Regenerative Skills

From poverty to permaculture abundance, with Luwayo Biswick, director of the Permaculture Paradise Institute: 071

I try to keep my fingers on the pulse of whats going on in the world of permaculture, natural building and regenerative living, since after all that’s the focus of this podcast, and as a result I find tons of inspiring projects and designers doing ground-breaking work around the world. One of the people and projects that have really caught my attention in the last two months is Luwayo Bizwick and his organization Permaculture Paradise Institute in Malawi. The scope of his projects and the impact he’s having on the agricultural practices in his country are truly inspiring.
In this interview we talk about the challenges that Luwayo faced while growing up and how the epidemics of malnutrition and poverty in Malawi can be addressed through holistic design. We go into detail about the goals of the Permaculture Paradise Institute as well as the strategies to accomplish them. We also dissect his incredible guilded and polyculture systems on the farm and much much more. This is one of the most profound and eye-opening interviews I’ve yet done and Luwayo has a poetic way with words that really helps to build narrative around the sometimes-dry technical aspects of permaculture which I admire very much.
When we recorded the episode originally we had a pretty lousy connection (turns out Guatemala to Malawi is challenging on a little wifi hookup) and so he was kind enough to send me his answers to the questions a second time and what resulted was an impressive expansion on this answers the first time around, and so I’ve published the second round in the show notes for this episode on abundantedge.com I highly recommend that anyone who enjoyed the interview have a listen to the second audio as well. It’s under 25 minutes long and absolutely worth the time. So before I drag on too long, here’s Luwayo
Resources:
Permaculture Paradise Institute on Facebook
Luwayo Biswick on Facebook

Respecting the diversity of permaculture and talking shop with Shad Qudsi and Zach Loeks: 070

This was an opportunity from a few months ago that I just couldn't pass up. Two of my best friends and mentors in the world of permaculture, Shad Qudsi and Zach Loeks, came together to teach a Permaculture Design Certification course and we got to sit down in the middle to talk about a wide range of topics from respecting the diversity of permaculture, exploring regenerative land management sites in local communities around Guatemala, to different landscape and soil amendment challenges in different sites. It was an blast sitting down with these two on the Abundant Edge homestead with coffee that we grew and processed ourselves so I'll hand things over now to Shad and Zach
Resources:
Atitland Organics on Instagram
Atitlan Organics
Zach Loeks on Instagram

The regenerative way to recover after a natural disaster with Rory Dickens of RecycleRebuild: 069

Climate change can manifest in many ways, but in the last 10 years the growing trend of increasingly severe storm seasons and natural disaster have grabbed headlines and displaced entire populations. The urgency of disaster relief is growing every year and the cost of the recovery efforts is skyrocketing. This is what lead me to speak with Rory Dickens, I was first introduced to Rory Dickens through John Bodnar, a former student of mine from our intro to natural building course who recommended that I get in touch with Rory to talk to him about the inspiring disaster relief projects that he and his team are working on with RecycleRebuild on the island of Dominica in the Caribbean.
In this interview we talk in detail about some of the major issues facing modern disaster relief efforts and how they can be improved. Rory speaks about his own experiences working in many relief efforts around the world and what he’s learned as well as how RecycleRebuild approaches their recovery efforts from a local perspective that takes into account the specific need of the effected communities and the resources that they have on hand. There are a lot of nuances in each of these cases and it was refreshing to hear a viewpoint that doesn’t advocate for a one-size-fits-all approach, so I hope you get as much out of this interview as I did. Now I’ll turn things over to Rory.
Resources:
Recycle Rebuild

Re-foresting the land by preserving heirloom avocados, with Neal Hegarty and Shad Qudsi: RRT 5

I haven't been this excited about a project in forever. On this month's regenerative round table, I sit down with Neal Hegarty, co-founder of Abundant Edge, and Shad Qudsi, founder of Atitlan Organics, to get to scoop on our first community reforestation project and heirloom local avocado preservation effort. This has been the culmination of many years of observing the local ecology, and social fabric of our valley here in Tzununa and we're opening the doors for groups and organizations to come and learn through practice. Before I give everything away, have a listen!
Resources:
Atitlan Organics Service Project Link
Hear more from the Abundant Edge Team

Solving climate change in your yard with Ginny Stibolt, co-author of “Climate-Wise Landscaping: 67

Climate change is becoming a major disruptor of ecosystems all across the planet with disastrous effects in many cases. For that reason, I spoke with Ginny Stibolt, co-author of the book “Climate-Wise Landscaping” to learn more about how we can transition our lawn centric and synthetic chemical heavy landscape maintenance practices into beautiful ecosystems that help to address the issues of climate change.
In this episode, Ginny talks in depth about alternatives to lawns and how adding native species can bring beauty and health to your yard while sequestering carbon in the soil and attracting wildlife too. We talk about reducing the heat island effect in cities by planting appropriate trees and creating water permeable surfaces to reduce runoff. We also investigate options for growing food, cutting down on maintenance and much more. We cover a lot in this short session so grab your notebooks and I’ll turn things over to Ginny.
Resources:
Greengardeningmatters.com
on Facebook
Buy the book "Climate-wise Landscaping"
Article: Soil. We need to stop treating it like dirt

