LIving your Dream in Rural New Brunswick

There is the old saying "Don't put all your eggs in one basket" and in a similar vein we need to look at a diversity of approaches to achieve the goal of local, sustainable, self-reliant communities.  

Much of our current instability (the opposite of resiliency) is that our cities have become divorced from their rural hinterlands.  In older times, the city economy could exploit the rural hinterlands, but only so much since ultimately they were reliant on these natural and agricultural areas for food, water, wood, etc... but their was an intact feedback loop.  Now, cities and as such the bulk of the current population base are reliant on their global connections to access cheap food, entertainment, appliances, clothing, etc...  but at a huge cost of transporting these things from the far corners of the world while the local rural realm is devalued both here and abroad.

I feel we have an opportunity to look at the real wealth that New Brunswick has within its rural areas and would like to see the New Brunswick government population secretariat to include a concrete step towards attracting more families to consider living in the rural areas.  What do people think of a concept to bring in mini-land grants of 3-5 acres on marginal agricultural lands in rural communities who would like to attract more people back to their area.  Rural communities in Quebec have already started something similar as a way to attract more young people interested in small scale farming to their communities.  I think it is a great idea and could be part of a plan to revitalize our rural areas.  

What do you feel are the opportunities that exist or could exist in our rural areas?  What would it take for you to build your dream here in rural New Brunswick?  Want to be part of the discussion?  Come out to our World Cafe on Thursday, Feb 28th at the Knowlesville Art and Nature School located at 111 Simms Road (not far from FBC).  Discussion will start around 4pm and go until 5:30.  We then will have vegetarian fare for all, followed by a Documentary showing on Waldorf Education.  More details available at www.knowlesvilllenature.ca.

The bee is more honoured than other animals, not because she labours, but because she labours for others

On a Thursday, a hot July afternoon, we turned off our computers, we tucked our office chairs in at our desks, we gathered each other, jars of water, work gloves and towels and we made our way to the woods outside Florenceville to a wood fired kiln, a jumble of kindling and broken pottery, mud puddles from the rain and the shade and cool smell of spruce and moss. Yolande fed us fresh things; Mexican fare, cherries and beer to inspire enthusiasm for the job ahead of us. We worked together until the sun went down.

Along with Lee and a very pregnant Yolande we stacked and chopped and loaded and unloaded, strung tarps and cleaned out the kiln. Three interns, four neighbours, five children, a dog. After such success we swam in the river, The Presque Ile, now just a trickle in the summer heat, but cool and wet on our sweaty faces, we laughed and asked to come back next week and every week until the end of the firing. So on Wednesday with another crowd of eager bees we did the same and on Thursday the twenty-second we plan to help again.

Lee and Yolande Clark are preparing to fire their anagama kiln. A 28 foot cave of brick and mortar dug into the ground and emerging in gentle curves and steep chimneys on their land between the overpasses of the new Trans Canada highway and the sprawling lawns and bulky houses of the suburbs west of the mighty Saint John River. Four cords of Tamarack and Pine split into narrow kindle will stoke a flame reaching 1300 degrees day and night for more than a week. Between now and then they will work clay into astonishing shapes; figures and vessels that seem to emerge from the earth, they, with our help and the help of other friends will carry and stack wood, load the kiln, stoke the fire, and wait for their art to change by the ash and heat and magic of the woods and time and patience and sincerity of purpose.

These Early summer days have been long and humid in the offices and fields at Falls Brook and in the evening when work is done and there seem to be only a few hours to eat and play and prepare for the next day the selflessness and strength of those who have given up their night is appreciated so much more. The objectives of the Work Bee program: volunteerism, cooperation and community support, the exchange of ideas, skills and assistance have certainly been fulfilled in these two initial gatherings.

Tomorrow, Saturday the seventeenth, we’ll gather again with the same intentions and many hands to raise the walls of a blacksmith work shop. This time Dana Kittilsen will lead us in sawing, hammering and constructing using recycled materials from an eighty-year-old barn.

See you all tomorrow on the Land Trust on Simms Road in Knowlesville, hammers in hands.

Emily

Falls Brook Centre Work Bees

For more information, to register or become involved

please write to Emily at education@fallsbrookcentre.com

To read Yolande’s words about the work-party and her life, her family and her work:

http://burntnormal.blogspot.com/2010/07/work-party-party.html

Calling All Dreamers!

The Falls Brook Centre invites you to Knowlesville on 24 and 25 July for the 2010 Free School

We all know that our community is a watershed of knowledge. Classrooms, books and internet are not the only way to gain wisdom. Interacting with people allows us to learn various skills and knowledge. Unfortunately, a significant part of the knowledge is not properly passed on, especially between generations.

Falls Brook Centre Free School will give us the opportunity to gather and share what we know. Everybody knows something special and we can always learn. When we break out of the box and redefine education, the opportunities are enormous! A free school can open up a wide variety of discussion groups, seminars, ‘’educational’’ movies and hands-on workshops. So, we invite you to consider sharing your skills, knowledge, or ideas- and tell your friends too!

