Breaking Free From Factory Farms

SUBHEAD: Why foodie farmer, Joe Salatin, believes sustainable farming includes eating meat.By Joel Salatin on 30 March 2011 in The Nation -(http://www.thenation.com/video/159458/joel-salatin-breaking-free-factory-farms)Image above: Aerial photo of feed lot by Pete McBride. From (http://www.petemcbride.com).In this twelfth video in the series “Peak Oil and a Changing Climate” from The Nation and

Some Fight Back

SUBHEAD: Review of the late Joe Bageant's new book "Rainbow Pie: A Red Neck Memoir".By Michael Donnelly on 1 September 2011 in Counter Punch - (http://www.counterpunch.org/donnelly09012010.html)Image above: Joe Bageant with baseball cap and pickup truck. From (http://www.winterpatriot.com/node/580).Q: How do you know if you are rich, middle class or poor in America? A: When you go to work, if

Start Gardening With a Vengeance

SUBHEAD: More of us should take up the spade, make some compost, and start gardening as if our lives depended on it.By Ellen LaConte on 30 March 2011 in AlterNet - (http://www.alternet.org/food/150428/garden_as_if_your_life_depended_on_it%2C_because_it_does)Image above: Poster circa 1925 with Uncle Sam advocating "Garden to cut food costs!" From (http://gallery.pictopia.com/natf/photo/8612566/).

Permaculture Taking Off in Hawaii

SUBHEAD: Reawakening an appreciation for traditional systems and adding in modern permaculture techniques.By Craig Mackintosh on 28 March 2011 in Peraculture RI -(http://permaculture.org.au/2011/03/28/permaculture-taking-off-in-hawaii)Image above: Setting up a permaculture garden on the Big Island. From (http://permaculturehi.wordpress.com/2010/06/10/

The Local Food Revolution

SUBHEAD: A revolution aimed at rebuilding food security and food sovereignty for all.By Michael Brownlee on 24 March 2011 in Boulder Weekly - (http://www.boulderweekly.com/article-4806-id-like-to-see-a-study-on-the-relative-cost-for-t.html)Image above: Boulder Belt Farm share. From (http://www.localharvest.org/blog/330/entry/boulder_belt_farm_share_inititiative16).Boulder, Colorado -Anyone living

Earth's Scarcest Resource Is Time

SUBHEAD: In the event of a crisis, the US food supply would run out in three days.By Lester Brown on 23 March 2011 in The Nation - (http://www.thenation.com/video/159399/lester-brown-planets-scarcest-resource-time)Image above: Lester Brown in China. From (http://whoami-whoareyou.blogspot.com/2011/01/for-perspective.html).In this eleventh video in the series “Peak Oil and a Changing Climate” from

Good Complexity, Bad Complexity

SUBHEAD: The economy of oil, coal, gas, corn, wheat is vulnerable to a continent-wide systemic collapse should any of them become unavailable or fail.By Jim Bannon on 6 March 2011 in An Ecology of Home - (http://villagegreentimberframes.com/page7/blog.php)Image above: A complex computer generated graphic created by the simple Mandelbrot formula. From (http://img299.imageshack.us/i/squidglowch7.

Eco-Farming Feeds the World

SUBHEAD: "Agroecology seeks to improve the sustainability of agroecosystems by mimicking nature instead of industry".By Paula Crossfield on 9 March 2011 in Huffington Post -(http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paula-crossfield/un-ecofarming-feeds-the-world_b_833340.html)Image above: Organic fruit at Kauai farmer's market. From (http://theessenceofblogging.blogspot.com/2010/12/

Small scale farms are sustainable

SUBHEAD: UN study finds organic outperform conventional farms where the hungry live, especially in unfavorable environments.By Matthew McDermot on 8 March 2011 for Treehugger - (http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/03/small-scale-sustainable-agriculture-double-developing-nations-food-10-years.php)Image above: Harvesting organic vegetables on small Indian farm. From (https://picasaweb.google.com/

Chinese Draught Consequences

SUBHEAD: Lowest rainfall for 60 years in the North China Plain threatens wheat harvest, food prices and the global economy.By Peter Foster on 14 February 2011 for The Telegraph - (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/china-business/8321368/Chinas-drought-could-have-devastating-consequences.html)Image above: A Chinese farmer shows the dried vegetable seeds at his drought-striken fields in Zhouping,

