In this episode, I want to focus on the topics of sustainable travel and ecotourism. Now that travel restrictions are starting to relax, we are all anxious to get out and about, which I totally understand. I know I feel that way as well. But, as we all start to think about travel again, it is important that we make responsible choices and that includes when we travel. What I want to do in this episode is first define ecotourism, give you some examples of ecotourism activities, and also give you ...
Aug 08, 2021•29 min•Ep. 35
In this episode I want to first give an overview of how nature, wildness, and wilderness was actually a key factor in defining the American experience. It actually represented limitless opportunity and freedom. It fostered the self reliance and individualism that still runs deep in our culture to this day. And yet over time we have gone from wildness and wilderness to no sense of wild at all. But as you will soon realize, staying wild maybe the one thing that saves us all. Listen to the entire e...
Aug 01, 2021•32 min•Ep. 34
Did you know that vampires are not a thing of the past? There is actually a vampire culture that is alive and well in our modern age. But they keep that a secret of course. However, when we all think of vampires we automatically envision the vicious creatures of folklore that rise from their graves at night and suck the vital essence out of the living. And one more fun fact, there is actually a vampire killing kit. It’s kind of interesting and if you want to see it I have a link to a page that s...
Jul 25, 2021•26 min•Ep. 33
Did you know that every piece of plastic that was ever produced is still on the planet? Did you know that disposable diapers take between 250 and 500 years to decompose? What that means is that the disposable diapers that your mother used on you as a kid are STILL in the landfill. For much of human history we have disposed of our garbage by carting it somewhere away from our living space and dumping it, burning it, or burying it. As our culture began to grow, disposing of garbage and human waste...
Jul 18, 2021•34 min•Ep. 32
What if I told you that I could give you some 12 simple tips that you could implement today that would save you about $2000 per year? Would you do it? Well, the easiest and simplest place to start is right in your own kitchen. Making you home kitchen more eco-friendly doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Just start with one simple change, which will lead to another and another. That is the point of this episode, practical ways to make your kitchen more eco-friendly by cooking sustainably. As you wil...
Jul 11, 2021•26 min•Ep. 31
In this episode I want to discuss one of my favorite topics. And in the process I hope to give you some interesting and useful information. What I want to touch on is a very broad topic which is covered in numerous books. But to get to the point, the topic of this episode is the natural things around us that are completely overlooked yet they tremendously useful. What I am talking about are the edible and medicinal plants and trees, some of which we see everyday, that are of tremendous value yet...
Jul 04, 2021•31 min•Ep. 30
I think by now that we are all aware of the recent high profile ransomware hacks on the Colonial Pipeline as well as the JBS meat supplier that shut down their packing plants for a couple of days resulting in meat shortages. While such things may have only affected certain parts of the country, it certainly gets the attention of everyone. Such things have a tendency to completely disrupt the flow of vital commodities to thousands of people. In this episode I want to talk a little bit about how t...
Jun 27, 2021•28 min•Ep. 29
In this episode I am going to first try to convince you how important it is to take a walk in the woods on a regular basis. Then I am going to discuss how important that resource really is to all of us, how that resource is being destroyed and why, and what you can do about it. I am of course talking about deforestation. Deforestation causes climate change, global warming, soil erosion, species extinction, habitat loss, ocean acidification, loss of biodiversity, and food insecurity. Any one of t...
Jun 20, 2021•25 min•Ep. 28
In this episode I want to cover this topic of the 2000 Watt Society, what that actually means, and why it is an extremely important topic. In episode #3 titled How Much Should One Person Be Allowed to Use, I touched on this topic. Additionally, this topic is closely related to episode #2 The Most Sustainable Countries. But I want to go much more in-depth this time around because I think this is a very important topic and it is one of the pillars to our sustainable future. Okay for a minute here ...
Jun 13, 2021•32 min•Ep. 27
What I want to accomplish in this episode is to give my listeners an in-depth background on where I came from and how I got to be where I am today. And at the end of this episode, I want to leave you with an important message that will help you to drive some positive changes in your own life. If there is one thing I have learned in working on the blog and the podcast, is that people appreciate hearing from someone who actually has the background experience. People enjoy, and perhaps trust in a p...
