To look at these problems and find solutions, I’m joined by Vicki Hird, author of Rebugging the Planet. In addition to sharing a wide overview of the harms to insects in the modern age, we also dive into ways we can make a difference in our homes, across the green spaces near us, in our communities, and how to tackle the systemic problems, in order to care for the microfauna of the soil, water, and air.

Vicki Hird, who you can find at rebuggingtheplanet.org. While you’re there, I also recommend clicking on the menu for Photos of Urban Bugs, to see dozens of pictures of insects from her garden. Her book, Rebugging the Planet, is available from Chelsea Green Publishing. I’ll include links to all of those, and more, in the show notes.

As with every interview, there’s so much to take away or comment on from this conversation, whether that’s the impact of fashion and clothing on the environment or the policies which subsidize commodity crops, making junk food overly cheap, while keeping fresh organic food out of the hands of many.

As my children reconnected me with insects and inspired a newfound love of bugs, and my own work on changing ourselves to change the world, I’d like to speak to that as my closing thoughts.

When we look at all the animals and insects in the world, many can be considered charismatic, especially the megafauna like pandas or polar bears. We’re drawn to them when we see them, including some of the smaller ones like a brightly colored and contrasted Monarch butterfly or the bumbling flight of a bee. But we also need to fall in love with the creepy-crawlies which don’t always inspire love at first sight.

Watching my children fearlessly interact with creatures that made me uncomfortable to touch or, in the case of spiders, even to be near, made me wonder why I had those aversions. Though I never discovered the source of my discomfort, stopping to ask where those fears came from was the first step in my reformation.

The next was to get out in the grass and garden to look for all the insects I could find making their way across the ground or crouched on plants. With my camera in hand, I took close-up pictures of everything I could, especially spiders. Then, sitting at my desk, pulling those images up on a large screen so that each creature stood perched before me larger than life, seeing if I could identify them. In doing this, giving a name to what I once avoided and beginning a relationship with each one.

I encourage you to do something similar to connect with the life inhabiting your unique little piece of the world. Whether with a camera, sketchbook, or field guide, spend some time with all the beautiful bugs you can find.

Those, however, are just my thoughts. I invite you to share your observations or questions with me, whether you want to talk about this episode or any of the others in the archives. Leave a comment below.

From here, there is no new episode next week as I’m off to celebrate my birthday on October 31st. If you’d like to get in touch, I will still be available by direct message here on Patreon, or by phone, text, or email. The show will return with a new episode on November 8th.

Until we meet again, make decisions each day that help to rebug the planet, while taking care of Earth, your self, and each other.

Resources
Vicki Hird - Rebugging the Planet Website
Photos of Urban Bugs
Rebugging the Planet at Chelsea Green Publishing

Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver
Silent Summer by Dave Goulson 

Xerces Society
National Audobon Society
World Wildlife Fund
Conservation International

Related Interview on Insects
Bees

Related Interviews on Citizen Science
Mycology and Citizen Science
The Citizen Scientist

Today’s discussion is one of social permaculture: how to engage hearts, minds, and consciousness during this time of climate chaos. Martin uses his time at Hawthorne Valley and his thoughts as an educator and elder within the region to look at how we can build community, cultural, and personal resiliency.

Find Martin and Hawthorne Valley Association at HawthorneValley.org. You can also listen to David's earlier interview with Martin.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Hawthorne Valley Association they recently released a new podcast, Roots to Renewal, which began with an interview with Francis Moore Lappe, author of Diet for a Small Planet, and followed by an episode with Bill McKibben, and more on the way.

Though I’d like to hear more about Martin’s ideas of Freedom, that is a discussion for another day, as what stands out for me as we draw this to a close is the idea of engaging with listening more than we speak, and finding shared connections.

Over the many years of hosting The Permaculture Podcast, I’ve encountered practitioners from all walks of life, with a range of personal and political perspectives that vary widely and are often in opposition to my own background and worldview. What I’ve found time and time again, is that what separates us from one another is often only a small part of our lives. If we can recognize one another’s humanity and what we have in common, that what we don’t agree on is rarely a reason to divide ourselves from one another. In all but one case out of thousands, we were able to find common ground, often around growing food for ourselves and future generations, or on the intricacies of what it means to design for human use.

As Martin said, let us listen twice as often as we speak, so we might all be heard.

If you have a question you’d like answered on air, start the conversation by getting in touch. Leave a comment below or send an email to: The Permaculture Podcast

Until the next time, spend each day creating resilience, while taking care of Earth, yourself, and each other.

