Cough Syrup Recipe from my Weekend Class

I spent national Herb Day yesterday at Maggie's Farm in St. Augustine teaching a class on seasonal recipes for cold and flu. We had jam packed day full of herbal activities including preparation of fire cider, an herbal chest salve, Holy Basil tea, and an excellent cough syrup. I know there were some of you who wanted to go, but couldn't make it. So I'm posting a recipe from class that you can try at home.>>Read more »

How to Become a Master Herbalist in 30 Years or More

In the last few years I've come across a number of people taking or teaching "Master Herbalist" programs. It always makes me cringe to hear the phrase. It is counter intuitive to me that one can become a master by taking a year long program. To me a master herbalist is someone who has had many years of practice. One of my herbal heros is Hua Tou. Even though he was the most famous herbalist in China during his time, he disguised himself to learn from other herbalists anonymously. I now tell the students in my classes, some of whom are in Master Herbalist programs, that I am a Junior Herbalist. Hopefully after reading this article, you can understand why. >>Read more »

Limits to Growth, Half measures, and the consequences

Many of us try to live a more sustainable lifestyle. We must acknowledge however that living a western consumerist lifestyle is fundamentally not sustainable. At best we have only so much ability to personally close the resource loops attached to our consumption; growing our own food, conserving and recycling water, producing our own energy, reducing if not eliminating automobile transport, and contributing to the development of a local more sustainable economy. These are all necessary steps towards a more sustainable life and when coupled with vigorous involvement in the process of government and a commitment to public education regarding the excesses of the growth paradigm can have a significant impact. But is it enough? Enough to do what exactly?>>Read more »

Relocalisation

As I listened to the BBC World Service this morning I heard a story about the Chinese economy and efforts to stimulate consumerism to keep the economy growing. Aside from the obvious futility of a continuing to rely on the infinite growth paradigm, a physical impossibility in a finite ecosystem, the commentator was discussing efforts to get the Chinese public to consume more locally produced goods thus double stimulating the economy. As western economies have tried to rebound from their self inflicted wounds which led to the recent recession, there have been repeated warnings about falling back into protectionism and abandoning globalization.>>Read more »

Hopeful signs of progress on Climate Change but still missing the low hanging fruit.

While Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV) works with other senators from the coal states to get more money allocated to carbon capture and storage, a move that may save the Waxman Markey bill in the senate if all these senators beholden to dirty coal vote for the bill, and research by the New York University School of Law’s Institute for Policy Integrity shows that the bill will benefit the economy to the tune of $1.5 trillion between 2012 and 2050 while only costing $660 billion to implement, where is the debate surrounding population and it's effect on Climate Change?>>Read more »

Inner Work at Transition Training

I've just returned from the Transition Training weekend in Totnes. As I've posted here before, Transition is a movement designed to assist communities make the transition from oil dependence to local resilience.

The training was good. We covered many techniques to use in developing a Transition Initiative as well as went through some inner work that was surprising in it's intensity. What I'd like to talk about here is that inner experience rather than the nuts and bolts of piecing an initiative together.>>Read more »

Cotton Incorporated Cashes in on Celebrity Endorsement

Zooey Deschanel, star of the just-released film 500 Days of Summer, is the latest in a slew of celebrities to lend her voice to ad campaigns for Cotton Inc.>>Read more »

Michelle Obama - Change we can eat?

 
The White House, with its new occupants, has another new addition thanks to First Lady Michelle Obama – an organic garden. Michelle planted the kitchen garden with local school children, and since it was planted the garden has yielded more than eighty pounds of produce which has been used in the White House kitchen as well as distributed to the children who helped plant it.
 
I think it’s fantastic. Not everyone shares my view.
 

Garden raised beds make organic gardening easy

Growing a backyard garden is an important and rewarding part of living a more natural, sustainable lifestyle. Planting a garden allows you to grow a variety of healthy herbs and vegetables without worrying about the effects of dangerous pesticides or the resources used to transport produce.>>Read more »

Privacy Policy AltGlobe.org

Some legal stuff...
This website is the property of Orighinami LLC. * Content of the website: AltGlobe.com is a website describing an alternative community and shared interests where visitors have access to a wide range of information and can contribute to the growth of the community by proposing their interests, insights and materials. *>>Read more »

Earth Day Pictures from The Fair Share Garden's Celebration

 

We had a great time at the Fair Share Garden in Daytona over the weekend. If you were not able to make it on Saturday I hope that you will be able to come out for one our next events. I will be out of town, but the next Garden event will be May 9th on World Fair Trade Day.

We started out with a great workshop on container gardening by Master Gardener Myrna Moore. I learned a few tricks from Myrna. When arranging blooming annuals in containers, plant them densely to encourage blooming, and don't forget to dead-head.

Syndicate content