The Learning Experience
The
internet is an irreplaceable technological advancement. Through it we
have been able to be in contact with other like-minded people and also
find sources of information that, prior to the internet, would likely
have been unavailable. Books, videos, how-to's all at our fingertips. While the ability to access a seemingly unlimited source of information
has it's benefits, there are also drawbacks. Having so much information
available can make for difficult decision making. One source says one
thing, another source has different suggestions. What does a person
do?
We
spent many years researching options with the help of the internet.
In our vision to build a self sustaining homestead we also looked at
gardening as well as animal farming (both to be done on a very small
scale) methods. We found books and blogs and read them, found videos, movies and
television and watched them, and we found like-minded people and asked
them questions. Each time that we added new information we would
reassess our plans. Was there an option that worked better? Was there a
less costly means to accomplish a task? What had others tried?
Today we're sharing some of the documentaries and tv series that we found over the years.
The godfather of North American sustainable building without a doubt is Mike Reynolds. His documentary Garbage Warrior is available online. It is from this documentary that most of our build ideas were initially formed.
And if you want to see that there are no limits to building an earthship check out the video of the one built for Dennis Weaver. The quality is not the best as it's from the 80's.
Some of the most interesting and inspiring tv shows were found on UK television.
The farm series done on BBC which you can find online or through your local PBS station is wonderful for those who are planning to work with less technology. We found them both educational and entertaining.
Tudor Monastery Farm
Another very educational show on farming is A Farmer's Life For Me. This was a reality series where the winners were given a farm for a year. Great series if you can find it.
Another very educational show on farming is A Farmer's Life For Me. This was a reality series where the winners were given a farm for a year. Great series if you can find it.
Also a couple of shows done by Kevin McCloud are terrific. Check out Kevin McCloud's Man Made Home as well as the series he been doing for years, Grand Designs.
There have been a couple of seasons done of George Clarke's Amazing Spaces and there is some unbelievable work seen on those episodes.
Recently we found another documentary series called Ben Fogle: New Lives In The Wild that made us feel a little less crazy. ;-)
Having a dream and pushing through all the obstacles has shown us what is truly possible. We hope that sharing will be the same inspiration for you.
Have you watched any of these shows? Share your reviews in the comments.
Having a dream and pushing through all the obstacles has shown us what is truly possible. We hope that sharing will be the same inspiration for you.
Have you watched any of these shows? Share your reviews in the comments.
