The eco-village ( I now have a little hope for the future!)

[prism1234]

I watched a documentary on Discovery Channel and I am really excited about the Eco-Village Movement. If you are unaware of the eco-village, google away!! It is basically a community of 50 or so families that work together to produce their own food and energy without harming the environment in a sustainable way. This really could be the future. Imagine millions of these communities growing most of their own food in community gardens and contributing energy to the grid with green technologies like wind, geothermal, and solar power. Instead of a mammoth fossil fuel burning power station or Nuke plant, you have everyone making electricity and contributing to the grid while also taking away the energy that they need (think electric cars). They even have Urban eco-villages that grow fruits, veggies, and even fresh fish on rooftop organic gardens using Aquaponics. (Aquaponics is awesome BTW Google that too!)Cool idea I think… Feel free to disagree, I just think it is the best answer I have seen to the mankind's current situation…

[chrisandstepheny]

Anybody tired of being a slave to society should check this stuff out. First chance I get we're going to build for self-sustainability and starting a eco-village. when you grow your own food and make your own necessities (including your house, VERY GOOD read The Hand-Sculpted House by 3 great authors who help start the earthen home movement.) you are not dependent on anyone else for food or necessities.
Also, as far as the earthen home thing I know it sounds privative but google pictures of cob houses and you will have a totally different opinion.

[prism1234]

Originally Posted by chrisandstepheny

Anybody tired of being a slave to society should check this stuff out. First chance I get we're going to build for self-sustainability and starting a eco-village. when you grow your own food and make your own necessities (including your house, VERY GOOD read The Hand-Sculpted House by 3 great authors who help start the earthen home movement.) you are not dependent on anyone else for food or necessities.
Also, as far as the earthen home thing I know it sounds privative but google pictures of cob houses and you will have a totally different opinion.

I saw those in the documentary and wow... They almost look like modern southwestern Architecture. Thanks for reminding me!!

[aumbrellaforainydays]

anyone heard of arcosanti?
http://www.arcosanti.org/

[prism1234]

Originally Posted by aumbrellaforainydays

anyone heard of arcosanti?
http://www.arcosanti.org/

Not untill now, Thanks for the link!! That is so cool!

[Shr00m]

That is good to see. If you dont start doing something we will have to group up Mad Max style.
Always around,
Alex

[steeq]

This thread has really got me to thinking about moving to the "country". Though I won't move to far from the city, I would like to start leaning how to provide for myself.

If we can learn these type of skills, then we can pass them down to our children who can do the same thing adding each time. I don't see in my generation or my son's having to have these type of skills, but it needs to start now to secure my/your family's future.

I see the future at some point going back to square one with mother nature and hunter gatering. We need to prepare now to pass these invaluable skills to our next generation.

[prism1234]

Thanks Bro! I am excited and renewed by this knowledge as well...

Right now is the planning stages. As time goes on, you will see more and more communities springing up because of all the benefits of living in these places. I think that the return of the “small town American dream” will be enough to get people over the hump. Imagine groups of people that have common interests and goals working towards those goals in an environment that is healthy and sustainable. Imagine neighbors looking out for one another and taking care of the group and not just themselves. I think in the last 100 years or so, the American has lost that sense of membership to a small local community that made this country great, and has become so individually concerned that they are missing the point of this life. Return to this old way of living, while embracing the newest technologies can save us from ourselves and make our lives fuller. Not to mention the yet unknown social and economic benefits of such a community for the modern American family..

[Hippie3]

the only way you're going to
keep young people
living way out in bumphuque nowhere
is to fence them in.
you do know that
it used to be like you envision
but people ran away as soon as they could.
human nature hasn't changed.
they'll run again.

[prism1234]

Originally Posted by Hippie3

the only way you're going to
keep young people
living way out in bumphuque nowhere
is to fence them in.
you do know that
it used to be like you envision
but people ran away as soon as they could.
human nature hasn't changed.
they'll run again.

Good point Hip, but I don't think that people will have to be living in rural areas with nothing to do but farm. I think that this concept will integrate into all facets of modern society slowly, and deliberately until it is just how we live. I think that in the future, people will be living in this way wondering how we could even think about being as dirty and destructive as we are. We might even be looked upon as barbarians of sorts, living in a time that could be viewed by future humans as an ecological dark age. Imagine citys with zero pollution and lush gardens covering rooftops and old unused parking lots. I see windmills and solar panels on top of every home like the TV antennae of pre-cable TV decades.

Maybe I am off, but I think that this idea, in some variation, will be our future as a species if we are to survive many more generations....

[Hippie3]

no wonder the green movement has taken 40 years
to get nowhere.
you can't call people
'dirty barbarians' in one breath
then ask for a donation
with the next breath.

[prism1234]

I wasn't calling us that, I was just saying that far future generations might, much like people look at the dark ages today..

[Hippie3]

it was still
your hand
holding the puppet...

