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WatchDarren Doherty Keyline
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Featured 2 weeks agoJoin Darren Doherty as he goes over Carbon Farming and Keyline Design. Darren shares how to create a landscape that receives water,sequesters carbon and supports livestock and plants. Find out more by visiting www.EarthActionMentor.org
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Seed Communities: Ecovillage Experiments Around the World
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Featured 2 weeks agoCurious about the leading edge of green living? After traveling to ecovillages on five continents, Professor Karen Litfin shares some gleanings about how these seed communities might help us to create a sustainable future.
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Cave home in Loire is charming bioclimatic troglodyte house
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Featured 2 weeks agoIn the Saumur region of France there are over a thousand miles of underground tunnels and thousands of caves, known as "troglodytes", homes, hotels, restaurants, museums, wineries, farms (silkworms, mushrooms, snails) and even a disco and a zoo (for nocturnal animals like bats).
What makes this land so perfect for underground dwellings is its very malleable rock. 100 million years ago, this part of France was covered by sea. When the water receded, it left a layer of tufa, or tuffeau, a type of limestone that turned out to be ideal for building castles, churches and homes in the surrounding area during the Middle Ages.
All of this quarrying created lots of tunnels and caves that turned out to be ideal homes, especially for quarrymen. Up until the early 20th century, troglodyte living was still common in the area. Even entire villages, like that of Louresse-Rochemenier, were housed underground.
In 2000, when Henri Grevellec retired from teaching, he bought an old quarry and moved into one of the old caves. On his property in Grezille, France, there are 6 caves that had once housed quarry workers centuries ago.
The site was abandoned when Grevellec purchased it, but he cleared away the growth and renovated the caves himself. He put in a modern kitchen and bathroom and in his bedroom (at the far back of the cave) he added a skylight to improved air circulation and add a bit of light.
Of the 6 original caves, one became a guest room (which he connected by tunnel to his main home), another is now his workshop (for his stone-working tools), another he left as it once had been (complete with wood-burning oven) and he uses part of one as a wine cellar.
Grevellec says the temperature in his cave home is naturally temperate. He doesn't need air conditioning and leads much less heat than a normal home because the earth walls act to naturally regulate the indoor temperature (see more on earth sheltering for details on earth walls as thermal mass).
Music credit: "Ranz des Vaches" by Kevin MacLeod, "The Forest and the Trees" by Kevin MacLeod, "Divertissement" by Kevin MacLeod (http://incompetech.com)
Original story here: http://www.faircompanies.com/videos/view/cave-home-in-loire-is-charming-bioclimatic-troglodyte-house/
$1800 used shipping container as architects' backyard office
Shipping containers are built to carry huge loads and the refrigerated units are very efficient at climate control. So it's unsurprising that when they're retired from the sea, they're being used as the building blocks for homes and offices.Given their strength they work well in earthquake country. In Berkeley, California architect Karl Wanaselja and his business partner and wife Cate Leger created their home-office using a shipping container. It cost just $1800.
Wanaselja and Leger cut their 40 foot long refrigerated unit in half and placed it in a T shape in their backyard (with the help of a crane). They didn't need to add any insulation: they're designed to not have any thermal bridging between the interior and exterior and the polyisocyanurate insulation has the highest R-value of any foam insulation.
Using a sawzall (reciprocating saw), the couple cut huge windows into the aluminum/stainless steel structure. Wanaselja says he was initially intimidated by the idea of crafting out of aluminum (the exterior material) and stainless steel (interior), but "once I got over my learning curve I actually like working with metal".
In this video, the couple talk about working in a cargo container, using materials like the soy-based plywood floor (Purebond) and the music made by rain and branches on a metal roof.
Original story here: http://www.faircompanies.com/videos/view/1800-used-shipping-container-as-architects-backyardfice/
Published 1 month ago
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Occupy Permaculture
Bill Mollison explains the need to stop running away, to face the fact that we need to take control of the financial system.http://permaculture.tv/occupy-permaculture/
"Hunger is rising, absolute hunger is rising, food's badly distributed, not distributed at all often. The waste of food, the whole deal of it....its eh, a shocking situation, it's just inhuman. It's what nobody would intend, and somehow what we've arrived at, and we arrived at it by the erection of financial structures, totally divorced from resources. So that the fiscal economy has been a runaway system. We've gotta tackle that head on. That is, what I'm trying to tell you, it's no good any longer just being an organic gardener or farmer, we have to be effective financial and political units. And we're gonna have to face that. Just as it was very hard for us to learn to garden, then hard for us to learn to collect seeds, once the multinationals took over the open-pollinated seed market; we had to become seed growers. Now its very difficult, we have to become bankers.There's no good trying to pretend we don't have to. We can run away to the bush, build a mud hut and grow ducks in the garden, it's not gonna do it. The coals will still be burnt, the land will still be eroded, and the forests will still be cleared for newsprint if we run away to the bush. So, there's no escape, we've just gotta stop running away, stay where we are and start to face up and fight." 1983 pdc bill mollison
Published 2 months ago
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Eastern Agricultural Complex
The Eastern Agricultural Complex are a group of crops that were domesticated in Eastern North American before the arrival of corn, beans, and squash from Mexico. In 2011 Jonathan and I grew out a bunch of them to learn more about this fascinating but largely neglected group of native crops.Published 1 month ago
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Pistachio Harvesting & Processing - Small Is Beautiful
Pistachio Harvesting & Processing - Small Is BeautifulFrom: TheFoodForest Views: 19 3 ratings Time: 11:16 More in Education
Published 2 months ago
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DIY treehouse inventor creates Ewok world in rural Oregon
In 1974, fresh out of the army (as a Green Beret medic), Michael Garnier went to rural Oregon to try to make a living off the woods. He tried making furniture, fences, pole barns and selling organic, psychadelic picture propellers (to see Fantasy Flakes), but finally it was a treehouse that got him all the attention.Modeled after the treehouse he had once built for his kids, his first treehouse B&B was completed in 1990. Today he has 9 treehouses for rent, 20 staircases, 5 or 6 bridges, several platforms and zip lines for rapid descent and at least one fireman's pole. Some of his treehouses even have toilets, running water and showers, though he warns guests to "stand when they flush".
