Regenerative Skills

My guest today is Zach Loeks. The owner of the 50 acre Kula Permaculture farm in the Ottawa Valley of Ontario, Canada. There they run a local CSA, grow over 100 varieties of vegetables, herbs, fruits, nuts and trees , and even offer yoga retreats and children's summer camps. Zach is also the author of the book “The Permaculture Market Garden” which is an in depth guide to the techniques that he's developed and refined over many years of running this multifaceted and profitable farm. In this interview Zach talks about how growing up on a permaculture homestead in northern New Mexico helped to give reference as he developed and grew Kula farm. He also talks in detail about his permabed system designed, profit resilience, and finding a balance between the diversity needed in a permaculture farm and the focus and efficiency needed to make a profit. This interview is chalk full of practical advice and information that you can take and apply to your own gardening project no matter what the size, so grab a notebook and I'll turn things over to Zach. For "The Abundant Edge" listeners only, you can now get 50% off your digital subscriptions to Permaculture Magazine North America by entering the code PMNA50abedge at checkout. Get your subscription today and dive deep into the local and global solutions that go beyond sustainability. Resources: https://www.kulafarm.ca/

My guest today is Hannah Eckberg. Along with being the co-founder, editor and creative director of Permaculture Magazine of North America, she has also been the president of “get oil out” which was recognized as the US's first grass roots activist organization when she was only 19 and also the United Hemp council promoting the agricultural and environmental benefits of hemp. As a self described “optimizer” she is always looking for ways to make things better and look at them from different view points. In this interview, Hannah talks about her experiences and lessons as grass roots organizer, and now as an editor how she's helping to promote positive voices for change and regeneration in the permaculture community and beyond. She also gives invaluable advice on how to make a difference in community organization and empowerment. For "The Abundant Edge" listeners only, you can now get 50% off your digital subscriptions to Permaculture Magazine North America by entering the code PMNA50abedge at checkout. Get your subscription today and dive deep into the local and global solutions that go beyond sustainability. Resources: https://permaculturemag.org/

My guest today is Tamara Dean, the author of the book “the Human Powered Home: choosing muscles over motors” which is an in depth look into the history, advancement, and modern applications of human powered machines. Having just finished reading this I can honestly say that I was immediately inspired to start building and using these machines myself. It covers the full range of people powered devices from treadle sewing machines, prisoner powered treadmills and cotton gins, to bicycles, see-saw water pumps and pedal generators. In later chapters, Tamara profiles people and organizations that are applying human powered devices to appropriate technologies that stimulate economies in developing regions, empower people to take on new projects on their own steam, and even just improve your health and fitness. In this interview Tamara talks about her inspiration to write “the human powered home” and some of the machines she built herself while researching for the book. She also gives advice on some of the most efficient and less efficient tasks to power on your own, some of which are based on her own successes and failures. For "The Abundant Edge" listeners only, you can now get 50% off your digital subscriptions to Permaculture Magazine North America by entering the code PMNA50abedge at checkout. Get your subscription today and dive deep into the local and global solutions that go beyond sustainability. Resources: Pedal Powered Prime Mover Plans http://www.mayapedal.org/ http://tamaradean.media/ https://www.newsociety.com/Books/H/The-Human-Powered-Home

My guest today is Tim O'Hara who's the owner and founder of Rancho Mastatal sustainability and education center, one of the premier sustainable living education sites in the world. For more than 15 years Rancho Mastatal has been leading the way in permaculture, natural building, and regenerative living skills such as fermentation, bio gas digestion, soap making, and much more. Tim started out with a degree in agricultural economics and first began working in corporate agro business before becoming disillusioned with that world and joining the peace corps where he worked for two years in Uraguay and there met his wife. After another short stint working in agro business, Tim was ready for a big change. Through a friend of his from the peace corps Tim then found the land in Mastatal Costa Rica where the dream of the ranch came together. In this interview, Tim shares invaluable insights on how to integrate with your local community as an outsider, how their demonstration site has had a positive impact on their community at large, and he goes over some of the biggest hurdles he and his team have had to overcome to get to where they are today. This is a great episode for anyone who dreams of starting their own training or educational site one day. Resources: http://ranchomastatal.com/