A climate activist and former head of the non-profit Harry Potter Alliance—which used the collective fandom of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World to create a movement of good-will in the real-world—we talk about his approach of using the arts to catalyze movements through the stories we share, as fans of fiction, from our culture, or our individual lives. He also asks some questions of me about why permaculture matters, in a conversation that wound up personal for both of us. You can find out more about Andrew's current project at savesantashome.us. I’ve also included links in the resource section of this episode to The Harry Potter Alliance and other places you can find more about him and his work in the wider world.

Visit Our Partner: VerdEnergia Pacifica

When I started this podcast in 2010, I wanted to deepen my understanding of permaculture and share what I learned during my permaculture design course. As time went on my interview skills improved and more and more people joined me as guests, including authors whose books you have on your shelves to others recording their first-ever media appearance. As that happened, so the show became about people sharing their stories. For those who were media savvy, to get them to stray from their talking points and tell us a personal tale about who they are, where they come from, and why what they do matters. For those who were new, to draw out their passion and hear more about what they care about. Together we could find threads in common to connect to and inspire. That regardless of our backgrounds we could understand one another as people, and make the world smaller, more intimate, and peaceful. Meeting with Andrew and sitting down with him in his apartment in Washington, D.C. I wanted to understand how people take their stories, their art, and the connections they see to create something bigger than individual actions. Something more than ourselves that is engaging, fun, and world-changing because as permaculture practitioners, we know how to solve problems. How to grow food. How to feed people. How to care for the other-than-human. How to restore ecosystems. How to repair damage to our communities. What I find missing is how we share the vision of what this bountiful future based on ethical design looks like. How do we use story, modern myths, the arts, to create broader social change? How do those of use skilled beyond the landscape apply our talents to create lasting and permanent culture atop the regenerative surplus of permanent agriculture? I know many of you are artists and storytellers yourselves. You write. You draw. You make comic books. You paint. What kind of collective can we form and work together so that people yearn for the dream of a lush, verdant, bountiful world? I’d love to hear from you.

Leave a comment below.

Send me an email: The Permaculture Podcast

Or write: The Permaculture Podcast The Permaculture Podcast. Until the next time, spend each day sharing your story, telling new ones, and changing the world around you, while taking care of Earth, your self, and each other.

Sign the Change.Org Petition to Save Santa's Home!

Resources

Save Santa’s Home

Andrew Slack (Twitter) Andrew Slack (LinkedIn) The Harry Potter Alliance

Joseph Campbell’s Interview with Bill Moyers

Related Interviews

Fair Food Forager

Myth Making and Storytelling with Jason Godesky

It takes a whole village to raise a child

Today is part two of the conversation with Shaun Chamberlin (Part 1 ), editor of Lean Logic and Surviving the Future, on the work of David Fleming. This time we focus on Shaun including his background, current activities, and what it means to bear David's Legacy. Along the way, the conversation touches on a variety of subjects related to our work in the modern world, including the role of education, the apolitical need for action on the future, and what we can do to live inexpensively and with directed intent. This is candid, on both of our parts, as we share more of our own private stories as much as the public. Find our more about Shaun and his work at DarkOptimism.org.  

Sponsor We’re able to keep the newsletter, email and voicemail going with support from our partners like Joel Dufour and the great people at Earth Tools in Kentucky. If you are a small scale professional farmer or permaculture practitioner you’ll love their line of walk-behind tractors, implements, and parts from manufacturers like BCS and Grillo. If you’re a gardener, check out their full line of high-quality hand tools from DeWit, SHW, Barnel, and more. I chose to partner with Earth Tools because they are owned and operated by a small-scale farmer and his family. With their hands-on experience and understanding of the tools we need on our farms and in our gardens, and with affordable pricing, they make high-quality tools accessible to everyone. If you’re looking for the perfect holiday gift for the gardeners in your life, this is it. Find out more about their complete line of tractors and tools at EarthTools.com.

Resources

Lean Logic (Chelsea Green Publishing)

Surviving the Future (Chelsea Green Publishing)

Get both books for $60 .  (Chelsea Green Publishing)

Dark Optimism (Shaun's Site)

Lean Logic: The Work of David Fleming (Permaculture Podcast Interview)

Schumacher College The Moneyless Manifesto  - Mark Boyle

The Dark Mountain Project The Transition Timeline The Happy Pig , Ireland. (Permaculture Magazine UK)

The Power of Time Off  (TED Talk)

In this conversation, that arises from a listener question posed by Amelia, Ethan shares ways that we can transform our holiday experience from a consumption-driven exchange to one where gifts are given based on need or in service to others. He also stresses the importance of communication so that we can create new traditions that honor ourselves and the perspectives of our loved ones. Hearing what Ethan shared with us, how will you transform your holidays? What new traditions will you create? What conversations will you have to have to make this happen?

