Book Review: Resilience Thinking – Sustaining Ecosystems and People in a Changing World
DVDs/Books — by Owen Hablutzel June 4, 2010
Book by Brian Walker and David Salt
Island Press – 2006
174 pages
Reviewed by Owen Hablutzel
When is the last time you were surprised? It might have been a brand new volunteer plant in the garden, bizarre and beautiful fungi in the pasture, an incredible storm on the horizon, or a blessed windfall on the balance sheets! Given the inherent unpredictable nature of wholes – complex adaptive systems from cells, to bodies, to farms, societies and all of nature – we can be sure that surprise and unexpected change will happen quite frequently. If this is true at the home, farm or business scale it is all the more so at the regional, national, and global scales in today’s always changing and increasingly interconnected world.
Comments (0)Pathways to Re-Localisation with Joel Salatin
Courses/Workshops — by Owen Hablutzel February 10, 2010
December 9-11, 2009
Orella Ranch, California
“May your children rise up and call you blessed!”
We begin where an exuberant Joel Salatin ended his two-day Pathways to Re-localization intensive; by declaring a simple benediction with far-reaching implications. The environment both outside and inside the large tent housing this event has been highly dynamic, refreshing, and bold. Sweeping swells and pulses of much needed rainfall have been pattering the rooftop these past two days. Aromas of moist leaves, air, earth, wood, and clothing are rampant. But Nature’s sweet wet furies outside have been unable to drown out the warm deluge of Mr. Salatin’s charismatic speaking inside. And like the droughted California soils outside, finally filling their pore spaces with the delicious torrent, the minds of course participants are just as vigorously imbibing the information deluge inside, drinking in everything from practical farming techniques to food issues, farm-scale marketing, and the philosophy of re-localization. The rain event will produce a flush of strong growth in the Mediterranean climate here. And we can predict likewise that Mr. Salatin’s far-reaching ‘intensive’ will produce an abundant proliferation of essential and inspired re-localizing activities from coast to coast and beyond. It is in a world made local and resilient once more through such a strategy that children may indeed rise up and call us all blessed.
Comments (3)A Report on ZERI Training Course (Zero Emissions Research Initiative)
Consumerism, Courses/Workshops, Society — by Owen Hablutzel January 17, 2010
December 3-5, 2009
Orella Ranch, CA
Remember the Chicken?
The ‘Permaculture Chicken’ is a classic example used by Bill Mollison and many subsequent Permaculture teachers to illustrate an extremely useful analysis technique for use when designing systems. In the case of the classic chicken example, this ‘element’ of the system – the chicken – is analyzed for its needs (inputs) and its products (outputs). Using this information a designer can begin to make connections between each of the diverse components of the system, integrating all of these elements into a whole, functional system.
Sustainable Land Management Course
Courses/Workshops, Land — by Owen Hablutzel December 3, 2009
Holistic Management™, Keyline Design®, and Broad-acre Permaculture
with Kirk Gadzia and Darren Doherty
November 10-15, 2009
Orella Ranch, California
The winds of change are blowing extra brisk these days and gathering transformative momentum. Highlights and ground-truthed strategies for this agrarian revolution underway were served up and stacked high for six solid days at the Orella Ranch Sustainable Learning Pavilion, during this second module (of four) in the on-going and leading-edge Carbon Economy Course.
Comments (4)Soil Food Web Course with Dr. Elaine Ingham
Compost, Courses/Workshops, Fungi, Rehabilitation, Soil Biology — by Owen Hablutzel November 7, 2009
October 30 – November 1, 2009
Orella Ranch, Gaviota Coast, California.
A wise person once said that soil is not only more complex than we know, it is more complex than we can ever know! The good news is humans have lately achieved a level of practically applicable knowledge and experience in soil biology to be absolutely capable of massive, positive impacts on sustainable soil use world-wide! It is undoubtedly true that we’ll never know everything, but no matter – we already know enough to get very, very busy!
Comments (1)