My guest today is Neal Spackman, Neal is best known for his work on the Al Baydah project in Saudi Arabia, and as the co-founder of the Sustainable Design Masterclass. Neal has been working for nearly a decade in one of the most arid regions of the world in a severely desertified region of saudi arabia to regenerate the landscape there through permaculture methods focusing on water harvesting techniques. As a former student of Geoff Lawton, Neal began work on the project with no prior experience with either permaculture or dryland restoration, but in a remarkably short time he and his team have completely transformed the way the land both sequesters water and builds topsoil, and has even reached the point where the trees no longer need any water from drip irrigation in a desert that receives only a few centimeters of rainfall a year. In this interview Neal talks in detail about the intricacies and challenges that they face on his land restoration project, the social and economic factors that add a human element to the designs, and how he went from a complete beginner to running one of the most prominent and successful desert restoration projects in the world. We also talk about the incredible information and interviews that he hosts through the Sustainable Design Masterclass and the inspirational stories of people who are running profitable businesses by regenerating the earth. Resources: http://www.albaydha.org/ https://www.sustainabledesignmasterclass.com/

My guest today is Scott Gallant who is a resident farm manager at Rancho Mastatal which is a permaculture and natural building design and teaching site in Costa Rica. Scott grew up in a little town in Ohio outside of Cincinnati spending most of his childhood playing in the neighboring farmland. He later went to a small liberal arts school in Indiana called Wabash college where he studied economics and rhetoric. After that he was on the track to get a job in finances but instead took a detour when he decided to take some time off and head out west to work for a conservation crew. There he met his partner Laura and she convinced him to hitch-hike through Mexico with her to learn Spanish. Long story short, he says, we ended up at Rancho Mastatal in Costa Rica where he soon began running the farm, teaching permaculture, and eventually doing consulting work. Since then Scott has been featured on Permaculture Voices with Diego Footer, on the recent USDA “Inside Agroforestry Beginning Farmers” newsletter, and has written many articles for the Permaculture Research Institute. In this episode Scott talks in detail about his role managing the farm on one of the premier regenerative living sites in the world and the journey that got him to that point. He also gives advice to beginners who might be looking to get involved in land management and regeneration projects themselves. Resources: http://ranchomastatal.com/

My guest today is an outspoken advocate for freeing yourself from the shackles of the rat race by making lifestyle changes that help you regain your freedom. Chris Mcclellan is affectionately known as Uncle Mud and runs a website by the same name where you can find resources on how to learn to build with cob and other natural materials. In this episode Chris goes in depth on the different ways that you can slash your monthly bills with natural building retrofits. How instead of paying upwards of 1k a month to heat his house he now only pays $75 a year using a wood stove he built with mud and recycled materials, and why you should look to your back yard before for building supplies before heading to home depot.

My interview today is with one of the designers and change makers that has most influenced my own approach to professional projects and regenerative landscape development. Darren Doherty is the founder of Regrarians Ltd. Based in Bendigo Australia and he has extensive experience in project design, development, management and training. He's worked on 6 continents and nearly 50 countries in mostly broad-acre agricultural applications. The Regrarian's purpose that he promotes is to provide the potential for people to be informed about the regenerative economy, whether it involves their work in agriculture, land management, corporate life, domestic services, manufacturing or other activities that are within the reasonable domain of humans. In this episode Darren talks extensively about the innovative platform and ethics that his organization promotes, how he got started as a landscape designer and began teaching with Bill Mollison the co founder of permaculture, and he gives essential advice on how to build soils that are counter intuitive to how many people have learned with mulch and compost. This is another really in depth interview and I'd advise having a note book on hand as Darren goes into detail about a lot of the science behind soil building and carbon sequestering in a regenerative landscape.