I want to hear from you. Leave a comment in the show notes here, or get in touch with me directly.

Call:  or email: The Permaculture Podcast

Also, if you haven’t heard already, Ethan and I are writing a book together, called The Possibility Handbook: A Toolkit for Transformation. To support the creation of this book, I’m running a listener exclusive crowdfunding campaign. By pledging your support now you can receive early access to the manuscript as it is written, hear the audio we record that serves as the basis for the book, and view pictures and video taken at The Possibility Alliance. If we can raise $5,000 I’ll head to The Possibility Alliance January 16 - 23, 2016 to begin recording. Find out more, including the topics we’ll cover, at www.thepermaculturepodcast.com/book

Until the next time, spend each day creating the world you want to live in by taking care of Earth, yourself, and each other.

My guest today is Shaun Chamberlin, the editor of Lean Logic: A Dictionary for the Future and How to Survive It and Surviving the Future, both of which are based on the work of the late David Fleming (1940 - 2010). The conversation is as much a discussion of these books, as it is a celebration of the life of David Fleming, who we get to meet through a series of clips throughout the interview. Without hyperbole, I see these two volumes as some of the most important recent texts for any permaculture practitioner, from recent convert to long-standing experts, to add to their library. David, through the careful clarifying editing by Shaun, has created the resources that bridge the landscape and our communities, from food to transition, in an apolitical, accessible way, covering topics from Abstraction to Yonder. Self-referential, you can open Lean Logic to any page and be lead on a trail of connected thoughts to lead you to ideas that initially might seem unrelated, kind of like going to Wikipedia to look up swales and before you know it three hours have passed and you are now reading about the health risks of tritium, except in a book where everything is related to the resiliency necessary to create a world where humans can survive whatever the future may hold. Enjoy this first conversation with Shaun. He returns for the second half on December 10.

Get in Touch

Email: The Permaculture Podcast

Write: The Permaculture Podcast The Permaculture Podcast  

Resources Lean Logic (Chelsea Green)

Surviving the Future (Chelsea Green)

David Fleming (Wiki)

Shaun Chamberlin The Transition Timeline Rob Hopkins and The Transition Town Movement (Interview)

Transition Network Transition US Richard Heinberg Michael Meacher (Former UK Environment Minister)

Ron Oxburgh LeanLogic.net (First publication of David’s manuscript)

The Dark Mountain Project Jonathon Porritt

You can find him, his work, and his books at holmgren.com.au and RetroSuburbia at Retrosuburbia.com. There you can also buy the book to have shipped wherever you live in the world.

Visit Our Partner: Harvesting Rainwater for Drylands and Beyond

I find that self-reflection, assessment, and awareness can lead to new insights and breakthroughs. These allow us to take our practices further. At the end of the last episode, I started this process by asking you to consider a series of questions about the context of your current on-the-ground situation. From that space of the structures that surround us, let’s take this consideration a bit more personal. Given the questions David Holmgren answered today, how could you use the influences of your past, and what you’ve learned about permaculture, to create and integrate new solutions into your life? What kind of novel personal social-system can you create? What kind of synergies exists between what you already know and where you want to take your practice? Who inspires you that you could seek out to learn more? What related fields are pushing the edge of current knowledge that you could draw ideas of inspiration? How can you, with time, radically transform your use of permaculture into a more personal, embodied, everyday practice? If there’s any way I can connect you with what you need to take your practice further—by interviewing someone in an upcoming episode, connecting you with a particular resource, or anything else that comes to mind—feel free to contact me. Together we can see where the conversation leads. From here, the next episode is a guest post from Michael Commons, read by me. After that is an episode looking at the current state of the podcast and where, after nine years, I’d like to take things from here and how I’d like you to join me on that journey. Until then, spend each day retrofitting suburbia, while taking care of Earth, yourself, and each other.

Fall Fundraiser If you enjoy this show, you can help it to grow and continue to explore the edges of ecological design and what it means to practice permaculture in the landscape, our lives, and our communities by donating today.