The balance between diversity and efficiency on your permaculture farm, with Shad Qudsi of Atitlan Organics: 066

Here we are again with one of my favorite guests, Shad Qudsi. Shad has been a good friend and mentor to me and our team at Abundant Edge for years now and is the Founder of Atitlan Organics, a profitable permaculture farm and education center here on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala. If you’d like to hear more from Shad and his path to permaculture farming in Guatemala you can always check out our previous interview from season one in the link in the show notes for this episode. I’ve invited Shad back today to help us tackle some of the most pressing questions and concerns that I hear addressed on our facebook page and on-line forums for permaculture farmers.
In this interview we speak from our own experiences and context about finding the balance between farm diversity and efficiency. We also go in depth on the often-neglected subject on lifestyle around your farm and how to prevent your plant and animal-based enterprises from trapping you in a cycle of constant maintenance and preventing you from living the life you want. The modern context of regenerative farming comes with a lot of advantages but also limitations if you’re not clear about the life you want to live around farming. I hope this is a discussion that many of you listeners will feel compelled to jump in on. Every context is a bit different and I look forward to hearing your take on the topic. You can always write to us on the abundant edge facebook page or email us directly at info@abundantedge.com. Now I’ll hand things over to Shad
Resources:
Atitlan Organics
Our first interview with Shad from season 1

Demystifying home-made bread and mythbusting gluten with Victoria Miller, author of “From No-Knead to Sourdough: 065

Bread has been a passion of mine for years. Ever since we tried making it for ourselves when I worked on trail crews in the national parks I’ve been fascinated by how much better tasting home made bread is compared to the majority of whats available on supermarket shelves. I eventually worked as a baker for a small artisan bakery in Seattle and have been making my own bread for years now and even building earthen ovens to bake in, so this interview with Victoria Redhed Miller, author of the new book, “From no-knead to sourdough: A simpler approach to handmade bread,” was really exciting for me.
In this interview we start with a brief history of how we got from home-made bread in every household, to wonder-bread and factory produced, pre-sliced loaves. Victoria walks us through the whole process starting from selecting flours and mixing ingredients all the way to finished bread fresh from the oven. We also go in depth on the topic of gluten and why many people’s aversion to this simple protein might be unfounded.  This is another information dense interview so grab your notebooks and I’ll turn things over to Victoria.
Resources:
Buy the book "From No-Knead to Sourdough"

Applying permaculture principles to your social business, and more with the founders of La Botica Verde: RRT 4

Welcome to a very special session of the Regenerative Round Table. Though Jeremy Fellows is away on a road trip through Mexico on his beloved bus sunny, we’re joined by two great friends and social entrepreneurs, Giuliana Gobbato and Michelle Sultan, founders of “La Botica Verde” who we featured in an interview two weeks ago. In this episode we get into a ton of new topics including the difference between food sovereignty and food security, and which is healthier for our communities. We talk about getting ahead of the seasons and preparing for the installation of abundant systems, post-harvest workshops for organic producers to help them get more product to market in a healthy way, designing for energy flows, and so much more. This is an in-depth discussion with some really brilliant minds working to bring profitable and equitable models of permaculture to as many people as possible in a region of the world with so much potential and promise moving forward. I hope that you’ll join the conversation and become collaborators in the seasons to come!
Resources:
La Botica Verde
Abundant Edge on FB

DIY kombucha and the delicious world of fermented drinks with author Andrea Potter: 063

This week we’re getting an in depth look at Kombucha and the world of fermented drinks. I spoke with Andrea Potter, the author of the book DIY Kombucha: Sparkling homebrews made easy. The recent explosion in popularity of this historic beverage comes at a critical time when more and more people are taking back their food making processes and starting to see whole nutritious food as a preventative measure for all kinds of illnesses.
In this interview Andrea talk about the history, health benefits, and fermentation process of Kombucha and more importantly, how you can easily make it at home for yourself. We also talk quite a bit about other types of naturally fermented drinks and recipes for delicious flavors. This is a great episode for those of you looking for new uses of fruits, herbs and flavorings that you grow in your gardens and will hopefully inspire you to get started making your own, so now I’ll turn things over to Andrea
Resources:
Rooted Nutrition
Buy the DIY Kombucha book

Getting high quality harvests to a larger audience in Guatemala, with the founders of “La Botica Verde:” 062

It's hard to spread the word on regenerative farming and organic food when its impossible to get, so Neal Hegarty had a chat with Michelle Sultan and Giuliana Gobbato, the founders of "La Botica Verde" a social business that helps organic producers find buyers and a larger market for their goods. Each of them come from unique backgrounds and have teamed up to transform the limited food system in Guatemala, arguably one of the most ecologically rich countries in the world. They talk about their passions and inspirations behind the vision for their business as well as many of the unique hurdles that organic producers face in this country too. For anyone inspired by the potential for permaculture based businesses, then this is the episode for you.
Resources:
La Botica Verde on Facebook
La Botica Verde website