Permaculture for the Future

Show Highlights

• How to get started composting with worms
• How to improve degraded soil with compost and eliminate the use of fertilizers, pesticides, and insecticides
• Problems of sending food wastes to the landfill
• Food waste is the #1 category of materials being dumped in landfills
• Composting and vermicomposting basics
• Using food scraps you have and turn it as a medium to grow more food
• How can you start a worm composting system without spending a lot of money
• Different worm composting systems available: wind rows, bins, continuous flow through and more
• Which species of composting worm to use of the thousands of worm species
• How overfeeding can be a problem when doing worm composting
• What is a continuous flow worm composting system
• Three strategies for harvesting worm castings: Vertical, Horizontal, and stacking
• Worm husbandry understanding
• Effects of vermicomposting on soil and plants
• Making aerated compost tea with worm castings
• How to avoid leachate in a worm bin
• Differences between aerated compost worm tea and leachate

Links

• Rhonda Sherman’s Website
• Worms Can Recycle Your Garbage
• Video – How to set up a worm bin
• Backyard Composting of Yard, Garden, and Food Discards
• Video: Backyard Composting with Rhonda Sherman
• Book: The Worm Farmer’s Handbook

About Rhonda Sherman

Rhonda Sherman has been providing education and technical assistance on vermicomposting and composting at NC State University for 27 years. A leading authority on vermicomposting, she organizes an annual conference on large-scale vermicomposting that draws participants from all over the world. Rhonda gives about 50 presentations annually, has conducted countless training courses and workshops, and has a variety of publications on composting and vermicomposting. Her new book is The Worm Farmer’s Handbook. Rhonda is the director of the Compost Learning Lab which has 13 types of composting bins and a dozen worm bins.

Episode Highlights:

• Rob’s journey from being a pipeline engineer to permaculture
• How harvesting energy coincides with permaculture
• Difference between the rebuild and reset
• Why community groups are more important than gardening
• Why do we need to consider using alternative currencies
• How Rob is preparing for the big changes brought about by the pandemic
• Why podcasts are more important than the press
• A note by Katie LaMonte

About Rob Avis
With over 15 years of combined experience in engineering, project management, ecological design and sustainable technologies, Rob co-owns Adaptive Habitat – a unique and leading edge property design and management company in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

As a skilled Professional Engineer, he offers a depth of practical expertise in building science and appropriate technology (solar, wind, combined heat & power), as well as rainwater harvesting, agro-ecology, ecosystem engineering, soil regeneration and onsite wastewater treatment / septic design.

His extensive project management experience includes site analysis, technical design, cost estimating and scheduling, through to commissioning and construction.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from the University of Alberta, interned at the Folkecenter for Renewable Energy in Denmark, and co-founded Verge Permaculture in 2008, now an internationally-recognized & award-winning regenerative design, consulting, and education centre. With over 15 years of combined experience in engineering, project management, ecological design and sustainable technologies, Rob co-owns Adaptive Habitat – a unique and leading edge property design and management company in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

As a skilled Professional Engineer, he offers a depth of practical expertise in building science and appropriate technology (solar, wind, combined heat & power), as well as rainwater harvesting, agro-ecology, ecosystem engineering, soil regeneration and onsite wastewater treatment / septic design.

His extensive project management experience includes site analysis, technical design, cost estimating and scheduling, through to commissioning and construction.
He holds a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from the University of Alberta, interned at the Folkecenter for Renewable Energy in Denmark, and co-founded Verge Permaculture in 2008, now an internationally-recognized & award-winning regenerative design, consulting, and education centre.
Online Permaculture Design Course with Josh Robinson
The Online Permaculture Design Course

About Richard Heinberg
Richard Heinberg is Senior Fellow of Post Carbon Institute and author of several books on energy and the environment, including Afterburn: Society Beyond Fossil Fuels, and, with David Fridley, Our Renewable Future. His upcoming book is Power: Humanity’s Quest for Ability, Control, Influence, and Beauty—and How It All Went Wrong.
Show Highlights:

• Connections of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak to the different aspects of our society
• Reliance on economic efficiency to the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Why Resilience and economic efficiency can't go together
• How Permaculture is a strategic program in times of disasters
• The problem of our denial mechanism in dealing with real issues
• Resilience victory gardens for the future

Links:

• Richard Heinberg's Website
• Post Carbon Institute
• Resilience.org

Episode Highlights

• Getting into permaculture
• Using rainwater and greywater
• Designing living and functional ecosystems
• Planting ecosystems
• Sequestering excess carbon from the atmosphere uses plants and soil

Your Show Host

Josh Robinson is a father, gardener, farmer, teacher, and ecological instigator. He has over 19 years of experience in the field designing, installing, and teaching about creating ecological abundant gardens, home, farms, and businesses. Josh has been teaching permaculture to hundreds of people since 2005. He holds a Master’s Degree in Ecological Landscape Design from Prescott College.

His work has received multiple awards as well as being featured in Toby Hemenway’s Gaia’s Garden and Art Ludwig’s Create an Oasis with Greywater. Josh has started multiple permaculture based landscaping businesses including his current business, Ecology Artisans, where he designs and leads crews in installing beautiful, functional, and abundant landscapes throughout San Diego. In addition, Josh is the Director of the permaculture educational organization, The San Diego Sustainable Living Institute.

Currently Josh is working with his family and friends in developing the 17 acre permaculture designed farm and education center at Terra Corazón in Valley Center, California

Many people are interested in careers in permaculture, regenerative design, and just restoring the ecosystems of this planet, but when you look out at the current job market, often times those jobs are not available. It is not that the work is not needed, it is that someone just has not started that business yet. In today's show, we talk with Brook Sarson about her journey into permaculture and creating a career path in work that is both meaningful and has an ecological and community impact.
Show Highlights

• Allowing job opportunities to unfold
• Strategies to succeed
• The importance of business partnerships
• The myth of the expert
• How positive action creates movement and momentum
• How bottom up action can lead to policy change

About Brook Sarson
Brook started her rainwater and greywater harvesting business, H2OME, in 2008 with the mission to be a resource to the San Diego Community for water harvesting. She was determined to create change from the ground up by showing homeowners, educators, and policy makers how simple and effective rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling can be. Her continued mantra has been that individual contributions create tremendous impact toward a larger water conservation strategy. In 2017, Brook joined forces with Rosalind Haselbeck to start CatchingH2O, a licensed Water Harvesting Contracting business.
Show Notes can be found at www.PermacultureForTheFuture.com/episode9