Hello Permaculture Tribe,

The challenge we now face is to BE better and to DO better. We can meet this challenge by doing what we can to set a good example for the regenerative society we want to live in. This might be something big or something small, AND is something that you CAN DO in your lifetime!

It starts in your own backyard by growing food, establishing habitat, collecting storm water in the land or in a cistern/rain barrel, creating your own energy with solar panels, or perhaps by doing more canning and food preservation. Or perhaps you are doing something else to bring about a more sustainable future. What ARE you doing? Or what CAN you do?

DO SOMETHING IS THE OPERATIVE MESSAGE:

“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones that do.” – Steve Jobs

At Home

We can be a good example by re-designing our yards, our kitchens, and then our streets, neighborhoods, communities and cities. At home I have installed a laundry to landscape system, rain barrels and have started planting a food forest and Zone 1 vegetable garden.

City Farm SLO programs http://centralcoastgrown.org/programs/

At City Farm SLO I work as a Farm Educator where I teach a Farm Class to Pacific Beach High School, mentor disabled adults and host elementary schools on field trips. We show young people what food crops look like, including some crops that end up in their cafeteria with San Luis Coastal Unified School District. We have an outdoor kitchen and students also learn to cook and eat the fresh farm produce. City Farm is also securing grants to install solar panels to have an off-grid energy system for the farm.

Our Global Family Village https://www.ourglobalfamilyfarm.com/

At Our Global Family Village at City Farm SLO, we’re promoting global unity and permaculture design principles by growing food crops from the four corners of the globe through regenerative agriculture techniques. We need more “hands on the land” to establish a thriving example of an edible landscape that honors the cultural heritage of food from around the world. Can you help with this challenge? We are looking for people to become “villagers” and adopt a plot of land to tend. Attached is a flyer about OGF Villagers.

Mud Hut Cob Building Project https://www.gofundme.com/mud-hut-cob-building-project

At Our Global Family Village at City Farm SLO we are re-creating a village atmosphere where we can come together as one family on the land. In the African section of the garden, we will be building a Mud Hut to showcase how homes can be built out of clay mud, sand, and straw. Some cultures also call this Cob Construction or Adobe. This skill is crucial to many people's existence and a very useful skill to have. This project will require the hiring of an expert in cob construction, Chad Franco, to help children and their families learn how to build with the earth.

Farmgirls Summer Camp http://www.permaculture.us.com/farmgirls

FARMGIRLS: Girl Power for our Future Food System

Summer camp in San Luis Obispo for girls ages 8-16 and women of all ages

June 25-28, 2019 (Tuesday-Friday)

8am-noon

$160/registration

Parents can come any day for FREE!

FARMGIRLS is a summer camp run by an affiliate project, Our Global Family Farm, a permaculture demonstration site located at City Farm SLO in San Luis Obispo, CA featuring food crops and indigenous food cropping systems from the four corners of the globe. Summer camp activities will include farming, cooking, eating, crafting, singing and nature hikes. FARMGIRLS is a place where women and girls of all ages can learn about growing food using ecological approaches that follow the ethics of permaculture: care for the earth, care for one another, and share the abundance. Together we can create a food system that is: Regenerative – Healthy - Local – Resilient

San Luis Obispo Food and Farm Adventures MeetUp Group https://www.meetup.com/San-Luis-Obispo-Food-and-Farm-Adventures/

Let's come together as a community of people who want to learn more about local farming, permaculture practices, and to support our local farmers. The idea is that we can visit permaculture farms, organic farms, earthwork sites and regenerative home gardens AND to have opportunities for work projects at various sites too.

Join the MeetUp Group to learn more about the upcoming tours:

March 16 – LOVE SLO at City Farm and building roof for Cob Building 9am to 12noon https://www.loveslo.com/communityservice
Can you volunteer your time and talents? Please sign up for the City Farm SLO Spring Beautification Project

March 23 – Quail Springs Permaculture Farm Tour 10am – 3pm $50 https://www.quailsprings.org/programs/permaculture/farm-tour/

On your half-day visit to Quail Springs Permaculture Farm, you will learn about: growing food in the high desert; tending a variety of healthy food-giving animals; sustainable shelter; living regeneratively; and stewarding agricultural lands, watersheds, & wilderness. Includes lunch.

March 30 – Regenerating Earth and Spirit at Sunburst Sanctuary – all day or all weekend https://sunburst.org/earth/

Come for the day or for the whole weekend. See more information below. Price varies on how length of stay.

April 7th – Transforming Clay Soil MeetUp at City Farm SLO – 12noon to 3pm $10 participation fee https://soilharmonics.com/about-us

Amanda Smith, M.Sc. of Soil Harmonics, will be teaching about clays soils at Our Global Family Garden starting at 12noon on April 7th. First we will discover more about the physical properties of the soil at City Farm and discussing why these properties are different or the same. Then there will be discussion about how unique clay is and what it has to offer to a garden and what types of challenges it can present. Lastly, ways to enhance all the great things about clay will be shared.

Do you know of other homesteads or farms to tour?

Here are some good examples of what we would like to showcase on future local tours:

Small Backyard Transformed Using Permaculture Design! (Permaculture Tours - Ep 1) from Happen Films

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFFSBzsPn0k

Watch "Growing an Abundance of Food in the City Using Permaculture"

https://youtu.be/Y9ZukMyejLk

Other community events:

March 9 – CA Rare Fruit Growers Annual Propagation Meeting 1:00pm http://www.crfg-central.org/calendar.html

Location: Master Gardeners’ Community Garden, the Seven Sisters Garden, 2156 Sierra Way, San Luis Obispo, CA

March 12 – Nutrient Logic for Soil Health https://www.eventbrite.com/e/nutrient-logic-for-soil-health-tickets-57039097476

March 23 – Om Shanti Spring Equinox Gathering https://www.facebook.com/events/2276448142569761/

March 23 – Embodied Racial Justice Workshop https://www.eventbrite.com/e/embodied-racial-justice-workshop-tickets-56774536166?aff=odeimcmailchimp&mc_cid=c890018ee2&mc_eid=26bf82a22e

March 22 – 24 California Ecosystem Restoration Council https://www.facebook.com/events/1049425035243956/

March 29 – 31 Regenerating Earth and Spirit Family Friendly Weekend at Sunburst Sanctuary

Do you crave a greater connection with the earth? Co-create with nature through a hands-on permaculture workshop about soil-building, composting, and seeding. Learn “fruit-tree” grafting and bring your own grafted fruit tree home. Connect with the wisdom and emotional strength of a horse through an Equine “Observation of the Herd” circle. Enjoy yoga and guided meditation, home-cooked meals, and children’s activities throughout. Sliding scale donation: $120 - $220/adult; $60 - $100/child, plus lodging/camping.