[lyqwyd]

we all gotta start somewhere. hippie has a point: this isn't widely adopted because folks either don't want to give up the comfort and convenience of a modern life, or are sick of being poor and hungry and want meat, beer, and tv. HOWEVER, as more people catch on to permaculture and other eco-living styles as a cheaper, more econonmically, ecologically, and scoially viable alternative to industrial agriculture and its resultant soicety, i think people will convert. no need to sacrifice the breakthroughs we've made in science and technology, just combine them with ecological sytems to minimize inputs and waste. its all pretty simple... read permaculture by bill mollison, if u want a manual.... im writing a paper on this as we speak; maybe i'll post the finished product when i'm done.

[prism1234]

Originally Posted by Hippie3

it was still
your hand
holding the puppet...

Agreed, I guess I was a little harsh..

[the_chosen_one]

Originally Posted by lyqwyd

we all gotta start somewhere. hippie has a point: this isn't widely adopted because folks either don't want to give up the comfort and convenience of a modern life, or are sick of being poor and hungry and want meat, beer, and tv. HOWEVER, as more people catch on to permaculture and other eco-living styles as a cheaper, more econonmically, ecologically, and scoially viable alternative to industrial agriculture and its resultant soicety, i think people will convert. no need to sacrifice the breakthroughs we've made in science and technology, just combine them with ecological sytems to minimize inputs and waste. its all pretty simple... read permaculture by bill mollison, if u want a manual.... im writing a paper on this as we speak; maybe i'll post the finished product when i'm done.

i would LOVE to see this!

[prism1234]

Originally Posted by lyqwyd

we all gotta start somewhere. hippie has a point: this isn't widely adopted because folks either don't want to give up the comfort and convenience of a modern life, or are sick of being poor and hungry and want meat, beer, and tv. HOWEVER, as more people catch on to permaculture and other eco-living styles as a cheaper, more econonmically, ecologically, and scoially viable alternative to industrial agriculture and its resultant soicety, i think people will convert. no need to sacrifice the breakthroughs we've made in science and technology, just combine them with ecological sytems to minimize inputs and waste. its all pretty simple... read permaculture by bill mollison, if u want a manual.... im writing a paper on this as we speak; maybe i'll post the finished product when i'm done.

I also agree here. I think that this will happen slowly over the next few generations. My grandmother remembers when she had to ride horses because no one had a car. She lived in a house without indoor plumbing. It may happen faster than anyone thinks. I think at the very least we live in an amazing time in the history of this planet. Choices are being made now that will effect us in the future more powerfully than ever before. I think that this idea has less to do with left or right beliefs and more to do with cost and economics...

Thanks for the book reference

I will look into that...

And please do post your paper, or at least parts... I would love to read it..

[bear]

Dancing Rabbit

is another eco-village. I think I'd like to live on one for a while just to see what sort of techniques they are utilizing and improve upon/implement them myself.

[bear]

I'd love it if we had a discussion of permaculture practices ongoing here. I think that we already have a lot of the picture with organic farming, vermicomposting, mycocomposting, etc.

[prism1234]

Originally Posted by bear

I'd love it if we had a discussion of permaculture practices ongoing here. I think that we already have a lot of the picture with organic farming, vermicomposting, mycocomposting, etc.

Agreed... I think we can get it going on!

[the_chosen_one]

Originally Posted by prism1234

Agreed... I think we can get it going on!

[lyqwyd]

mycelium running by stamets is an excellent resource on mycoremediationg... spores in chainsaw bar oil used to innoculate cuts and decompose stumps in forestry... permacultue is SOOOO easy, and SOOO multidiscpilinary that anyone can find a part that is interesting to them. shit, build you house so one wall faces south. make that wall glass or plastic, then make the room next to that wall a greenhouse. make the other wall out of recycled metal containers painted black and filled with water. on the other side of the water wall, put a living space. put some vents in the jusg wall and you can ventilate your home with moist warm greenhouse air and HEAT IT FOR FREE as well... studies have proven eiffiencey of passive solar heating systems such as this one. annual aveage temperature: 65 - 70 degrees f. depending on latitude and humidity. properly insulate your current home and save up to 50% on heating and cooling costs. less is more folks. i have to have the paper done by tonight so i can move out of my current abode tomorrow, so ill put it up here when im done.

edit: this passive solar description is much simplified. check out low-cost passive solar greenhouses, i think by rodale press. it'll blow your mind. another resource for how fucked the current food system is Eat Here by Brian Halweil, 2004. Worldwatch institute. time to write the paper now. will post when complete

