Meet some of the wonderful people who have generously shared their green expertise with us at DBL monthly presentations…

Patrick Van Haren – February 17, 2010: If You Don’t Have Bison in Your Backyard / Garden, You Need Compost Tea

Patrick Van Haren. As well as being a full-time partner in Microbial Earth, Patrick has a consulting company focused on the regional sustainability of Central Texas. The company is called Sunergie. Sunergie is focused on the role of soil in providing our food, feed, fiber, fertilizer, fuel, fresh water and fresh air (the 7 F’s) for rural communities throughout Central Texas. Patrick previously worked throughout Europe and North America in animal genetics, artificial insemination and rural economic development, both in large and family sized companies. He was lead in a start-up that pursued a solar thermal technology design for the utility sector. Patrick completed an accelerated (1 year) MBA in entrepreneurship at Babson College in Wellesley MA where he focused on the “Managing Technology Intensive Enterprise” program. He is also a graduate of the two year federal Department of Agriculture – Canadian Agricultural Lifetime Leadership Program, has a BS in Agriculture Economics and Business from the University of Guelph (Canada), and has served in numerous co-operatives in Canada.

Patrick Van Haren
Microbial Earth; Sunergie
405 Academy Drive
Austin TX 78704
512- 275-6581
www.microbialearth.com and www.sunergie.com
(You may email Patrick from his websites)

Rick Nation – January 20, 2010: Cordwood Construction; Cordwood Construction Site Visit, January 23, 2010

Rick left the “on the road” music business in 1972 and moved to Austin to learn the carpentry trade and play music with his friends on weekends. Combining experience then gained from running a sawmill and building furniture with his college background in architecture, Rick designed and build the “Hand Made House” at RR12 and FM 3237 in the Wimberley, Texas, area. Other hand-crafted cabins, furniture, mantles, kitchen cabinets and rustic interiors followed. Then he spent two years building a cordwood cabin for a country music giant in Spicewood, Texas.

Rick resides in Wimberley and is still making wooden art, playing music with his friends and doing his best to keep the planet a healthy place to live. As Rick says, “I may not be able to change this world as much as I would like to, but I sure can leave it a lot healthier than I found it.”

Rick Nation

Stephen Colley – August 19, 2009: Natural Building Workshops and Conference: A Participant’s Experience

Stephen practices appropriate architecture and is a long-time promoter of green design and sustainable living in central Texas. He has been active for over twenty years in spreading the word about environmentally responsible design and construction in San Antonio and beyond. Stephen was instrumental in the establishment of the residential green building program, Build San Antonio Green, chosen as the 2009 Green Building Program of the Year by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). He recently served on the [San Antonio] Mayor’s task force on Sustainable Policy as the City charts a significant shift away from conventional building, development, and transportation policy.

A former Chair of the San Antonio Chapter of the American Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment, Stephen is a LEED^® Accredited Professional, and the Coordinator for San Antonio Sustainable Living.

Stephen is also a co-author of the “Texas Manual on Rainwater Harvesting,” and was one of the stakeholders chosen nationwide by the NAHB to help formulate their national Model Green Home Building Guidelines.

Stephen Colley, AIA, LEED AP
Stephen Colley/Architecture
San Antonio, TX 78218
210-416-3387 mobile 210-590-2703

www.stephencolley.com
Email: Stephen at stephencolley.com (Replace “at” with @ and eliminate spaces. This is an attempt to foil spammers)

Gary Freeborg – February 18, 2009: Healing the Hydrological Cycle; February 21, 2009: Permaculture Site Visit

In the 70’s and early 80’s Gary worked in the field of sleep electrophysiology at University and Government research labs. In ‘82 while conducting independent sleep studies by night, his passion for the land led him to work by day for one of the oldest and most respected Native Plant Nurseries in Texas, The Lowrey Nursery. From there he spent 6 years at Armand Bayou Nature Center, an 1800 acre nature preserve. There he was involved with all aspects of native plants and animals, habitat restoration, organic gardening, environmental interpretation and non-profit fund raising. He then moved to Austin TX, where he and two brothers acquired land and began exploring organic and Biodynamic agriculture, growing native trees, produce and mushrooms. An intensive Permaculture course with Bill Mollison in ’95 began a process of bringing a wide range of disciplines together with the goal of healing the land by jump-starting natures own cycles. His company BioDiversity offers large and small landowners a wide variety of revolutionary strategies to bring vibrant health back to the land, and increase the biodiversity in soil, plant and animal communities through consulting, education and research.

Gary Freeborg
Biodiversity – Earth Healing From the Soil Up
Austin TX
512- 296-1831
www.buildbiodiversity.com
(You may email Gary from his website)

Ben Obregon – March 18, 2009: Introduction to Straw Bale Building

Ben is a registered architect whose first experience with straw was while working at the Center for Maximum Potential Building Systems in 1993. He was one of the founders of the Straw Bale Association of Texas and helped write the Austin Straw Bale Building Code. He and his family have lived in their straw bale home since 1998.

Ben Obregon, Architect
The Sustainable Design Center
13429 Overland Pass
Austin TX 78738
512- 263-0177 office
www.SustainableDesignCenter.com
(You may email Ben from his website)

Jenny Nazak – April 15, 2009: Conserving Resources: Reduce, Reduce, Reduce

By profession, Jenny is a licensed Avatar Master. Avatar is a course, taught worldwide since 1987, that equips people with tools for managing their beliefs and their attention– the key determinants of a person’s success and happiness in life.¬† Jenny has been on a lifelong “reduce” adventure which has allowed her to create (not just avoid spending, but actually CREATE) enormous amounts of free time, attention, energy, and MONEY, which she has used for travel, education, projects, serving her community, building financial security, and having more fun than most people think it’s possible for an adult to have.

Jenny Nazak
Licensed Avatar Master
512-619-5363

Email: jnazak at yahoo . com (Replace “at” with @ and eliminate spaces. This is an attempt to foil spammers)

www.avatarepc.com