Over the years, Garnier has become legend in his industry and helped invent a better way to build a treehouse. Instead of bolting wood to wood (i.e. beams to the tree), Garnier and his colleagues at the World Treehouse Conference (an event he used to host) developed a way to attach steel bolts and cuffs to the tree.
Dubbed the Garnier Limb (or G.L.), this open source design can support 8,000 pounds. Garnier sells GLs of all different types as well as plans to build your own treehouse. His DIY treehouses are for 12 foot trees ($150) and he sells about 30 or 40 plans per year.
Original story: http://www.faircompanies.com/videos/view/diy-treehouse-inventor-creates-ewok-world-in-rural-oregon/
Published 4 days ago
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How to run a PERMABLITZ!
Adam from Permablitz Melbourne shows Sydney how its done!Adam Grubb founded Permablitz as part of a crew of Melbourne permaculturalists in 2006. Since then, Melbourne Permblitz has delivered many, many successful permablitzes in the greater Melbourne area, and the concept of Permablitz has spread to Sydney, Adelaide, Alice Springs, Darwin, Canberra, Tasmania, Bega, the Sunshine Coast, California, Montreal, Istanbul and Uganda.
So what is a Permablitz?
Permablitz (noun): An informal gathering involving a day on which a group of at least two people come together to achieve the following:
- create or add to edible gardens where someone lives
- share skills related to permaculture and sustainable living
- build community networks
- have fun
Permablitzes are free events, open to the public, with free workshops, shared food, where you get some exercise and have a wonderful time. To be defined as a permablitz each event must also be preceded by a permaculture design by a designer with a Permaculture Design Certificate.
The network runs on reciprocity, and in order to qualify for a permablitz you usually need to come to "3 or so" first, although there can be exceptions in this case.
Many thanks to Milkwood for putting on this great free event!
Filmed at Alexandria Park Community Center
Mon, 16 Jan, 2012
Published 1 week ago
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Country caravans as tiny, Bohemian shelters in rural France
Country caravans, or according to those at Roulotte de Campagne, "Bohemian-style caravans" are back in style. "There's a fresh craze for these quaint mobile homes," declare the designers.Roulotte de Campagne has redesigned the circus caravan, country caravan or so-called gypsy caravan as a high-comfort way for city-dwellers to get away from it all and tap into their Bohemian spirit. "'Roulotte' gypsy caravans," they say, "epitomize freedom and the great outdoors".
They can be rented in 80 locations across France for about 70 to 95 euros per night or bought for 33,900 euros (this includes help marketing them as a B&B).
Caroline of Hôtel Chai de la Paleine added one to the grounds of her home/chateau/hotel in the medieval village of Puy-Notre-Dame (in the Loire-Anjou-Touraine regional park). She rents it by the night alongside her 3 Carré d'étoile cube shelters made by the same designers (who also created the tiny pod dwellings, Le Pod).
Original story here: http://www.faircompanies.com/videos/view/country-caravans-as-tiny-bohemian-shelters-in-rural-france/
Published 1 week ago
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Thoreauvian simple living: unelectrified, timeless tiny home
Seven years ago Diana and Michael Lorence moved to a 12-foot-square home without electricity in the coastal mountains of Northern California.They're not back-to-the-land types- they're not growing their own food, nor raising animals-, but, like Thoreau, they were looking for a place where they could get away from the noise of society and focus on their inner lives.
For nearly 30 years they have lived in tiny houses, often in guest homes, though their current abode is the smallest and most fitting their needs. It was designed by Michael based on their experiences living in nearly 20 tiny homes across the country before finally settling here.
They don't have electricity nor any other type of alternative energy (i.e. solar power). They don't have a refrigerator so they eat a lot of vegetables, fruits, grains and nuts.
There's also no oven, but Diana says she doesn't bake anyway and she cooks their meals with their one cast iron pot over the fire. The fire is also their source of hot water, heat and light (in addition to candles).
