Amish Soil
Loss This report on Amish and
Mennonite farming says that these low-tech organic farmers have lost half of
their topsoil in the last 250 years.
Cuba’s Food &
Agriculture Report There is a
popular belief that Cuba shifted to organic farming in 1990, when Soviet
subsidies ended, and the transition was a complete success. In fact, the
transition to organic resulted in a dramatic decrease in food production.
This long report documents that 84% of all food consumed in Cuba is now
imported. They used to import cheap oil, but when that ended, they were
forced to import food.
The
Oil We Eat This essay by Richard
Manning is an intelligent and eloquent history-flavored analysis of the
catastrophic design defects in agriculture.
The domestication of wheat was probably the worst thing that has ever
happened to the planet (or was it the Green Revolution?). Industrial agriculture is a system for
transforming oil into food.
The
Worst Mistake In The History Of The Human Race In this essay, Jared Diamond says that
agriculture was the worst mistake in human history. We would be in far
better shape today if we had devoted our attention to population management,
instead.
Lynx
Vilden Interview Vilden has spent
much of her life learning the skills of primitive living, and teaching
them. She was raised to be a
well-educated modern space alien, but she has developed an intimate spiritual
connection with the living world. She
lives with profound reverence and respect.
She has a well-formed mind.
Farmers of
Forty Centuries, by F. H. King This
site provides access to the contents of Farmers
of Forty Centuries, a book that described the low-tech organic
farming practiced in Asia in 1909. They were masterful at nutrient
recycling, and at eliminating anything wild from their ecosystem.
Conquest of the
Land Through Seven Thousand Years This
is W. C. Lowdermilk’s powerful pamphlet on soil conservation. It provides
a number of shocking and unforgettable photographs that illustrate soil erosion
catastrophes caused by agriculture.
Humanure
Handbook, by Joseph Jenkins This
site provides access to the contents of an older edition of the Humanure Handbook,
the world-famous handbook for sewage composters.
Civilization &
Sludge This fascinating essay by
Abby A. Rockefeller describes the history of sewage management from the dawn of
time to today. This is not a story about continuous improvement.
Our technology is getting shittier all the time — and more energy-intensive.
The
Food and Farming Transition This report
from the Post-Carbon Institute describes why there will be big changes in food
production in the coming years, as the era of cheap energy fades into the past,
and nutrient recycling replaces chemical fertilizers.
Why is
the future of the world nuts? This
essay promotes a transition from conventional agriculture to agroforestry, as
soon as possible. It’s a far more intelligent way to produce food.
Robert
Wolff: What It Is To Be Human This
is an excerpt from Robert Wolff’s beautiful book, Original Wisdom. It describes
the time he spent with the Sng’oi people of Malaysia. This is a story
that I will never forget.
Daniel Quinn is
the author of Ishmael,
a path-breaking novel that continues to be a strong seller, year after
year. It’s a gentle but provocative primer on ecological history.
Jean Liedloff
is the author of The
Continuum Concept. She spent time among hunter-gatherers in
South America, and came to see that their way of life was far healthier and
balanced than ours. This expanded perspective has made her a valuable
commentator and teacher.
Nutrition
and Physical Degeneration This site
provides access to most of Weston Price’s famous book, including his remarkable
photos of teeth. It radically changed the way I think about food.
Weston A. Price
Foundation This organization
provides a wealth of information about nutrition and health, much of it
contrary to current mainstream beliefs.
Dieoff This is Jay Hanson’s original legendary
website, loaded with top quality science, supporting the notion that humankind
faces big trouble ahead. This site will take a month or two to read.
Mammoth
Bones This is snippets from a
chapter from A
Journey to the Earth's Interior by Marshall B. Gardner, 1920.
It discusses mammoths, and the large number of them found along the coast of
the Arctic Ocean.