Earthworks and Earth Resources

I recently had the chance to chat with Kamea Chayne from Green Dreamer Podcast about the poor condition of our soils and the solutions to address this problem, how we can eat a truly sustainable [...]

As an engineer and permaculture designer living in a cold-climate, I am particularly fascinated with the interplay between thermodynamics and design and with capturing “waste” energy [...]

Last year, we did a series of videos looking at the swale systems on our property and demonstration site. Part one looks at how we’ve combined the featuress of a Hügelkultur system, a wicking [...]

Verge Grad Profile:  Jeremy Zoller, Owner, Sunshine Earth Works Graduated from 2013 PDC in Calgary Jeremy’s Expertise: Permaculture Design, Landscape Construction, Earth Repair Jeremy’s Story:  [...]

Hey Folks, There’s not much better motivation to finish up some projects around our site than have Geoff Lawton call and tell us that he is going to stop in to do some filming. So needless [...]

A step-by-step account of installing an underground rain tank in our backyard for additional rainwater harvesting storage.

Ecological destruction and environmental degradation are merely symptoms of a more profound structural economic problem endemic to industrialization and consumerism. As can readily be observed, [...]

Last weekend both Jordan and I had an amazing opportunity to be part of Rob Avis of Verge Permaculture’s Design Team, participating in an applied Design Practicum at the Groundswell [...]

A few weeks ago we had our amazing interns prepare a soil sample to be sent off to the Soil Food Web Lab in Vulcan. (See the blog,

Michelle, Rowan and I were driving home from a vacation in the mountains when we passed by a swale on a farmer’s field in the middle of Alberta cattle country. Naturally, it piqued my [...]

Having started my engineering career in the oil and gas industry my first experience with large earth moving machines was relatively negative. Whenever I had to employ them it was to bring down a [...]

Rob & I were invited out to Mountain Waters Retreat, in the beautiful Kootenay Valley, to teach a Permaculture Design Certificate Course to nine students.  We are having a wonderful time and [...]

This is part one of a four part series about Rob & Michelle’s three month journey exploring, visiting and learning about the what’s going on in the permaculture scene in [...]