My guest today is Bill Steen, who along with his wife Athena is one of the early innovators and promoters of straw bale building in the American Southwest through their company “the Canelo Project.” Bill was born in Tucson, AZ and attended the university of AZ where he studied cultural anthropology. Out of college he ran a yoga ashram in NM for 12 years. He took a couple years off after that experience and moved to Canelo, AZ 33 years ago where he and his wife Athena quickly started the Canelo project which is dedicated to connecting people, culture and nature. He describes himself as someone who never lost the dreams he had that were born in the 60s in terms of more enlightened ways of living, whether it was spirituality or through sustainable ways of living on this earth. In this interview Bill opens up about how he an Athena started the Canelo Project and wrote their essential work “the straw bale house” and “ the beauty of strawbale homes.” Bill also shares some off the most important tips and tricks he's learned in building through his extensive experience, how the aesthetics and natural building techniques of the SW have influenced him, and much more. Resources: https://www.facebook.com/The-Canelo-Project-131628036916687/ http://www.caneloproject.com/ Upcoming Workshops with Bill Steen and the Canelo Project http://www.caneloproject.com/workshops/england-clay-plaster-workshop/ http://www.caneloproject.com/workshops/earth-floor-and-plaster-workshop-france/ http://www.caneloproject.com/workshops/artistry-with-clay-lime/

My guest today has been one of my most inspiring forces in creating this podcast and working towards sharing my learning experiences with the larger community. His name is Diego Footer and he's the founder of Permaculture Voices. Through his business he puts out a world class podcast and youtube channel by the same name and sells books and online courses through the website. His broadcasts focus on his own journey in creating a permaculture landscape and garden on his property outside of San Diego CA, and wisdom he gains through the process. In our interview, Diego opens up about some of the early failures he had when first starting his business, what he learned from the experience, and some invaluable advice for entrepreneurs following a similar path. He also shed's light on some of the overlooked realities of developing businesses and permaculture landscapes that are often the reasons why people quit early. Grab your notebook for this one because there is enough information in our chat to fill a book. Resources: http://www.permaculturevoices.com/

Todays guest is a good friend of mine who has recently become a member of the Abundant Edge team. His name is Neal Hegerty and he's the volunteer coordinator and co-teacher at Atitlan Organics here in Tzununa, Guatemala. Neal grew up in Ireland and spent a lot of time around his uncle's dairy farm when he was young. He went on to study agriculture in science and began to learn more about alternative methods of farming during his travels and volunteering on wwoof farms. He later went on to get his masters in agriculture and development studies. In this session we talk about many progressive agricultural techniques such as holistic land management, silvopasture, strip grazing and more. Neal also shares his experiences from managing volunteers from all over the world, and how cattle farming can actually be good for the environment. Resources: http://imapermaculture.org/ http://www.atitlanorganics.com/

In this interview with my good friend Max Benjamin, we talk about his journey over the past three years to build a sustainable permaculture enterprise in a little town on Lake Atitlan Guatemala. Max is a great example of where many of our listeners are at in their transition to a regenerative lifestyle and here he shares stories about the challenges and successes he's had over the last three years in developing a diversified farm, with different value added products and side ventures in order to create his own permaculture paradise. While the specifics of his situation might be completely different for your own, I have no doubt that anyone on the journey towards a more regenerative life would find commonalities and resonate with his story. Resources https://www.facebook.com/max.benjamin.161 https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/jocotel/ https://www.facebook.com/eljocotel/

In this episode I talk about some of the most common myths and misconceptions about natural building and bust them. There's a lot of first hand knowledge from my years as a designer and builder around the world, and I work to help you get better information than what's often available online. This talk is mean to give you a realistic idea of how to get started with a natural building project and how to avoid some of the unrealistic expectations and misleading information that can get you started on the wrong foot.

in this episode I had the pleasure of interviewing Sukita Reay Crimmel, the founder of both Claylin LLC. and From These Hands LLC. as well as the co-author of Earthen Floors: A Modern Approach to an Ancient Practice. We talk all about the anatomy of earthen floors, tips, tricks, different applications, maintenance and even chemistry for the real nerds like me.

