We all share a responsibility to keep up with our creations, in our own lives, and as families, communities, nations, and a whole earth. Yet our duty need not be drudgery. Endless creative potential abounds in finding new ways to go.
Land Management
A recent history of haphazard approaches to the land itself, presents a variety of issues. Common in this are trees growing too thickly together or in improper sites, water runoff issues, and imbalanced wildlife populations. Sometimes, small adjustments can be made which change the direction of a landscape, toward naturally, gradually rebalancing itself. Of course, nature will always lead this way, but our helping hand can take decades off that timeframe.
Healthy Plantings
For every ill there is a plant to heal it. This is true for our own health and that of the environment. Plants can be used to purify soils which have been poisoned through toxins or pollution, these are called bio-accumulators. Plants and tree help with erosion control, and of course provide beauty, and cleaning the air itself. Trees have marvelous effects on micro-climates of an area, providing shade and windblocks. Enough trees together may affect the weather, bringing moisture out of the ground that is released into the air. We are always learning, and experimentation and observation is our best teacher.
Home Repair
The bread and butter of many a handyman, is fixing things decayed with age or accident. We are glad to step in and help where we can.
Specialties in this regard are in: using unique materials such as reclaimed objects, fine attention to practical details and home flow dynamics. Familiarity with a variety of materials and skills allows one tradesman and crew to accomplish complete projects start to finish, with prudent use of available resources to keep costs low.
Disaster Response
One of my goals with Earth Weavers is to build our ability to quickly respond to natural disasters in a dynamic way.
I have responded to a handful of disaster and emergency scenarios, and found the required skills such as: clear head, willingness to act and help, observation, communication and comprehension, learning team dynamics and sharing tasks, are skills called for in this work. Hope to find others aware of this skillset who may be contacted in times of regional disasters, building mutual aid response teams.
Experience so far has been: carpentry work after Hurricane Katrina; Food and supply preparation and delivery after Hurricane Sandy through our cooperative; and bringing food/ supply and two weeks of carpentry and cooking at the NoDAPL camp at Standing Rock.
I also studied wildland fire fighting through available online courses, and disaster response protocols. As a tree worker, I have been part of removing numerous large trees that have fallen on houses. Relevant skills with chainsaws, rigging, demolition, team coordination and organization, carpentry and general repairs, as well as cooking, food handling and preparation, have all been gathered as part of my personal campaign to be a responsible one in facing the realities of our life on Earth.
Steady Oak Forest Trust 