The Greening of Gavin | Sustainable Living in the Suburbs

It is great to get a different perspective from the younger generation. Today we talk to Amy Webber who last appeared in Episode 10, some four years ago.

Since finishing university, she pursued a career as a high school teacher and heads up the Humanities department of a local school and is passionate about educating kids.  I am very proud of her.

She has a very interesting view of Gen Y and the Millennial generations with respect to climate change and energy descent.

My daughter also makes me blush during this episode when she tells me that she is very excited to see me finally present at the Sustainable Living Festival, and proud of all the things I have done.  Enough to make this old bloke tear up.

On a side note, this post is #1500.  That is quite an personal achievement, which I am quite proud of.  Who would have thought when I started it, that this blog would grow so large!

 

If you enjoyed the podcast, please pop over to iTunes and rate it and leave a review. You can also do the same within Stitcher Radio if you use that service.  It would help me out so much, and elevate the ratings so that others can find out about the podcast and learn about sustainable living in the ‘burbs.

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Until next time, stay green and keep keen!

 

This weeks special guest on the podcast is Greg Foyster.

We originally caught up with Greg and his partner Sophie in Episode 40, so it was about time that we found out what he was up to after his book tour for Changing Gears – A Pedal-Powered Detour from the Rat Race.

During the conversation, Greg also talks about communal housing, looking for a balanced life, and upcoming events at the Sustainable Living Festival.

It was great to catch up and I look forward to talking to Greg in person at the Festival.  You can find out more about all the events at the Sustainable Living Festival by visiting their site www.slf.org.au/festival14/

If you enjoyed the podcast, please pop over to iTunes and rate it and leave a review. You can also do the same within Stitcher Radio if you use that service.  It would help me out so much, and elevate the ratings so that others can find out about the podcast and learn about sustainable living in the ‘burbs.

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Until next time, stay green and keep keen!

This weeks special guest is none other than Tanya Ha.

Tanya is an award-winning environmentalist, best-selling author, science journalist, television presenter and sustainable living advocate.

I first met Tanya at the Sustainable Living Festival in 2007.  It was quite surreal actually.  I had just listened to her speak, and lined up to get a copy of her latest book at the time, signed.  I was quite nervous because Kim used to joke and rib me about having crush on her (not really, I just admired her work).

Anyway, when I got to the front of the line, I was running off at the mouth about how I enjoyed her TV show Eco House Challenge, and how I had read her book cover to cover and babbled on about some of the green things I had done at home.  She must have thought I was a bit of an eco fanboy, but she just smiled, said well done, and signed the cover of the book for me.  Goodness I was excited.

So fast forward seven years, and I plucked up enough greenness to ask her onto the podcast as a guest.  The great thing was that she said yes!  I was chuffed, and here we are.

On with the show.  We talk about she decided to pursue a career as a sustainable living educator.  We even touch on early childhood influences, and mindful consumerism as opposed to conspicuous out-of-control consumption.

You can find out more about Tanya at her website www.tanyaha.com or follow her on twitter @ha_tanya.

She also has a green living blog called Mama Green, which is pretty cool, however I did tell her that she was a naughty blogger for not updating it since August 2013!  She promised to fix that.

Thanks to Tanya for coming on the show.

The state of climate change denial in Australia and the USA is a seldom discussed topic on my podcast, but today we break it wide open.

As we experience record heat here in Australia, the opposite is occurring in North America, who are snowed in.

Today, I talk to Ted McIntyre from the Massachusetts Climate Action Network. We discuss the denial issues happening in the U.S. and the state of play here down under.

We touch on hydraulic fracturing, aka Coal Seam Gas exploration, and Australian Government actions (or lack thereof) towards combating climate change during the past six months. We even have talk about my dwindling water supply and the state of the veggie patch.

A highly informative topic to celebrate the 50th episode of the podcast.Links mentioned during the show;

* Climate Council – http://www.climatecouncil.org.au/

* Lock The Gate Alliance – http://www.lockthegate.org.au/

 

If you enjoyed the podcast, please pop over to iTunes and rate it and leave a review. You can also do the same within Stitcher Radio if you use that service.  It would help me out so much, and elevate the ratings so that others can find out about the podcast and learn about sustainable living in the ‘burbs.

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 Alternatively you can sign up to receive all my blog posts via email at this subscription link.

Until next time, Keep keen and stay green!

This week’s guest is Michael O’Connell. You met Mick in episode 46 and 47, and this time he shares with us the ins and outs of bee keeping in the suburbs.  Mick has a few hives in his backyard which he looks after, and collects honey from.

During the interview we cover swarming, how they breed, what they eat, how they access water, and much, much more.  We even cover the finer points of removing bee stings once stung!

There is lots of very interesting information if you want to learn about becoming a home apiarist.  If you would like to read more of Mick’s bee keeping exploits, then pop on over to his blog Six Gorillas and check out this link; http://www.sixgorillas.com/category/honey/

 

If you enjoyed the podcast, please pop over to iTunes and rate it and leave a review. You can also do the same within Stitcher Radio if you use that service.  It would help me out so much, and elevate the ratings so that others can find out about the podcast and learn about sustainable living in the ‘burbs.