The Lorences are a private couple, but recently they have begun to speak out more about their lives in hopes of showing others that options such as theirs exist.
Until now, the couple has turned down requests appear on video, not wanting to be categorized as simply another couple choosing to live in a tiny space. So I was pleasantly surprised when Diana and Michael agreed to let me visit their home with my camera.
Original story here: http://www.faircompanies.com/videos/view/thoreauvian-simple-living-unelectrified-timeless-tiny-home/
Published 2 weeks ago
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Brogo Permaculture Gardens with John Champagne
Transition Bondi goes on an adventure to the NSW far south coast & visits John Champagne @ Brogo Permaculture Garden. John shows us how he has implemented permaculture principles to create an abundant food garden in a temperate region.Published 3 weeks ago
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Projectos de Permacultura - IPB
Vídeo que mostra alguns excelentes exemplos de projectos de Permacultura numa eco-aldeia do IPB situada no Brasil.Published 4 years ago
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July 08 Shipibo Report
Shaman Pancho Mahua and Luzmilla Mori share their house and daily life, some medicinals and permaculture techniques as well.I am so sorry to have to ad that Pancho Mahua was killed and drowned in the Ucayali river on his way to his ancestral home around the 20 th september 2008.
Published 3 years ago
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Country caravans as tiny, Bohemian shelters in rural France
Country caravans, or according to those at Roulotte de Campagne, "Bohemian-style caravans" are back in style. "There's a fresh craze for these quaint mobile homes," declare the designers.Roulotte de Campagne has redesigned the circus caravan, country caravan or so-called gypsy caravan as a high-comfort way for city-dwellers to get away from it all and tap into their Bohemian spirit. "'Roulotte' gypsy caravans," they say, "epitomize freedom and the great outdoors".
They can be rented in 80 locations across France for about 70 to 95 euros per night or bought for 33,900 euros (this includes help marketing them as a B&B).
Caroline of Hôtel Chai de la Paleine added one to the grounds of her home/chateau/hotel in the medieval village of Puy-Notre-Dame (in the Loire-Anjou-Touraine regional park). She rents it by the night alongside her 3 Carré d'étoile cube shelters made by the same designers (who also created the tiny pod dwellings, Le Pod).
Original story here: http://www.faircompanies.com/videos/view/country-caravans-as-tiny-bohemian-shelters-in-rural-france/
Published 1 week ago
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How to run a PERMABLITZ!
Adam from Permablitz Melbourne shows Sydney how its done!Adam Grubb founded Permablitz as part of a crew of Melbourne permaculturalists in 2006. Since then, Melbourne Permblitz has delivered many, many successful permablitzes in the greater Melbourne area, and the concept of Permablitz has spread to Sydney, Adelaide, Alice Springs, Darwin, Canberra, Tasmania, Bega, the Sunshine Coast, California, Montreal, Istanbul and Uganda.
So what is a Permablitz?
Permablitz (noun): An informal gathering involving a day on which a group of at least two people come together to achieve the following:
- create or add to edible gardens where someone lives
- share skills related to permaculture and sustainable living
- build community networks
- have fun
Permablitzes are free events, open to the public, with free workshops, shared food, where you get some exercise and have a wonderful time. To be defined as a permablitz each event must also be preceded by a permaculture design by a designer with a Permaculture Design Certificate.
The network runs on reciprocity, and in order to qualify for a permablitz you usually need to come to "3 or so" first, although there can be exceptions in this case.
Many thanks to Milkwood for putting on this great free event!
Filmed at Alexandria Park Community Center
Mon, 16 Jan, 2012
Published 1 week ago
By
Thoreauvian simple living: unelectrified, timeless tiny home
Seven years ago Diana and Michael Lorence moved to a 12-foot-square home without electricity in the coastal mountains of Northern California.They're not back-to-the-land types- they're not growing their own food, nor raising animals-, but, like Thoreau, they were looking for a place where they could get away from the noise of society and focus on their inner lives.
For nearly 30 years they have lived in tiny houses, often in guest homes, though their current abode is the smallest and most fitting their needs. It was designed by Michael based on their experiences living in nearly 20 tiny homes across the country before finally settling here.
They don't have electricity nor any other type of alternative energy (i.e. solar power). They don't have a refrigerator so they eat a lot of vegetables, fruits, grains and nuts.
There's also no oven, but Diana says she doesn't bake anyway and she cooks their meals with their one cast iron pot over the fire. The fire is also their source of hot water, heat and light (in addition to candles).
The Lorences are a private couple, but recently they have begun to speak out more about their lives in hopes of showing others that options such as theirs exist.
Until now, the couple has turned down requests appear on video, not wanting to be categorized as simply another couple choosing to live in a tiny space. So I was pleasantly surprised when Diana and Michael agreed to let me visit their home with my camera.
Original story here: http://www.faircompanies.com/videos/view/thoreauvian-simple-living-unelectrified-timeless-tiny-home/
Published 2 weeks ago
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