New communications technology and media allow those at the fringes more equal access to information and ideas.

Page 236 – Ideas and science at the fringe.

I take this a step further and believe that these technologies have given fringe information a stable outlet (a website) and the means to connect that resource to others that relate. This organic network enables people interested in empowering themselves to find others. This fringe facility for collaboration has connected me with dozens of other like minded people – a webring. This can have some interesting side effects.

Recently Nick from Milkwood Permaculture came to the Permaforest trust neither of us recognized each other despite us both being quite intimate with each others work via the internet. This was due to the focus of our interaction being the work – not the personality.
On the internet (wholistic.com.au) my identity is quite separate and left deliberately ambiguous. My website is not a channel for my personal life – these aspects are expressed in more intimate spaces.
There is a freedom of content creation that institutional science does not currently experience. My observations are human and that humanity is accepted, acknowledged and embraced.

There is a show on the ABC tv network called The New inventors. This show highlights the acceptance of fringe (backyard) science, innovation and invention in the Australian cultural context.

This is balanced by a lot of this innovation only finding its feet in the international markets. However the international markets grow closer and the boundaries for penetration are thinning – especially in the areas of information and higher tech content. This is one area I’ve chosen to invest my time. By disseminating high quality content at low cost to myself and free by choice to the user I am feeling the edge of a new boundary.

Failure to deal with the intellectual limitations of reductionist thinking within the scientific disciplines, to develop a culture of wholistic integration, or to reward cross discipline endeavors.

This quote hits the nail on the head. It is the very reason I left university, the details manifested from this root. The failure of the curriculum and the institutions of education to facilitate the growth of my fringe, passionate experimentation – digital photography. I withdrew and as per the timeless myth of man went wandering to find my self and my place.

On this journey I found my teacher, at the very fringe of society, living in Australia as an illegal immigrant. I practiced six months of intense dynamic wholistically integrated meditation with him. This practice gave me a gift to take with me back out into the world.
My awakening, enlightenment and connection to the source of creativity.
I was just as ready for such a transformation in university, but the core limitations of that system held us both back from our full potential.
I did learn some valuable “techniques” – ironically that was the supposed strength of the TAFE system preached to me by the University.
I am now engaged in nationally recognized training in the wholistically integrated system of Permaculture.

Today a Bower bird pecked at an orange as it rolled from the tree all the way down the driveway to the house.
Marvelously it made it to the deck. Very fortuitous.

Our ponds are the highest level ever.
23,000Lt of pure rain water in our concrete tank feels like money in the bank. We can transfer it around the landscape when the sun shines!

Our dry firewood supply is stacked for months supply. Our fire heats our water and helps cook our food. We live in a forest that sustains our supply.

There are gardens growing well around the house. Mature trees form an open woodland around, understory fruit and nut trees.

Our house supports two creative souls the year round.

These are some guidance for life in natural harmony.

Principle 1- OBSERVE AND INTERACT

Principle 2- CATCH AND STORE ENERGY

Principle 3- OBTAIN A YIELD

Principle 4- APPLY SELF-REGULATION AND ACCEPT FEEDBACK

Principle 5- USE AND VALUE RENEWABLE RESOURCES AND SERVICES

Principle 6- PRODUCE NO WASTE

Principle 7- DESIGN FROM PATTERNS TO DETAILS

Principle 8- INTEGRATE RATHER THAN SEGREGATE

Principle 9- USE SMALL AND SLOW SOLUTIONS

Principle 10- USE AND VALUE DIVERSITY

Principle 11- USE EDGES AND VALUE THE MARGINAL

Principle 12- CREATIVELY USE AND RESPOND TO CHANGE

There are three ethics to apply to life.
Care of People
Care of the Earth
Share of the suplus

Inspired by Tim Winton and my work with the Permaforest Trust, I will now endevour to integrate these principles into my life. I will also begin tagging my posts with them as they apply.
Source:

http://www.holmgren.com.au/html/Writings/essence.html

http://www.permacultureprinciples.com/

Capturing rainfall water from a roof, stored in a tank, pumped uphill by a solar pump and gravity fed to nurture a vegetable garden is possibly the smartest investment you can make towards a healthy productive life. Integrated in the natural cycle. Growing food will immediately and irreversibly open your awareness to the preciousness of fertile, healthy soils.
Incredibly valuable, able to store and grow vast wealth and return essential dividends.

Recent investigations into the highly fertile terra preta soils of the amazon basin have led to some astonishing connections.

A process called pyrolysis controls the conversion of woody biomass to wood gasses and charcoal. The gases can be burnt without the same carbon cost as the fossil fuels. The carbon originally sequestered by the tree from the atmosphere to form its mass is also stored in the charcoal. When this char is crushed up and spread over soils their structure allows the flourishing of life. Nitrogen, Potassium and Phosphorus bind to this and are retained in the soil. It also holds moisture in the soil. The essential microcolgy of fungis and bacterias have habitat. Fertility is retained in the soils, for thousands of years.