Jun 06, 2021•26 min•Ep. 26
In this episode I am going to introduce the concept of a keystone species, the importance of a keystone species and what happens if that species is taken out of an ecosystem. And as you could guess, the keystone species that I am speaking of in this episode is coral. I am going to discuss the importance of our coral reefs, what is happening to them, and why we should truly be concerned. This concept of a keystone species was introduced in 1969 by a zoologist named Robert T Paine. A keystone spec...
May 30, 2021•34 min•Ep. 25
In this episode I want to talk about how, as humans we have the tendency to destroy things that are in the way of what we view as “progress”. First I want to talk about this from a historical perspective and then give you a more modern example of how we continue to do the same thing. We still have not learned and we still do not appreciate that it is the balance in nature that provides us with all of the things we need to survive. When I first purchased my cabin property in 1996, I truly lived i...
May 23, 2021•29 min•Ep. 24
In the United States, there is an estimated 130 to 160 billion pounds of food that goes to waste each year, as much as 40% of our food supply. And much of this food is perfectly edible and nutritious. This wasted food cost this country about $218 billion a year. Not to mention the added strain on the environment and the use of resources that also goes to waste. But to be fair, there is a difference between food loss and food waste. Food loss often occurs before we as consumers have anything to d...
May 16, 2021•31 min•Ep. 23
Many of us think that recycling is a fantastic thing and that is what is going to help us save the planet. However, in many ways we are not recycling we are wish- cycling. Sadly, many times recycling is just another term for a long, expensive trip a plastic bottle takes in order to end up in the landfill. Besides, if recycling was the answer to our garbage pollution, why do we still have a problem. This episode focuses on the challenges of the recycling industry. In my opinion, putting so much m...
May 09, 2021•26 min•Ep. 22
The first commercial airline flight took off on January 1, 1914. It flew from St Petersburg, Fl to Tampa Bay. It was a flight of 21 miles and took 23 minutes. This flight service only lasted 4 months but it paved the way to the airline industry that we see today. Now, I am sure that when that first flight took off, carbon emissions were not their first concern. At least not like it is today. I think we all know that air travel is not going away any time soon. And I think we all know it is one in...
May 02, 2021•36 min•Ep. 21
I want to start this episode by asking a simple question. If you were told you had to live in a different country from now until the rest of your life, where would it be? Where would you go? That said, how would you go about choosing a new country? What criteria would you use? How would you go about giving each country a “report card” so to speak? How would you rate each country? And furthermore, what are the factors and characteristics of the country of your choice that would be the tipping poi...
Apr 25, 2021•29 min•Ep. 20
After my last episode titled Choices Make Changes; What is a Sustainable Product and How to Find Them, I thought it was fitting to follow that episode on something having to do with fair trade. Because the products that we choose to purchase not only affects sustainability but it also affects the lives of so many other people. The value of imported goods in the US in 2019 was 3.1 trillion dollars. That is about $9,365 per person in the United States. Furthermore, about 53 % of the fresh fruit an...
Apr 18, 2021•29 min•Ep. 19
There is one thing that we know for sure, our choices as consumers drive the market place. If consumers demand something or if the demand of the general public is for one specific product or service, then the market changes accordingly to provide for that need. If not, then some savvy marketer will come up with a campaign to convince you of the need for something anyway, even though that may not be the case. Well, the simple fact is everything you purchase, regardless of what it is, is still goi...
Apr 05, 2021•29 min•Ep. 18
You may find it interesting that scientist have a better understanding of how many stars there are in our galaxy than how many species there are on planet Earth. There was a study that was conducted in 1980 in the tropical forests in Panama. This one study included only 19 trees. There were 1,200 beetle species that were noted in this study and 80% of those species were previously unknown. What this means is that we truly have no idea what is actually out there. Consequently, we have no idea how...
Apr 05, 2021•30 min•Ep. 17
During the 1960's and 70's there was a tremendous and powerful social movement in the United States. As many as one million people left their jobs, their educational institutions, and families to transition into a simpler life that was close to nature. This new lifestyle simply fit with their moral values and enabled them to work outside of the "system" that they saw as corrupt. However, years later, there was a significant and much less popularized "Back From the Land" movement. So, what happen...