Coming to the 2010 Free School doesn’t mean you will be sitting all day listening and taking notes. No! Learners will be asked to roll up their sleeves and get into action. You will also get an opportunity to explore our 400 acres of farm and forest land, enjoy live, local music, dance at an off-grid dj party and surely make connections with people who have a stunningly diverse array of skills and talents to share.

We hope to have a hundred participants coming to this event. If you want to join, please register before July 19 by sending an email to community@fallsbrookcentre.ca

If you want to learn more about this event and the others activities held at the centre, check out our website: www.fallsbrookcentre.ca

South Knowlesville Community Land Trust Meeting

This weekend (20-21st of February), the burgeoning young land trust will be holding a founding meeting for the three households living on the land trust and any prospective members who have expressed an interest. It is time to move forward with the incorporation and bylaws to take this dream and make it a municipally recognized reality.

Over the course of two days, we will explore what others have done and build together our foundation documents. This inaugural meeting will bring together key people from the surrounding community as well as current residents and potential new residents.

Date: Saturday, February 20th & Sunday February 22st

Cost: $10/adult + potluck contribution for Saturday night

Pre-registration: Please either speak, call (375-8623) or email Tegan (tegan@back2land.ca) if you plan to attend. We will be preparing materials and food for the Sunday meeting and need to know what numbers to expect. Kids are welcome.

Tentative Agenda:

Saturday, February 20th

2pm Meet at the Knowlesville Art and Nature Centre, on Simms Road for snowshoe/walk

4pm Gathering at Leland & Tegan's home for potluck

6pm Introductions/Visioning/Update of where we are at

Sunday, February 21st

8am Breakfast at Leland & Tegan's for those visiting from away

10am Introduction to Land Trusts/Land Co-ops/ Communities of interest - examples to explore

11am Review of Incorporation Documents for the South Knowlesville Community Land Trust

12pm Lunch

1pm Creating the framework: membership, sevurity of ownership of all capital

improvements, long-term leaseholds, shared assets (roads, wells, power systems, community centre)

3-4pm Action Plan & Closing

New House in South Knowlesville!

We have some pretty exciting things starting to happen in this little rural community. One that I'm particularly excited about is the construction of my brand-spanking-new strawbale cottage on land that is soon to become a Community Land Trust.

What's all this mean?

Strawbale construction: A fantastic, inexpensive, sustainable building technique for new homeowners who don't want to spend a fortune on heating and insulation. In my house, the square straw bales serve as structure (ie: they hold up the weight of the roof) and insulation (straw has an R-value of about 48, compared with the average home's R-value of 16-20). Other features of the house include: rubble trench foundation (very little concrete used; the rubble below it allows for water to drain away, preventing cracking); off-grid solar energy system mounted on the roof; a south-facing greenhouse attached to the house for food production and some heat collection....

Community Land Trust: A land ownership structure by which a piece of land (in our case, 100 acres) is owned collectively by the members of the Trust; no individual homeowner actually owns the land. You can own the buildings on it, but all the land is collectively managed by the members. Benefits? You're not tied down to a huge hunk of land all by yourself. You can do more because you've got a community of neighbours close by to help out and share ideas. You aren't stuck with a mortgage. You're investing in relationships instead of making a purchase.

The construction of this house has been an amazing experience, mostly because it's given me the opportunity to see people (neighbours, friends, visiting strangers) at their most generous, whether they're pitching in to help stack firewood for a few hours or diving into the project to see it through to the end. What an incredible way to bring people together!

Here are some pictures of the almost-finished product. Special thanks to my neighbour, Leland, who is the mastermind and artist behind the design and construction of this wonderful home!
I recommend this style of construction to anybody with a sense of adventure and an interest in safe, natural homes. Get in touch if you want to know more about this construction technique.

Escuela Libre!

A big thank you to all the students and teachers who made the first ever Falls Brook Free School a great success! The enthusiasm was contagious! Due to popular demand, the Falls Brook Free School will be back next year!

Free School Schedule!

Falls Brook Free School Schedule 2009

The sun should be shining, the hummingbirds are flying, and the first raspberries of the season are out. The first ever Falls Brook Free School promises to be a great success!

Thank you so much to all the teachers and students who have signed up to participate in this dynamic day. Here is a tentative schedule, which may still change over the next couple days. See you Saturday!


9:30 Welcome Circle
10:00 – 11:20 Workshops
Kripalu Yoga- Yoga in Motion
Working with a Woodlot
How to Make the Perfect Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
11:30 – 12:10 Workshops
Make Your Very Own Lavender Wand
Transition Towns: From oil dependency to local resilience
Manure Management and Backyard Composting
12:15 – 1:00 How to Change a Tire
Plant Propagation through cuttings
Image Technique and Art of Photography
1:00 – 2:30 Lunch
2:30 – 3:50 Workshops
the Write Stuff: Moving from Form to FUN
The Framing Components of Strawbale
Renewable Energy 101
4:00 – 5:30 Workshops
Djembes and Djuns: West African Rhythms and Drumming
How to finish a hand-built wind turbine (painting, weatherproofing, varnishing)
Pizza Party
Pilates
5:30 Free School Wrap up
6:00 Dinner
8:00pm Concert in the Barn with the Singing Bridge Orchestra
9:00 – 10:30 am Breakfast