Fertilizers are often water soluble. When it rains they accumulate into the runoff that goes into waterways. The farmer must put more on and this repeats. This concentration has massive impacts down the line. The agrichar holds the nutrients in the soil for the plants where they are wanted – clean water continues its cycle.

Separation and Composting can return the nutrients back to the fields where the food was grown. When done right it is healthy, happy and in harmony. Goals for our world.

This planet is the recipient of a continuous diffuse stream of energy from the sun. A square meter of the surface in full sunlight is receiving approximately 1000w of energy. Over a day, that spot might receive 6-7kW/h in our part of the world with an open northerly aspect.

The planet has been receiving this income for as long as there has been life at the surface. Millions of years. Those early plants and creatures have captured and stored this energy income. Some of it is stored in a vast global inheritance of fossil fuels.
This is the ancient foundation of our capital base.

The rapid expansion of mining and consumption mean we are spending our capital base as if it were our income. Turning a store, into a flow.

A Sustainable Economy harvests a yield from the capital base invests some of the income back into that base so that it can grow, strengthen and continue to provide yields in the future.

The global and local situation is that we are exploiting our inheritance and burning it from both ends. We burn oil, liberating its energy and stored carbon content. The ecology that established the capital stores of carbon and reintegrates their outputs are also being harvested (old growth, deep sea).

A functional solar economy is as diverse as the land on which the sun falls. It values biological resources. Topsoil takes its place a nations greatest material asset. Topsoil is the medium for the most intense concentrations of life. It is vital. Through it water is cycled and food is grown.
The closer you are from these elements that sustain your life, day to day. The smaller the subsidy you require from our shared assets.

It is beautiful now. Warm sunny days and cool nights. But the warm days are getting shorter and the nights cooler. Keeping us motivated.

A friend just returned, shaken and scared from a trip to Sydney. Convinced that the free ride is over and our carbon greedy ways have destroyed our life supporting ecology. He also bought some news that the block next to us is being advertised in town, that would explain the increase in people driving down our road and turning around again.
The quality of the vehicles is eroding my confidence in a quick sale for a low sum to me.
I’m going to conjure some magic tonight, call some of the unseen forces in my life to show a bit of support.

I searched the internet for optimistic young person living sustainable happy life surrounded by beautiful supportive people.

It has just started to rain, that is a good sign.

And on top of all that, my sunglasses have been fixed and are ready to pick up from Byron Bay. I’m on budget until after the new financial year. That means more research and less impulsive buying. When that time of abundance kicks over though, I want to invest in an electric bike.

So expect more from this site. I am back to school at the Permaforest Trust on Monday. I’ve signed up for the non-resident Certificate IV Orientation at 9am. My first class is on Tuesday at 8am – compost. The trust is a beautiful 100 acre community farm between our place and the Boarder Ranges, I drive through the most stunning natural scenery on the way to school – The view of Wollumbin is spectacular. I pass over the pinnacle of a valley that stretches out over 100′s of kilometers, as far the eye can see the landscape rolls on in dramatic style.

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I bought some seeds from the emporium in anticipation. Leafy greens, the most productive part of our herb dominated kitchen garden extension zone.

Just tonight as I was writing this post – we heard a plop and a beautiful green tree frog has made his home in the water barrel.

Note from Kirrah with an arm full of clean clothes: The grass is so long the wallabies can eat it while you get the washing off the line and all you see are their ears scanning over the top. We can now wash our clothes with the water that falls on our roof and with energy collected from the sun. John, the 5.5Lt Fischer and Paykel has changed our lives here forever. We are deeply appreciative, We feed our zucchinis with it’s runoff mixed with some bath and sink.

It’s fun completing the cycle.

Our Snake is back! This is awesome news for the rodent dept, evicted from their cushy cathedral ceiling hangout. We have learned our lesson from his departure though. Now every night before bed I take out all organics, wash every dish used, put everything in its place and wipe it all down.

The food that has been coming out recently is amazing. Delicious organic delights, with a generous portion direct from the garden. Today we had nori rolls with biodynamic brown rice, grated organic carrot and beetroot with the basil, baby spinach, thyme, and a few others coming from the garden.

I’ve put the finishing touches onto the center shrine. Over 50 manhours have gone into it’s birth. Culminating in a marathon final 5 hour hand sand, dry to 360, wet to 360, treated, wetsanded and treated again.

The treatment we use is a local product called Cooee timber treat. It is certified organic by the BFA, water based and smells like essential oils. I cut the legs for it from an ironbark that grew 50m away.