This is episode #37.
Today, I am introducing you to a new-to-me voice in the permaculture space. I was walking around the VaxCon 2022, hosted by Wisconsin United for Freedom, and I came across a Food Forest Abundance booth. Of course, given my obsession with both growing food and abundance mindsets, I was immediately taken with this team of brothers who were focused on spreading permaculture design across the southeast Wisconsin area. Food Forest Abundance was established in 2020 as a way to help people grow their own food and has blossomed into a global movement to help people become more self-reliant. Since their official launch on Earth Day 2021, they have expanded throughout most of the United States and into 15 other countries. I am beyond excited to chat with their “Chief Storyteller”, Jim Gale, and discover more about the mission, mindset and practicalities of this regenerative based growing model.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- A little background of Jim Gale and his journey toward permaculture and growing food.
- Benefits of turning lawn into edible landscapes/food forests.
- How wrestling helped shape visualizing techniques and grit in Jim’s upbringing. He became someone who looks for solutions and accomplishes goals through envisioning a compelling future.
- Bill Mollison, “Though the problems of our world are increasingly complex, the solutions remain embarrassingly simple”. Permaculture principles are the answer to so many of todays problems, including heart disease, diabetes, deforestation, world hunger, extinction, etc etc.
- Jim explains that a food forest is a system that is designed to create maximum abundance by growing in guilds and following the systems of nature.
- What is the return on investment for this model of growing? Within 3-4 years you are getting a return on investment with produce and edibles, just on cash value! Not only do we gain an abundance of produce, we help the environment, we gain independence and save money in a variety of ways!
- Overall thesis: Permaculture is the solution.
- The importance of looking outside your backdoor to grow. We don’t need a lot of space or acreage.
- All the pieces and parts that go into design and implementation. The time and the finances.
- The opportunities that are possible on a grand scale with this company and this growing mentality.
Resources We Mention:
- Food Forest Abundance
- Type “Permaculture” into “Google” or “DuckDuckGo”
- Bill Mollison’s “Introduction to Permaculture” or “Permaculture: A Designer’s Manual”
For More on this Topic See:
- Other podcasts on permaculture design.
- PPP 01: What is Permaculture?
- PPP 29: Permaculture Luminary Mark Shepard on Lessons of Nature, Perennials, STUN method & Principles for Life/Land Restoration
- PPP 35: Regenerative Gardening, Permaculture Community Principles, & Springtime Prep w/ Stephanie Rose of Garden Therapy
- PPP 33: Possibilities of Permaculture for Relief Efforts, Soil Building & Whole Systems Design w/ Koreen Brennan of Grow Permaculture
- PPP 21: Edible Landscaping & Permaculture Principles w/ Alec LePoidevin of Fresh Roots WI
- PPP 16: Urban Gardening & Family Centered Permaculture with Jeremy Brown
- Food Forest Abundance Podcast and Videos
Sponsors:
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Intro/Outro Music by Scott Holmes, “A Wee Tipple”