In this interview I had the pleasure of speaking with Janell Kapoor, founder of both Kleiwerks International. and the Ashevillage Sanctuary. Janell has been teaching natural building workshops all over the world since 1997 and founded Kleiwerks Intl. in 2004. She also ran some of the first earthen building trainings in Thailand, Argentina, and Turkey. Since 2006 she has been renovating and building the site of the Ashevillage sanctuary by reclaiming materials from the waste stream and using natural materials from the site. Since then Ashevillage has become a model ecological learning center and demonstration site that offers a wide range of regenerative living skills courses and workshops. In this interview Janell talks about the mission and intent behind Ashevillage, how she found ways to design systems that bring humans and nature together, her incredible work empowering and working with women, and much more. Janell has been one of my biggest inspirations since I got started in the regenerative living world and her experience and insights do not disappoint. Resources ashevillage instagram ashevillage.org kleiwerks.org

In this episode I interview Kirk Mobert, the founder of Sundog Building school in Point Arena CA. Kirk has dedicated nearly a decade of research and testing to rocket stove and rocket mass heater technology. In this interview we talk all about how these revolutionary stoves work, why his school focuses on teaching the re-indigenization of building, and how he sees the world of natural building evolving in the future. Resources: http://www.sundogbuilders.net/ Kirk also sent a follow-up audio a couple days after the interview elaborating on the answers he gave the first time around. This is some great bonus content for you natural building enthusiasts so don't miss it

In this interview I get to talk with Rob Roy, author of 17 books and a leading voice and advocate for cordwood building. Rob gives a ton of information on how to prevent cracking and swelling of the cordwwod while maintaining the insulative integrity of the wall. He also goes into detail about different mortar mixes and explains a bit about his unique ability in moving huge monolithic stones with just basic tools Resources: To find all Rob's books that are currently in print click on the link below hhttps://newsociety.com/Contributors/R/Roy-Rob Here is the Earthenwood Building school website www.cordwoodmasonry.com

Though this is her first time on the podcast, it's actually round two for Sigi Koko, the founder of "Down to Earth Design" and the "Build Naturally" blog. Click here to see my original interview With Sigi. Sigi is an architect, builder and teacher extraordinaire. She founded Down to Earth Design back in 1998 and has been designing and building with natural materials in the Mid-Atlantic region ever since. She's a encyclopedia of building and design knowledge which she often uses to help guide new builders and designers on natural building forums on facebook and in her blog. In this episode we talk in-depth about the anatomy of straw bale walls, the key differences between thermal mass and insulation, and how to make best use of both for your location and climate. Sigi also gives invaluable advice for troubleshooting some of the trickier aspects of natural plaster application and mixing so keep a notebook handy for this one :) Resources: https://www.facebook.com/buildnaturally/ http://www.buildnaturally.com/ "Building with Straw Bales" by Barbara Jones

In this interview I speak with Liz Johndrow, founder of Earthen Endeavors and the Pueblo Project, about a ton of topics including how she got started in the building trades, the importance of including women in construction and design, tips and tricks with natural plasters, and much more. Liz is a world class natural builder and instructor with a wealth of knowledge and experience. I first met Liz when I assisted on her natural building course at "Atitlan Organics" in Guatemala in November of 2016, and was immediately impressed with her knowledge of indigenous building methods from central America and her focus on empowering women in the building trades. There are invaluable little nuggets of information all through this episode so be sure to catch this one. Resources:

