After a wonderfully warm and communicative holiday I managed to keep myself offline until 11 January. Three weeks without the internet 😉 The wisest thing I’ve done in years. The inner calm, the presence and authenticity that arose set my zest for life to flowing freely. Maybe worth a try??
The year began with the planning of the kitchen. Went to Ikea with drawings and measurements. There are, of course, digital tools that allow us to avoid drawing with pen and ruler on graph paper…furthermore, you get some support and it is very worthwhile 😉 Ikea is also a good place to get inspiration. This planning was important in order to be able to begin making the clay walls with reed as reinforcement. NB! Previously we mixed clay mixture with cow dung for indoor plastering too. We do not do this any more. We called around to various experts in the field inside and outside the country and concluded that it is not needed. The casein from cow pats is only needed when plastering outdoors, in order to reduce moisture absorption. In addition, earlier on we also used more chopped straw as reinforcement than we do today. Now we mix roughly 60% sand and 40% clay and only a handful of chopped straw with water per mix, and we think the result is really good. So you have to ask multiple experts and try it for yourself before you decide … even the knowledge of experienced experts can vary 😉
I was so happy when the snow poured down. Tranquility spread over the farm, the animals went into hibernation, the sun came out, crystals twinkled, tracks of wild animals were visible, the landscape was covered in winter…absolutely wonderful! Even the goats appreciated plodding through the snow. So too, hopefully, the international group of the organization FoTa in Lund, which appeared while Ecotopia was closed. The hot soup helped to keep them warm.
Suddenly, a skinny little cat was sitting in the henhouse. I took her in and oh, how she ate. She threw herself at the food. A very well-mannered cat who went into the box, was sociable and slept in my bed. But then I got the help of the sympathetic Danish vet Per Schönbeck in Maglehem to find the owner. It turned out that the cat had been lost since September. Now the cat has returned home and so this cat story has a happy ending 🙂
At the start of February Ecotopia opened again after being closed in December and January. We will now be open until the last day of November. In addition to a new spring/summer calendar, this year we are offering a new program of guided tours/visits and a new and more international vegetarian menu in the eco-café. For students there will be more raw food and smoothies … especially on the healthy courses.
Untill now Ecotopia’s focus has been primarily on building and sustainable solutions for the environment (Earth care). Now Ecotopia is also stepping into social sustainability (people care) based on small-scale social projects. The Transition project, the seed group & collective cultivation and the future café have established themselves. This year we are opening up for tenants (a family) in the agricultural property and volunteers who want to acquire practical experiential knowledge of Ecotopia. And also for individuals who want to try to shift their lifestyle to a more organic, subsistence and holistic one, based upon a world in which everything is connected. In addition, we are laying the foundation for two new networks, ”Green enterprise” and SSBN (Swedish Strawbale Network). Last year we laid the foundation of the network ”Solar energy self-build”, which now has a life of its own. Here you can see the movie ”Solar energy self-help”. Together and in cooperation we can co-create a sustainable future.