Mar 22, 2021•27 min•Ep. 15
Many people wish they could just turn back the clock and go back to their younger years. As children we had complete emotional liberty, few if any responsibilities, and our life ahead of us was full of possibilities. Then we grow up only to be trapped by bills, responsibilities, working, and just trying to make a living. However, as children we only saw a small portion of the world. We have a very narrow view of reality. As adults, yes we have responsibilities but our mind expands and we finally...
Mar 20, 2021•20 min•Ep. 16
In this episode, I want to share with you how over a 5 year period of time I went from $295K in debt to zero debt. And I want to share with you how you can do the same thing as well as what that all has to do with a simple sustainable lifestyle. Now if you want to hear that story and get the real scoop, then stayed tuned. When I was growing up on the farm, we spent our time raising animals, working in the garden, hunting, fishing, picking fruits and nuts from the trees on the farm, as well as ca...
Mar 07, 2021•34 min•Ep. 14
Unfortunately, I think we are all familiar, at least from a historical prospective, with the term genocide. And if you are listening to this episode and you are very young, perhaps you are not familiar with this term. Genocide is the killing of a large group of people from a particular nation or ethnic group with the aim of destroying that nation or ethnic group. While such things certainly raise eyebrows and make you think that such a thing could never happen in modern times, the same thing is ...
Mar 02, 2021•37 min•Ep. 13
In this episode I am of course going to talk about the importance of self sufficiency and how that is connected to sustainability. I am also going to discuss how self sufficiency means different things to different people so there are different ways to go about it. But, in the end self sufficiency is also impossible to attain yet vital to our survival. So, how do we get around that? Now fast forward into our present time, when you mention self sufficiency in front of a group of people, I can alm...
Feb 27, 2021•29 min•Ep. 12
Sustainability has just as much to do with relationships as it has to do with solar panels. Sustainability has just as much to do with relationships as it has to do with recycling. Sustainability has just as much to do with relationships as it has to do with being a smart consumer. Someone told me once that the best time to make a friend is when you don’t need one. Allow me to explain. You see, whether you like it or not, while you sit quietly in your living room at night watching a good movie, ...
Feb 22, 2021•27 min•Ep. 11
By the end of 2020, the population of the world was approximately 7.8 billion. According to the World Health Organization, one in three people in the world does not even have access to an improved water source. This means approximately 2.6 billion people on our planet do not have access to a safe water supply. In contrast, according the the Center for Disease Control (CDC) the United States has the safest water supply on the plant. Yet Americans are obsessed with drinking bottled water. In fact,...
Feb 17, 2021•35 min•Ep. 10
Nature is worthless!! Right??? Well you would think that is how most people feel because most of us treat nature as if it is worthless. You have heard the old saying that "People are truly defined by what they do, not by what they say." If you believe that, then you would also believe that most people think nature is worthless because we keep doing things to destroy it. Listen to this episode if you want to know my true opinion. Patrick
Feb 08, 2021•33 min•Ep. 9
This episode is a brief interview with my 15 year off-grid partner Annette. We talk about our lifestyle and how it all came about. I wanted to produce this episode especially for my listeners to let them know that what I do and how I live is very real. I do in fact live an off-grid sustainable lifestyle. Patrick
Jan 25, 2021•27 min•Ep. 8
Welcome back to the Adventures in Sustainable Living Podcast. After several episodes on various topics, such as our consumeristic society, how much waste we produce, and various sustainable countries, I felt as if it was time to produce an episode on just how we can go about changing our culture. The simple fact is that developing a sustainable future is not possible unless people believe in the underlying intrinsic value and they act in ways to support it. But, as we all know, it is difficult t...
Jan 12, 2021•29 min•Ep. 7
Very simply put sustainability means meeting your own needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. When most people think about sustainability, most likely the first thing that comes to mind is the environment. While this is part of it, if you dive deeper into sustainability the concepts are quite complex, far, reaching and in todays world, even global. But, in this episode, I want to present one basic far reaching concept that you can commit to memory. Susta...
Dec 27, 2020•32 min•Ep. 6
