Blog

A Michigan woman has been fined and threatened with jail time for planting a vegetable garden in her yard. This post includes ways you can support her cause.

Why urban density creates the perfect environment for collaborative consumption, and 4 reasons why that’s where you want to be.

An open-source project brings high-speed internet and an amazing sense of community and self-sufficiency to a village in Afghanistan. But the implications of uninhibited access could rock the developed world as well.

A thriving compost pile can provide plenty of nutrient rich soil for a healthy garden and you can compost anywhere. Building a beautiful compost pile is as much art as science. Rich compost can help any garden, even a container garden, thrive and produce and abundance of healthy food. Compost can provide all the nutrients and […]

Rain barrels are a great way to deal with drought, but can also be a solution for a garden without traditional access.

A babysitting co-op can help to ease the financial burdens of a babysitter by allowing parents to barter for services they need.

Water rationing is common in the more arid regions of the United States during summer months, which can make it difficult to maintain a healthy garden and lawn. Recycle water safely with these practical tips.

Donating is great, but making money is better! These tips will help you attract customers, get rid of excess stuff, and best of all, make some extra money.

These eco-friendly redecorating tip for your living room will save you money and help the environment all at the same time. EPA reported in 2009 that 9.9 million tons of furniture were thrown in the landfills compared to only 2.2 million tons in 1960, that is an increase of 450%! If you compared the increase […]

Sprouted seeds contain vitamins and calories while bringing a garden to any space. You don’t need special tools or seeds to have a sprout garden either.

How can a community deal with food deserts, or urban areas without ready access to a variety of healthy, fresh foods?

While not for the faint of heart, a small PYO operation can be a good source of income and potential customers for any farm.

Geocaching is a growing outdoor hobby where the coordinates of certain locations or hidden “treasure” caches are made available. To find treasure, seekers are armed with handheld GPS devices, a pen and trinkets.

Bartering can be a great way to get something you need and build up a community at the same time. For bartering to be successful, keep these simple guidelines in mind.

A truly green home should use materials that are benign, from the factory to the 30th year of habitation. Impossible you say? Planetary ONE begs to differ.

Google and the Pacific Institute are teaming up to create a smartphone application that would allow users to share locations of public water fountains in an effort to combat bottled water consumption.

A collection of online resources that will help you tap into the experience of the global coworking movement, and build a vibrant space in your community.

In the past, farming and gardening was a community-wide effort, so why not now?

Rain gardens attract birds and butterflies (and bees), while protecting local streams and ponds.  These gardens are planted with flowers, shrubs and grasses that are easy to maintain and thrive without fertilizers and pesticides. Where to place a rain garden, how to select plants and how to keep the garden flourishing as a beautiful accent for your home […]

Collaborative consumption is disrupting outdated modes of business and reinventing not just what we consume but how we consume. If you’re ready to explore these sharing alternatives, here are five easy ways to get your feet wet.

Things are happening in the corporate world. Things that scare people with titles like CEO and Human Resource Manager. Things that lead analysts and experts to say that the way people work is changing.

About five years ago commercial beekeepers across the US began reporting bee losses in record numbers – about 30% each year. This level of loss is unsustainable and many beekeepers are going out of business. Aside from the economic issues, the record number of bees dying should be alarming everyone who eats. About one in […]

The Freecycle movement, started in Tucson, has spread world-wide keeping thousands of items out of landfills and trash piles. Freecycle has taken the phrase, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” to heart by providing a forum for people with everything including the kitchen sink that they don’t need any more to find people who […]

Now that you have grown beautiful vegetables, lovely flowers or have gorgeous chicken eggs, how do you go about selling them at a farmer’s market? What are some of the tricks of the trade and the lessons learned from veterans? Homework It is very important to find the right farmer’s market for you. You don’t want […]

If you have a deck, porch or even a window sill, you can have a garden. Container gardening can be a great way to start gardening, try something new, out wit predators, or bring kids into gardening. Having a garden, even a modest one, will bring beautiful food to your table and a sense of satisfaction. […]

The recent tragedy in Japan and the vast number of weather-related power outages across the US this winter have many people concerned about what to do in case something like this happens to them. If you and yours were caught in a disaster and had to shelter inside your home for three or more days, […]

The Red Cross and the SPCA recommend that in addition to an Emergency Kit for you and your family, you create one for your pets. This is important step can help to save your pets live and your peace of mind. Many animal related groups have chimed in to build on the Red Cross list […]

The Community Supported Agriculture, or CSA, movement is an important step in locally sourcing your food. With more and more food recalls being issued by the government and food producers on non-meat items and food prices rising along with oil prices, having locally sourced food can be a key component of a family’s budget and […]

“Mummy!  It smells just like sunshine!” said my 5-year-old son, Cameron, his face split wide open with a grin. He was standing knee-deep in the middle of our herb garden, the sun pouring down on him from a cloudless blue sky. “How do you know what sunshine smells like?” said Kent, my 10 year old. […]

Did your children outgrow their clothes overnight? With growing kids, it is a fact that you will end up with clothes that still have some wear-ability after your kids not longer fit in them. You can give them to relatives if they live close by, but inevitably your kids will be the last girl or new baby and […]

If there is economy in scale, an entrée exchange group embodies it. The idea is that if five families participate, each family makes five of the same meals, meet up and trade, and go home with four meals plus your own. By making multiples of the same meal you can save on preparation time and ingredients. Forming an entree exchange […]

It all begins with a simple premise: an hour is an hour. No matter who you are, what you do, or where you are, your time is valuable – just as valuable as everyone else’s. Time banks are being created all over the world to facilite the equal trade of goods and services among community […]

All too often the only thing that stands in the way of a great idea is a lack of funding. Innovation is expensive, and most people don’t have tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars lying around to finance their creative breakthroughs. The conventional methods of funding projects—bank loans and venture capitalists—have become inaccessible to […]