UN is Getting Into Permaculture

SUBHEAD: Putting more trees on farms is fundamental to the future agricultural development.By Paul Stapleton on 9 February 2011 in EureakAlert! - (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-02/wac-pto020911.php)Image above: A tropical agroforestry tree nursery. From (http://www.forestnursery.com/).Trees growing on farms will be essential to future development. As the number of trees in forests

Food Security & Food Culture

SUBHEAD: The ‘fast food culture’ of modern society has distanced most of us from a richness of experience.By Matty Lynch on 1 February 2011 in Permaculture Media - (http://permaculture-media-download.blogspot.com/2011/02/food-security-and-food-culture-by-matty.html)Image above: Detail of promotional poster for Morgan Spurlock's movie "Supersize Me". From (http://www.legendarystrength.com/

The Food Bomb

SUBHEAD: Our leaders are like deer transfixed by the lights of an onrushing truck—they’ve done precious little to avert catastrophe.By Barry Lando on 1 February 2011 in Truthdig - (http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/the_food_bomb_20110131/)Image above: Food market in Kaski, Nepal. From (http://californiaagriculture.ucanr.org/landingpage.cfm?article=ca.v063n04p199&fulltext=yes).On the face of it,

Obama GMO pressure on Vilsack

SUBHEAD: Media reports suggest White House pressured Vilsack to approve GMO alfalfa.By Tom Philpott on 31 January 2011 for Grist.org - (http://www.grist.org/article/2011-01-31-media-reports-white-house-pressure-stomped-on-vilsack-over-gmo-a)Image above: Cows are being fed ever more alfalfa. One reason is that it reduces them burping up methane that adds significantly to global warming. From (

Post Peak Oil Bee Keeping

SUBHEAD: Bees can be beneficially added to any system, improving pollination of crops and yielding concentrated storable sugar.By David Holmgren on 26 January 2011 in Holmgren Design Services - (http://www.holmgren.com.au/frameset.html?http://www.holmgren.com.au/html/Writings/Writings.html)Image above: Beekeeping on Kauai. From (http://kauaibuzz.blogspot.com/2010/12/

Permaculture as a Venture

SUBHEAD: We're into helping people to become responsible and effective Permaculturists. Grow your food. Pay your own way.By Chuck Burr on 8 November 2010 in SOPI Permaculture - (http://www.sopermaculture.org/SOPI/Blog/Entries/2010/11/8_Mark_Shepard%E2%80%99s_106_Acre_Permaculture_Farm_in_Viola,_Wisconsin.html)Image above: Example of animal and plants in permaculture setting. From (http://

Orbiting Planet Serious

SUBHEAD: For now, acting outside the common narrative in the US is simply too scary for the multitudes to rationally consider.By Steve Ludlum on 22 January 2011 in Economic Undertow - (http://economic-undertow.blogspot.com/2011/01/bits-and-pieces_22.html)Image above: The Middle east from 250 miles altitude over Saudi Arabia with the Red Sea on the horizon. From

Let's Talk About Bees

SUBHEAD: Every single person who controls a bit of land has an opportunity—I’d say a responsibility—to become a bee facilitator.By Adrian Ayres Fisheron 18 January 2011 in Ecological Gardening - (http://www.ecologicalgardening.net/2011/01/lets-talk-about-bees.html)Image above: Backyard beekeeper. From (http://family.webshots.com/photo/2383299580036962797XCEHIn).Our bee problem is quite the topic

EPA looks the other way

SUBHEAD: EPA document shows it knowingly allowed use of pesticide that kills honey bees.By Ariel Schwartz on 7 January 2011 for Fast Company - (http://www.fastcompany.com/1708896/wiki-bee-leaks-epa-document-reveals-agency-knowingly-allowed-use-of-bee-toxic-pesticide)Image above: Beekeepers examining hive. From original article.The world honey bee population has plunged in recent years, worrying

Slow Money

SUBHEAD: Reconnecting the economy to soil, biodiversity and food quality.By Woody Tasch on 2 December 2010 in Mother Earth News -(http://www.motherearthnews.com/nature-community/slow-money-ze0z10zhir.aspx)Image above: A slow growth money tree. From (http://blog.hostyourspace.co.uk/if-you-are-new-in-inverting-then-follow-these-guidelines-for-success). The following is an excerpt from Inquiries