My guest today was persecuted and ridiculed for his ideas for over 50 years. In his words, "people have often asked me how I have been able to put up with so much abuse, ridicule, and damage... attempts to destroy me financially and so on, and it comes down to in my case - caring enough. If you care enough about your something then it's not casual, you will do whatever you have to do, even if give up your life for that cause." Fortunately he didn't have to give up his life for the cause, but he did have to keep pushing forward with his ideas and beliefs year, after year, after year, while few people listened..

That all changed in Longbeach, California in 2013. At the age of 77 after 50 plus years of ridicule, it would all change in 20 minutes. It was then and there that Allan Savory went on to deliver his epic TED talk that would go on to captivate the world. Now he was a hero. Suddenly everyone was interested in hearing what Allan Savory had to say.

Persistence and his belief in what he stood for had paid off.

The world suddenly cared. But would they act? For that only time will tell.

As Allan goes on to say in this episode, there is a world of opportunity out there and it is critically important that all hands are on deck. Whether you are a landowner or not, you can help. You can help by spreading the word because No organizational institutions will accept paradigm shifting science ahead of public demand to do it. You are the pubic, and you must demand it. You can make a difference. Don't ever forget that.

Together we can all make a difference.

Keep that in mind as you listen to this episode.

The future is in our hands. Where do you fit into it?

The story of holistic management and the struggle and success that went with it, a conversation with Allan Savory..

Show Notes: www.permaculturevoices.com/55

Today I am talking to two people who are changing the model of the modern farm. They are operating within the current system of rules and regulations, but approaching farm development and operation with a different model, a model they call PermaEthos.

Jack Spirko and Josiah Wallingford join me to talk about the launch of their flagship farm Elisa's Spring and the PermaEthos concept. PermaEthos is a permaculture farm model that is built and designed around permaculture principles and community.

The goals are to design, implement and operate profitable farms while creating educational opportunities and provide opportunities for entrepreneurs to empower themselves by establishing on farm businesses. The model gives people a chance to help out and participate in changing their future, and the future of the food system.

Like Jack says in this episode, "there's so many people that would put in a full days work if they just had something meaningful to do." PermaEthos is now officially underway and there are a lot of people putting full days of work to make it a reality.

Farm number one is in progress and there are more lining up for future development. This concept has the ability to change the way that farms are developed, and the way that food is produced. It changes the system, not by protesting, but by changing the model.

Show Notes: www.permaculturevoices.com/54

My guest today is a self proclaimed plant nerd that is really into trees. He has worked with Geoff Lawton and Darren Doherty, and now he runs his own design firm in Australia, Oak Tree Designs. My guest today is Byron Joel.

In addition to being a plant nerd, Byron is what I would call a permaculture realist. Realizing the potential of permaculture, while not over promising on results and truly being aware of the newness of the permaculture movement.

In this episode of we talk about the newness of the permaculture movement and how it is evolving. And of course, we talk a lot about trees.

A view of the permaculture of today and tomorrow, Plants and the Evolution of Permaculture with Byron Joel..

Show Notes: www.permaculturevoices.com/53

I welcome Frank Golbeck of Golden Coast Mead on the show today.

Frank story is a great example of someone who went after their dreams in a smart and systematic way. He isn’t any different than any of us. He didn’t start with a huge some of money or some other advantage. But the difference between Frank and a lot of people is that took on the scary unknown, the hard part starting.

Fast forward ahead a few years and the dream has become a reality. Things still aren’t easy, but they are very real and Frank is enjoying every moment of it.

No matter where you are at in your life, I think Frank’s story is inspirational and highly copyable. Hopefully something in here will resonate with you and will inspire you to start that thing that you always wanted to do.

Show Notes: www.permaculturevoices.com/52

Today I am talking to someone who killing it farming 1.5 acres. He is doing over $140k in sales on that 1.5 acres, supporting himself and his family in the process. Of that $140k 40% is profit. Compare that to corn and soybeans which net about $280 an acre. And he is grossing that $140k working 9 months a year and average length works days. We aren't talking about burnout workload here. Think about that. $800 per acre versus $90000.

I am happy to welcome Jean Martin Fortier, the author of The Market Gardener to the show.

Jean Martin is a great example of someone who is out there maximizing efficiency and productivity on a small piece of land. His whole grow bigger, not better philosophy echoes this. Jean Martin focuses on growing biointensive and the use of appropriate technology to work with his permanent raised beds. And he designed the farm with the intent of keeping it manageable for the scale that he was at. He maximizes productivity and quality of life.

For anyone that wants to get into farming, but is having trouble getting the numbers to work, this is the episode for you. This is a model that works. This is a paradigm shift.

Show Notes: www.permaculturevoices.com/51

What really matters most to you?

Have you ever thought about it? As in thought about it serious enough to say if you stripped away a lot of the facade from your life then this is what is left, this is what truly matters.

Show Notes: www.permaculturevoices.com/50

This is the one year anniversary of the first episode of this podcast which was published on June 5, 2013 - Gasification and Wood Gas. Since then 60 other episodes have been published.

Thanks for a year of support. There is a lot more to come.

In this episode I highlight the top 10 episodes that were most impactful to me.

Going forward... What do you want to hear more about? Who would you like to hear from and what subject matter and content really help you? Let me know and I will try to work that into the podcast schedule.

"It is easy to focus on what you don't have and how much something costs. What you need to do instead is focus on what have and what you can do to make it work. People undervalue what they have, and overvalue what they don't have or want."

Show Notes: www.permaculturevoices.com/49

Every story has a beginning. Including our own. So many of us want to live out our own story and go from A to B. But where do you start and how do you prepare for that journey.

I am happy to welcome Bill Bean from GreenPlanningAndCoaching.com to the show today.

Bill is going to talk about business plans and planning for business. As Bill defines it figuring out a way to go from point A to point B using organized common sense. It is about thinking about things ahead of time. Focusing on things in a rational way so when problems hit you don't react emotionally because you've thought it through - you have a plan.

Part of the planning process is also about understanding the magnitude of change you want to take place. Do you want a big change, or a small change. Where do you want to be in three years? Figure that out and now you have a direction to head in. Then you just have to build a plan to get there.

This is not an episode about creating pro-forma financials or filling in a template or boiler plate plan. This is more about the higher level thinking that goes into the creation and skeleton of the plan itself. Once you figure this part out then the details will fall into place. In any business you don't have to know all of the details at the beginning, just that it is a unique viable business that provides value to specific set of customers, and you can deliver.

Remember, this episode is about thinking about your plan and the process. If you take the time to think about the things that are scary or intimidating up front, when no risk is on the table, it makes taking them on a lot easier because suddenly they aren't so scary or intimidating anymore.

Show Notes: www.permaculturevoices.com/48