Give online: paypal.me/permaculturepodcast

Become an ongoing supporter: Patreon.com/permaculturepodcast

Or send something in the mail: The Permaculture Podcast The Permaculture Podcast

Resources

Holmgren Design RetroSuburbia Aussie Street (YouTube)

Jeremy Lent : The Patterning Instinct

Making Permaculture Stronger Novel Ecosystems

Imaging a World Without Growth

Michel Bauwens : Peer 2 Peer Foundation Patrick Jones - Permapoesis

The Commons with David Bollier (Permaculture Podcast Interview)

Su Dennett

Bill Mollison

Howard T. Odum

Haikai Tane

Visit Our Partner: Food Forest Card Game

This work and the discussion today looks at how people are and can adapt in-place, as individuals and communities, by retrofitting where many of us live: in the spaces around cities, the suburbs. Throughout David Holmgren shares how we found ourselves in the suburbs and the importance of getting out of the debt, commute, and consume treadmill. Together, David and David also discuss self-reliance, the revitalization of suburbia, and understanding and applying the context of where we live to the creation of our solutions. You can find David Holmgren, his work, and his books at holmgren.com.au. From there you can also buy RetroSuburbia! online, to have shipped wherever you live in the world. To go along with this episode, I also have a giveaway thanks to David and the folks at Holmgren Design, Permaculture Design Magazine, and PermaculturePrinciples.com. I have a copy of RetroSuburbia! and copies of the 2020 Permaculture Calendar to share with listeners. I’ll be giving the book and a calendar away to one listener, and one copy each of the calendars to two others. You’ll find this giveaway here at Patreon.com/permaculturepodcast starting on October 10th, 2019 and running until October 30th, 2019. If you’d like to make sure you get a copy of the calendar for yourself or to give to friends and family, you’ll find those at permacultureprinciples.com. This year the calendar features awesome images to illustrate the principles of permaculture, thicker print stock, and better print quality. You get all of that for just $11.95 US, with 100% of the sales profits going to the Permafund, a charitable organization supporting permaculture projects around the world. Any conversation with David Holmgren leaves me with enough to ponder for weeks and months to come after I first listen, and new thoughts arising each time I revisit the interview. Until the release of the second half of this conversation comes out in a few weeks, I’d like you to consider the ideas of replication and context for the design and refit of the suburbs. How does where you live change and shape what you can accomplish? This includes things like what you would grow in your gardens. The rules and regulations that determine where you can live and who you can live with. Whether calling on help for repairs can come from your own sweat equity, the capitalist economy, or an informal network of support. And what sustainable solutions are permitted or illegal. Think about those for now, and we’ll revisit this in the closing notes of the next episode. From here, the next interview is the second half of the conversation with David Holmgren. Until then, spend each day retrofitting suburbia, while taking care of Earth, yourself, and each other.

Fall Fundraiser If you enjoy this show, you can help it to grow and continue to explore the edges of ecological design and what it means to practice permaculture in the landscape, our lives, and our communities by donating today.

Give online at paypal.me/permaculturepodcast

Become an ongoing supporter at Patreon.com/permaculturepodcast

Or by mail: The Permaculture Podcast The Permaculture Podcast

During this in-person interview, we start with what he’s currently working on, including where he’s gone with natural burials and his exploration of chestnuts as a way to plan for the future. From there we talk about North America’s largest native fruit: the PawPaw. During the conversation that follows, Michael shares the resurging interest in this tree and fruit. The development of named cultivars and improvement of PawPaw genetics thanks to growers like Neal Peterson and Jim Davis. We also touch on growing your own PawPaw, as well as the flavor and nutrition of the fruit, and end with what you’ll find if you make it to his annual PawPaw festival, which recently celebrated its 4th year. Find out more about Michael, including his latest book For the Love of PawPaws, his homestead, and other work at ecologiadesign.com. You’ll also find links to that, the nurseries mentioned, and much more, in the resources section below. Also, in the Patreon feed at patreon.com/permaculturepodcast, you’ll find two giveaways. One for his book, For the Love of PawPaws. I also have a giveaway open for a copy of David Holmgren’s Scenario Planning for the Future. Both of those are open until October 10th, 2019. What I love about this conversation and all the times I’ve spent with Michael, is his go do it attitude and desire to instill that feeling in others. If you find something you love, you can learn enough to get inspired, and then go begin. Whatever you’d like to accomplish in permaculture, through successes, failures, and moments of great joy, take that first step and see where the journey leads you.

