If you’ve already been through an economic collapse, you might know a thing or two about how to feed your family with little money. More importantly, you might know how to do it without pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and GMO seed. On a total of about 20 million acres managed by over 35 million Russian families, Russians are carrying on an old-world technique, which we Americans might learn from.
Hungary has taken a bold stand against biotech giant Monsanto and genetic modification by destroying 1000 acres of maize found to have been grown with genetically modified seeds, according to Hungary deputy state secretary of the Ministry of Rural Development Lajos Bognar. Unlike many European Union countries, Hungary is a nation where genetically modified (GM) seeds are banned. In a similar stance against GM ingredients, Peru has also passed a 10 year ban on GM foods.
Published in 2013 by Chelsea Green, The Greened House Effect: Renovating Your Home with a Deep Energy Retrofit, by Jeff Wilson, is a worthy read. Jeff Wilson is committed to doing what he can to conserve energy and safeguard our environment, and he does this through tackling his own home with a deep energy retrofit (DER). As a media professional focused on sustainable architecture and a former builder, he brings considerable knowledge to the topic. His detailed account of the experience is both instructive and entertaining.
Living a self-sustainable lifestyle does not mean you have to have 139,674, 987 acres somewhere in the middle of nowhere! Off-grid, self-sustainable living can happen no matter where we are. In fact, I believe that self-sufficient living has more to do with our mind-set rather than our surroundings.
Let me explain what I mean here…Last winter, I spent the weekend at the home of a Missouri farmer. He and his wife spent countless hours that weekend giving me reasons as to why sustainable farming and off-grid living is a thing of the past. They were surrounded with 140 acres and not a lick of it produced a thing for them.
On the other side of the coin, I’ve met plenty of people who live sustainable, off-grid lives using what they have; and sometimes that means they only have a balcony or a 1/10 acre lot.
The greatest obstacle our family has to being self-sustainable is money. Like many others, we have bills to pay and a land payment to make. Even when we are debt free, there will still be property taxes and general up-keep costs. Although the whole point of self-sufficiency has to do with a reduction in consumption, reality is we’ll always need some type of income.
So how does one make money living an off-grid, self-sustainable life?
Begin immediately by:
• Reducing living expenses
• Consume less commercially prepared products
• Minimize possessions
• Reduce your living space
This can be accomplished through a variety of means. Perhaps by turning off the TV, rethink those items that you now consider “necessities,” sell everything that you haven’t used in a year or more, and/or by downsizing your living space. By doing these few things, you will save yourself a ton of money in multiple areas (i.e. utility costs, heating, cleaning, cooling).
Then begin generating income by:
1.Follow your interests and do what you love – Before you do anything else, do what you love and the provision will follow. Steve Jobs said that he would look in the mirror every morning and ask, “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today? And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.”
2.Eat from your garden and sell the rest – Utilize every square inch of your property for production. Focus on planting perennials that come back year after year and require little care (i.e. nuts, fruits, berries, etc.). Gather provisions for your family and sell the rest for profit. Consider joining a CSA as a producer or selling at a farmer’s market.
3.Raise and sell animals – Even in our small suburban lot, my daughters are raising heritage breed rabbits and selling them on craigslist and/or to local farm supply stores as pets.
4.Sell pastured eggs from your backyard hens – A super easy way to profit big time. There are farmers that are making thousands of dollars raising and selling pastured eggs.See this Joel Salatin link.
5.Start a Farm School – This you can do with acreage or even in an urban/suburban setting. Open your home to teaching people the old ways of doing things. There has been a huge gap in knowledge. Wisdom that was once commonly passed down from generation to generation has in many ways been lost. People are eager for a rebirth of traditional know-how. Check this site for an example of what I’m talking about here.
6.Turn your crafty skills into a profitable business – Make candles, soaps, lotions, homemade/repurposed clothing. This list is endless and has everything to do with number 1…doing what you love. Etsy is a great way to get your stuff out there to a wide range of folks.
7.Write – Begin chronicling your interests. Use social media to your advantage (smile).Create a blog (Blogger, Word Press, Tumblr, etc.) Start a hubpage. Become a member of StumbledUpon. I promise, someone will find your thoughts valuable.
8.Farm Vacation Destination – If you are one of the fortunate ones to own a small or large farm, consider opening a portion of it up as a vacation destination! See this article in Urban Farm Magazine.
Creating ways to decrease our consumption and increase production is the only method useful in moving toward independence. Self-sustainable living is all about reducing our dependence on someone else to supply our needs.
Consider what it is that makes you come alive. Stop limiting yourself. Go for it!
Share with us where are you in the journey?
The article “How to Make Money Off-the-Grid” was used as a reference.
For some, a self-sufficient lifestyle is the dream and to be able to live off of their own land and resources would be a great accomplishment. There are many, many ways to be able to live in a sustainable manner and although at first these methods can be expensive, in the long-term they will pay off and the money would save, as well as vastly improving the environment around you, would be of a great benefit.
MEXICO CITY– Climb to a rooftop and scan the horizon of Mexico’s capital, and you’re likely to see nearby rooftops or balconies with vegetable gardens.
Urban rooftop gardening is on the cusp of a boom, sponsored by a City Hall that sees gardening as a way to alleviate poverty, provide residents with their own healthy food and add some green to one of the world’s most populous cities.
Hello everybody. After trying to start a community Facebook-style site on our website, we’ve realized it just doesn’t work. When the technology already exists, like Facebook, Twitter, etc… we may as well use them to our advantage. Perhaps in a couple of months/years, when our user base expands, we can try to build a community at that point. However, in the mean time, please join us here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/ecovillagemexico/ and let’s start the conversation!
This is probably one of the most positive videos you could view when it comes to organic gardening. Learn how to have a garden free of weeds, free from having to water, and virtually no maintenance at all! Check out the video below:
Después de años de un agotador esfuerzo quebrando la tierra devastada por los efectos de métodos de cultivo hechizos, Paul Gautschi ha descubierto un ejemplo de lo que Dios quiso ofrecerle a la humanidad en el Jardín de Edén. Algunos de los asuntos vitales que la agricultura enfrenta hoy en día, incluye la preparación de la tierra, fertilización, irrigación, control de la maleza, control de plagas, rotación de cultivos y cuestiones de pH. Ninguno de estos factores se presenta en el estado no alternado de la naturaleza ni en los jardines y huertos de Paul.
VOLVER A EDÉN te invita a caminar junto a Paul mientras él te enseña métodos orgánicos y sustentables de cultivo que pueden implementarse en diversos climas en todo el mundo.