I first met Shad Qudsi when I assisted on a natural building workshop with Liz Johndrow in November of 2016. Shad's farm "Atitlan Organics" hosted the workshop in which we built a new kitchen area for the farm. Since then he and I have worked on a few projects together and he continues to be a wealth of knowledge and experience, not only about permaculture, but about the local culture here in Guatemala and about regenerative business advice as well. Shad is originally from New Jersey, but resettled in Tzununa on Lake Atitlan nearly a decade ago with his wife. Together they run one of the most diverse and abundant permaculture farms I've ever visited as well as the "bambu hotel," an incredible example of bamboo framing and bajareke walls built by Charlie Rendall (one of my natural building mentors). In this interview Shad shares his unique insights about initial steps in developing a permaculture farm, how to grow a complete diet, why he disagrees with the modern environmental movement, and much more. As promised in the intro, there's also a bonus audio here in the "resources" section in which Shad gives invaluable business advice on how to manage multiple operations in a regenerative business, so don't forget to check that out. As always, these episodes are meant to be a dialogue and conversation starter more than a lecture series. Especially in these early days of getting the podcast up and running I really appreciate feedback, comments, ideas, whatever. You can even e-mail me directly at info(at)abundantedge.com. I want to hear from you! If you enjoyed this episode please share it with your friends or others who you think might benefit from the information and insights in these episodes. I'm looking forward to making these as useful and informative for everyone looking to make the world and our environment a better place. Resources: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaQhzvfsGGDZvs4ufEZmJmw This is the link to the youtube channel for Atitlan Organics. Here you'll find a ton of entertaining and educational videos about permaculture and farm skills.

Paul Wheaton is easily one of the biggest personalities and voices in the permaculture world today with his sites Permies and Richsoil attracting thousands of visitors daily to the articles and forums. Paul has made waves in the past with his controversial opinions and advice on energy saving methods and techniques for growing a permaculture business. In this marathon interview he goes in depth about his most important experiments, defends his positions on incandescent light bulbs, shares stories from meeting Sepp Holzer and much much more. Resources: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_7I-hgtQo4 This is a link for Paul's TED Talk all about ways to save energy in heating your home and busting the myth of florescent light bulbs https://richsoil.com/wood-heat.jsp This is the link to Paul's DVD series on how to build a rocket mass heater

In this episode I got to interview one of my biggest heroes in the natural building world! Patrick Hennebery is one of the most prolific natural builders in North America having built more than 50 cob structures with his company cobworks, and 20 conventional homes. He's a completely self taught carpenter/builder who studied with Ianto Evans and the Cob Cottage Company in the early days when they were just starting the cob revival. He's especially passionate about teaching others to live more simply, buy less junk, and build their own shelter. In this interview Patrick talks about how he got interested in natural building and why he made the switch from industrial building, how you can get started learning to build for yourself, and many stories from his projects in Mexico as well as creative ways in which he got through the permitting process on this cob builds. As always, these episodes are meant to be a dialogue and conversation starter more than a lecture series. Especially in these early days of getting the podcast up and running I really appreciate feedback, comments, ideas, whatever. You can even e-mail me directly at info(at)abundantedge.com. I want to hear from you! If you enjoyed this episode please share it with your friends or others who you think might benefit from the information and insights in these episodes. I'm looking forward to making these as useful and informative for everyone looking to make the world and our environment a better place.

Welcome to the very first interview on "The Abundant Edge." In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with William Horvath, founder of "Permaculture Apprentice." William studied permaculture in Australia before quitting his job as a geologist for the mining industry there and moved with his wife back to Croatia where he is from originally. For years now he's been developing his own permaculture paradise and writing and educating about his experiences on his site permacultureapprentice.com. He has also begun teaching permaculture courses for people looking to start their own farms and transition to a regenerative lifestyle. I particularly recommend his series of webinars at the Ecolonomic Action Team here. Resources: https://permacultureapprentice.com/ https://www.eatcommunity.com/products/eat-free-team/categories/188834 This is the link to William's webinar series on starting a permaculture farm

Welcome to the very first episode of "The Abundant Edge." In this introductory episode I'll introduce the concept and motivation behind starting the podcast and introduce myself, Oliver Goshey, by explaining how I got interested in regenerative living practices and the journey I've gone through to get where I am as a natural builder and permaculture designer. As always, these episodes are meant to be a dialogue and conversation starter more than a lecture series. Especially in these early days of getting the podcast up and running I really appreciate feedback, comments, ideas, whatever. I want to hear from you! If you enjoyed this episode please share it with your friends or others who you think might benefit from the information and insights in these episodes. I'm looking forward to making these as useful and informative for everyone looking to make the world and our environment a better place.