[lucysmiling]

i agree, i know for a fact this is what the future is going to be. I dont know if your just trying to play devils advocate hip or what, but im young and i loved nature. The only reason why i came back to the city was because i didnt have anybody down there with me. im trying to get a family or tribe. The city is based on time, and not soo much relationship. When your living with nature, catching your fish and connecting with the river and the fish your 'catch' is much more meaningful. My buddy deals with many indian tribes in central america, and yes its true that most of the youth want 'out' of the 'old' ways. The only reason being is because they have forgotten the ways and are watching things like MTV and such. To really get embedded with nature, one has to ingest the plants. Like terrence Mckenna says theres 2 types of people. The scripture reading people and then the experimentalists. Someone ingesting peyote is going to know a whole lot more, than someone who just reads about it. I know this is the true way, and hopefully i will be finding out within this year, cause im sick of the city. im the youth, and most youth have no clue what they want. And i know that things need to start being based upon relationship, rather than time, or going to some destination. life is a journey. Humanity has completley lost touch with nature, most of us have no relationship with the vegetable kingdom. Most of us who live in the city go to the supermarket and buy the killed fish, that we arent most of the time aware of the animal being alive a few hours ago! Life needs more passion and meaning, and the best way to go about that, is back to nature!

[lyqwyd]

here we go fellers and lasses. my finished paper. DONE WITH SCHOOL FOR SUMMER FUCK YEAH!!!!!!!!w00t!! gonna get drunk to night bitches!

[aumbrellaforainydays]

Originally Posted by lyqwyd

permacultue is SOOOO easy, and SOOO multidiscpilinary that anyone can find a part that is interesting to them. shit, build you house so one wall faces south. make that wall glass or plastic, then make the room next to that wall a greenhouse. make the other wall out of recycled metal containers painted black and filled with water. on the other side of the water wall, put a living space. put some vents in the jusg wall and you can ventilate your home with moist warm greenhouse air and HEAT IT FOR FREE as well... studies have proven eiffiencey of passive solar heating systems such as this one. annual aveage temperature: 65 - 70 degrees f. depending on latitude and humidity. properly insulate your current home and save up to 50% on heating and cooling costs. less is more folks.

so for those who havent read mollison or holmgren or read a book from rodales. permaculture is two words permanent and culture or permanen-agriculture.

what i have to disagree here is that permaculture sounds easier than it is. the basic principles may sound easy, but how many of us can walk the talk? a completely self-sufficient system (farm, house, lifestyle) that adds to the overall diversity and ecological functioning of the earth isnt easy, its darn near impossible for a lot of people.

but i agree that less is more. when 46,000 calories are consumed for our daily 2000-2500 need (mostly fuel consumption). i find that is what appalls me.

but you're right, find the south facing side of the house and design it as a part of your energy production (heat, food, hot water). thats a start, but we need to look at a the whole system, and expand outwards from the doorstep out.

thats why i included the arcosanti link, because they beginning to think of cities as organisms in themselves, without having the city to sprawl and consume as if it were a cancer. imagine living where your work, play, and school could all be accessed by foot. now think at how much you had to drive today. from home to work to home to play to school.
so who's got the solution?

[lyqwyd]

there is no single solution. we must pool all our knowledge, experience, wisdom, and skills to build a better, more sustainable society. we must co-operate to do this, putting differences aside, or, better yet, hash them out so we can understand and tolerate (not accept blindly) those differences to accomplish a necessary task. my personal solution is a network of ecovillages build around a permaculture system, using technologies to make the most use out of every calorie of energy. the technology factor necessitates continued resource use, but if the village network is planned correctly based on previous trials then resources can be budgeted so as not to require excessive use. also, many "technologies" used in systems like this are based from simple observation of ecological practices and utilizing them to benefit us while renewing themselves and the ecosystems they are involved in. its such a complex issue, and so must be tackled from every possible angle. once we have all the angles figured out we can compile it into a viable strategy for continued , widespread, comfortable, human civilization and for the preservation of global ecosystem- and bio-diversity . rant over. poke at it, tear it apart, lets talk and come up with the solution to save the world. im gonna go get drunk for now though

[MycoChondria]

lyqwyd, your treatise is going to take a while to digest but from what I've read so far it will well be worth my time.

This is one of the best damned f*cking threads I've ever seen...very expansive and thought-provoking indeed. Thank you!

[lovedinplaster]

change is alot easier than you think. its more of a mental addiction to "not change" that is the problem. we also need to stop global marketing. this drives prices up and makes us more dependant anyway. im glad i have found this thread and im glad there are more people out there that understand small communities is alot better than trying to keep large communities alive. noone needs a car if they grow their own food in their yard,and if their job is growing that food. some people will e reluctant because they wont be around alot of people. In the city you barely talk to the people you are around anyway..and in smaller communities you are more likely to meet someone with common interests anyway. if you need 1000 friends, then you forgot about yourself and are no longer living for your own desires.

[Hippie3]

. we also need to stop global marketing

well i guess that makes you my enemy
since i sell my products in several nations.
topia has members from over 90 nations.
i sure ain't going back to the stone age without a fight.

[lovedinplaster]

hmm that is very true hippy, i guess its a matter of teaching self reliance.