Human-Powered Machines – Can Pedals Power the World? (221)

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...]

Titanic Lifeboat Academy — Navigating a Path to Resilience (216)

Caren Black and Christopher Paddon couldn't find mentors to teach them self-reliant living when they became aware of peak oil. So they created a homestead and opened their doors to training others. People can take a personalized Lifeboat Course online or in person, where … [Read more...]

Sail Power Reborn – Transporting Local Goods by Boat (208)

"We are revitalizing an ancient form of transportation … using just the power of the wind and the tides … to move goods and people," says skipper Fulvio Casali. In their CSA (community supported agriculture), the Salish Sea Trading Cooperative uses nearly no petroleum to … [Read more...]

Managing the 21st Century’s Sustainability Crises (192)

"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...]

Climb Aboard at the Titanic Lifeboat Academy

December 17, 2010. Astoria, OR. From Portland we headed to the far northwest tip of Oregon to meet Caren Black and Christopher Paddon at the Titanic Lifeboat Academy, whose brilliant name has intrigued me since I'd encountered their website in 2005. Christopher and Caren … [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...]

How We Live at Lone Bobcat Woods (176)

Peek behind the scenes at Peak Moment TV's home base. Janaia Donaldson shows guest host Ivey Cone the solar power system, woodstove for heat (and winter waffles), and super efficient refrigerator. Choosing to reduce their footprint, she and Robyn Mallgren, Peak Moment … [Read more...]

Powering the Rain Shadow

Most of Washington State's San Juan Islands don't have grid electricity. Many people have relied on generators, but these days, an increasing number are turning to solar. Renewables installer Eric Youngren discusses how net metering works to pay individual energy producers … [Read more...]

A Green Built, Solar Powered, Biofuels Station

From an early start producing biodiesel from used cooking oil in his garage, Ian Hill was instrumental in creating a market for biofuels in the state of Oregon. Now Managing Partner of SeQuential Biofuels in Eugene, he has gone on to build the first retail biofuels station … [Read more...]

Building An Ecologically Sensible Home

Wanting to live a "reasonable, comfortable life" in tune with nature, Ann and Gord Baird are building a near "net zero energy" home on Vancouver Island. Their plans: the first load bearing, seismically engineered, two story, insulated, cob residence in North America. Solar … [Read more...]