If I can ever assist you on that journey, please get in touch: Email: The Permaculture Podcast

Or write: The Permaculture Podcast The Permaculture Podcast

From here, the next interviews are a two-part series with David Holmgren discussing his book Retrosuburbia! and what we can do to prepare the communities we live in for the future. Until then, spend each day creating the world you want to live in by enjoying PawPaws, learning more about the native fruits in your regions, and taking care of Earth, yourself, and each other. Fall Fundraiser If you enjoy this show, you can help it to grow and continue to explore the edges of ecological design and what it means to practice permaculture in the landscape, our lives, and our communities by donating today.

Resources

For the Love of PawPaws Ecologia Design Planting and Growing Chestnut Trees (PDF)

Future Scenarios: How Communities Can Adapt to Peak Oil and Climate Change - David Holmgren SilvoCulture: Nuts for the Future Custard Apple NPR: The Once-Obscure Fruit is on its way to becoming PawPaw-Pawpular Neal Peterson / Peterson Pawpaws Deep Run PawPaw Orchard / Jim Davis Lee Reich

Uncommon Fruits for Every Garden

Paw Paw Nurseries

West Farm Nursery (New Jersey)

Peaceful Heritage Permaculture Nursery (Kentucky)

Twisted Tree Farm (New York)

dible Acres (New York)

Food Forest Farm (New York)

Rolling River Organic Nursery (California)

Grimo Nut Nursery (Ontario, Canada)

Edible Landscaping (Virginia)

Red Fern Farm (Iowa)

England’s Orchard (Kentucky)

Blossom Nursery (Arkansas)

Hidden Springs Nursery (Tennessee)

Burnt Ridge Nursery (Washington)

Raintree Nursery (Washington)

Past Interviews with Michael Judd

Honoring the Dead and Holding the Dying Starting Out and Getting Involved with Permaculture Edible Landscaping Michael Judd’s Mid-Atlantic Permaculture Convergence Keynote Address  

On the ground practitioners of permaculture practitioners engaged in restorative business, Joshua and Amanda are the founders and, respectively, the CEO and CMO of Black Sheep Regenerative Resource Management. Together they’ve co-managed VerdEnergia Pacifica, a permaculture farm, education, and resource center in Costa Rica, for the last five years They join me today to discuss how they are scaling up Blacksheep Regeneration Resource management. We also continue the earlier conversation from earlier interviews with Joshua about creating a compassionate future, the role of regenerative investing in saving and repairing the land, and the transitional ethics required in this period of change. Find out more about their work at weareblacksheep.org and verdenergiapacifica.org. The work Joshua, Amanda, the rest of their team, farmers, and friends, are doing through investment and direct commercial action reinvigorates farms and saves the land around them from further destruction and devastation. Listening to this story, I’m reminded that we can all engage in the act of restoration as permaculture practitioners by purchasing a piece of land, if we are able to do so and use the skills we gain through understanding ecological design to build soil, and restore functioning ecosystems that benefit people and the other than human. If we don’t have land but do have the economic resources, we can share our financial capital with the people and organizations that have those abilities. Donate or invest in land restoration or management projects like Blacksheep Regenerative Resource Management. Buy the plants for your backyard from nurseries you trust and believe in. Sponsor a scholarship for a Permaculture Design Course. We have the greatest ability to change the world when we work together. Folks like Amanda, Joshua, and myself, are here to help you find a way to make a difference, each in our own way. If you know someone engaged in work you believe in or have your own permaculture farm or project, please let me know so I can continue to curate that information and make it available to other listeners. Email: The Permaculture Podcast  You can also use that email address if you have any questions for me, or if you think I can help you get connected to resources that will aid your project. From here the next interview is another live conversation, this time recorded with Michael Judd, to discuss his latest book For the Love of Paw Paws: A Mini-Manual for Growing and Caring for PawPaws - From Seed to Table. After that are two episodes with David Holmgren. Until the next time, use your resources in the restoration of degraded land, while taking care of Earth, your self, and each other. Fall Fundraiser This episode starts the annual Fall fundraiser. If you enjoy this show, you can help it to grow and continue to explore the edges of ecological design and what it means to practice permaculture in the landscape, our lives, and our communities by donating today. Give online at paypal.me/permaculturepodcast Or by mail: The Permaculture Podcast The Permaculture Podcast

Resources

Call Joshua: 503-898-2163

Blacksheep Regenerative Resource Management

VerdEnergia Pacifica

Earlier Interviews with Joshua Hughes

Permaculture Politics and a Compassionate Future Regenerative Investing

Transitional Ethics