An Eco-Sense House – Natural Building, Natural Living

pm230_620

The Eco-Sense House is alive! From dream (see episode 103) to reality. Its curving cob walls embrace Ann and Gord Baird's three-generation family. A living roof offers summer cooling and filters winter rains stored for garden water. The composting toilet provides rich soil … [Read more...]

Free Geek — Reviving Computers, Empowering People

pm228_620

Take a whirlwind tour of Free Geek, powered almost entirely by volunteers. Free Geek keeps electronic stuff out of the landfill while refurbishing computers. "Volunteer for 24 hours, and you get a free computer, a class on how to use it, and a year of free tech support," … [Read more...]

Applying a Peak Oil Filter to Financial Choices

pm222_620

"If peak oil occurs, it will dominate most everything else that we do, because energy drives everything." Financial consultant Jim Hansen's peak oil filter doesn't just guide  investment decisions for his client portfolios. He applies it to his personal lifestyle (you may … [Read more...]

Human-Powered Machines – Can Pedals Power the World?

pm221_580

Jump on that bike and power up the blender for your morning smoothie! Matthew Corson-Finnerty shows several machines he has developed while at Aprovecho Center in Oregon. Watch us pedal power an electricity generator, a grain mill, a blender, and a straw-chopper. Matthew … [Read more...]

Rocket Stoves – Hot, Healthy, Efficient

PM214_640

Mike Hatfield says the magic of a rocket stove is getting the heat into what you're trying to heat. His tour of a rocket stove reflects designs perfected for decades at Aprovecho Research Center in rural Oregon. They also test and suggest improvements to stoves from … [Read more...]

Oil Puts the Squeeze on the Economy

pm204_600

This turbulent, troubled global economy is precisely what Chris Martenson predicted in early 2010, "When Exponential Meets Reality" (episode 166). He asserts that we can no longer look at the economy without factoring in the terminal decline of its master resource — oil. … [Read more...]

Managing the 21st Century’s Sustainability Crises

"There are no real solutions, there are only responses." So say the expert contributors in The Post Carbon Reader, pointing to society's complex, interdependent systems squeezed by growing demand and declining resources. Co-editor Daniel Lerch tells us renewable energy will … [Read more...]

Daniel Lerch and The Post Carbon Reader

December 15, 2010. Seattle, WA. The final week of our 2010 Pacific Northwest Tour. We left Seattle December 15th amid pouring rain and packed freeways a bit before the so-called  rush hour, reminding us why automobile-dependent suburbs and outlying areas will have the … [Read more...]

The Pee and Poo Show

Laura Allen gives an intimate tour of a home-built composting toilet in her Bay Area urban home. The nutrient-rich composted "humanure" is used to enrich the lush, edible landscape, and doesn't waste precious drinking water like flush toilets. The co-founder of Greywater … [Read more...]

Economy, Ecology, Social Equity — Empowering Future Leaders

What if future leaders became sensitive to local environmental and social issues before stepping into leadership roles? Tanya Narath describes nine day-long events in the Leadership Institute for Ecology and the Economy's program: Students visit a watershed for ecological … [Read more...]