TRADING BEANS FOR BEEF WOULD BE COOL FOR EARTH
Feeling helpless to stop our ever-faster rush toward habitat destruction and loss of diversity? There is something we all can do that will make a difference immediately. STOP EATING […]
A GREAT SOLAR GROUP BUY
As the deadline approached, people decided to take the leap and it accelerated rapidly. It was like watching a drama unfold.
WOLVES IN WISCONSIN – ARE THEY ENDANGERED?
Can wolves’ adaptability and savvy save them from legislation now on the docket in Washington.
LEARN THE LATEST ON SOLAR PANELS AT THE DODGEVILLE SOLAR ENERGY FAIR
Is 2017 the year to install solar energy panels? According to a recent Fortune Magazine article, solar power is becoming cheaper, and will beat the price of coal and natural […]
HIGH VOLTAGE POWER LINES AND THE DRIFTLESS AREA ENVIRONMENT
When extensive edges are created, such as when you install a power line corridor, you reduce habitat and diminish local diversity within the remaining patches of habitat.
WISCONSIN INSTITUTES FOR DISCOVERY NAMED LABORATORY OF THE YEAR
I just learned from a UW press release that one of my favorite new buildings in Madison, WI, Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, has been named 2012 Laboratory of the Year in an international competition sponsored annually by R&D Magazine. Because this structure is nested between two of Madison’s major traffic […]
IRRIGATION AND GLOBAL WARMING
I’ve been thinking about irrigating as we plan to sink cisterns beside the barn to store rain water. With precipitation starting to come in more intense episodes in the Midwest followed by long dry spells, it seems like the best idea. This press release from UW-Madison writer Jill Sakai takes […]
5 REASONS I LOVE COMPRESSED EARTH BRICK
We are not going to make it to the Midwest Renewable Energy Fair this year because it conflicts with a rare reunion of my far-flung family. I will miss it, and I will especially miss attending the workshops on compressed earth blocks by Midwest Earth Builders. Looking through the Energy […]
BUILDING IN THE TRADITION OF THE GREAT STINK
We are edging closer and closer to a final plan for our sustainable, little house to be built next summer. We have worked out a plan that is cozy and ship shape. We have visited and seen photos of a number of Whole Tree Architecture Houses. I’m starting to develop […]
ART HANSMANN: 87 YEARS OF LIFE LIVED SMALL
Several of my posts lately have been short because of family health issues. One of those issues concluded last Saturday when my father-in-law succumbed to a long, wasting disease. This man was part of my life for 33 years. He was a hard man for me to like – politically […]
Digging in the Driftless 