You can subscribe to the show via RSS or iTunes or Stitcher for your portable device.  Just use the subscription buttons below.

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Alternatively you can sign up to receive all my blog posts via email at this subscription link.

Until next time, Keep keen and stay green!

This week my guest is none other than the NZ Eco Chick aka Madeleine Booth-Smits.

We talk about her greening journey and why she is passionate about living a greener lifestyle.

During the discussion we cover food gardening, chickens, blogging, green kids, waste reduction methods, and her love of Star Trek (yes really!).  There are also tips for others who are thinking of starting their own green living journey.

You can visit Mads’ blog at www.nzecochick.com

 

If you enjoyed the podcast, please pop over to iTunes and rate it and leave a review. You can also do the same within Stitcher Radio if you use that service.  It would help me out so much, and elevate the ratings so that others can find out about the podcast and learn about sustainable living in the ‘burbs.

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 A great interview, lots of fun, and very informative.  Thanks Mads!

I never thought it would happen, but here it is.

This episode is our final podcast for the year, so lets go out with a bang.  My lovely wife Kim joins me as co-host for the show, and we recap all the sustainable living projects and events that occurred during 2013.

The show is a riot, with lots of great moments that you will not want to miss.

Don’t forget to listen all the way to the very end for our surprise finale.  It is a crack up.

See you all in 2014.

If you enjoyed the podcast, please pop over to iTunes and rate it and leave a review. You can also do the same within Stitcher Radio if you use that service.  It would help me out so much, and elevate the ratings so that others can find out about the podcast and learn about sustainable living in the ‘burbs.

You can subscribe to the show via RSS or iTunes or Stitcher for your portable device.  Just use the subscription buttons below.

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Alternatively you can sign up to receive all my blog posts via email at this subscription link.

So now that you have listened to the show, what do you think?  Should Kim be my permanent co-host?

Energy descent is not a topic that everyone is talking about in the streets or coffee shops. But I think it should be on the tips of everyone’s tongues.

As it would happen, my guest this week is Michael O’Connell and we talk about what we think may happen when the finite energy resources that we depend upon today to fuel our civilisation start to become a little more scarcer. Mick has had first hand experience in East Timor and has a good idea about what makes life worthwhile when you have little in the way of resources and the absence of a consumer culture.

We also talk about food security and touch on sustainable living back here in Australia.  It seems that I owe him a few iced cold home brews!

This is a really interesting conversation about how far western society has to fall compared to other nations, and what basic things could make our lives much more fulfilling.

If you enjoyed the podcast, please pop over to iTunes and rate it and leave a review. You can also do the same within Stitcher Radio if you use that service.  It would help me out so much, and elevate the ratings so that others can find out about the podcast and learn about sustainable living in the ‘burbs.

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So did Mick and I get it right, or are we just two old coots who are way off the mark?

Today I caught up with my friend Michael O’Connell who is currently in East Timor teaching locals how to build and maintain solar power systems.

 

Mick with some of the locals!

This is a fascinating interview about the current state of play of off-grid solar in one of our closest neighbours.

Mick’s students learning their trade.

 

Adding the solar controller to the main board of an installation

Please take the time to listen if you are interested in renewable energy, and to reflect a little on how we take electricity for granted here in Australia.Don’t forget that you are able to donate money to help progress this great work over on the Alternative Technology Association website [www.ata.org.au] where $250 can buy lights and charging facilities for a single home. Donations over $2 are tax deductible in Australia.Think of it as a Christmas present for a friend that you haven’t met yet!

 

If you enjoyed the podcast, please pop over to iTunes and rate it and leave a review. You can also do the same within Stitcher Radio if you use that service.  It would help me out so much, and elevate the ratings so that others can find out about the podcast and learn about sustainable living in the ‘burbs.

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Until next time, stay green and keep keen!

Time for an audio update about what is growing around the Suburban Food Farm in December.  Lots of food growing very, very quickly now that the summer has finally begun in earnest.

During the podcast I mentioned one of my favourite pickles recipes which is Bread and Butter Cucumbers, just like my Mum used to make when I was a kid.  Delicious.

Also, I talked about the chooks, in particular Edwina II (the first Edwina passed away).  She laid a 93 gm egg, which was so big that we couldn’t close the egg carton.  It ended up being a double-yolker, which was a great surprise.

Lots of giggles and silliness.

If you enjoyed the podcast, please pop over to iTunes and rate it and leave a review. You can also do the same within Stitcher Radio if you use that service.  It would help me out so much, and elevate the ratings so that others can find out about the podcast and learn about sustainable living in the ‘burbs.

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 So, what is growing well in your Suburban Food Farm in December?  Anything exciting?  I would love to know via a comment.  Also if you know of any cheap alternative to a sauerkraut crock, please leave a link!