OUR Blog
Learn, weave, wonder
Global interconnected conversations about what is happening onsite at OUR ECOVILLAGE --permaculture, ecological design, restorative justice & peacemaking, virtual programming, and keeping up with OUR friends!

Permaculture Principles 10, 11, 12
10. Use and Value Diversity Just as ecosystems work best when filled with a greater variety of different plants and animals, so human society functions best when an variety of different people are represented. In your garden, home and your life in general, it’s a good idea to promote and value diversity in all its […]

Healing Herb: Holy Basil
Holy basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum), commonly known in the Hindi language as tulsi, is quite possibly the most revered medicinal herb on the planet. Holy basil is a plant that has violet flowers and blossoms; the stems are green, but sometimes have a purple tinge. Medicinal preparations are made from the leaves, stems, and seeds […]

OUR Educational CSA Week #20
Last Week of OUR CSA Educational Food Box for 2020!! *A reminder to please return your bins and canning jars* A message from OUR Team: FIRST: a huge thank you to each of you who risked the farm season with us in the true meaning of ‘Community Supported Agriculture’ whereas as the season/weather change […]

Preparing for Winter
In these unprecedented times—at least unprecedented in the lifetimes of most of us—we have an extra push to take care of some of those important but not yet urgent tasks of preparing for the cold. Fortunately we haven’t experienced too many supply chain disruptions yet during the pandemic, but we’ve become more aware of […]

Permaculture Principles – 7, 8, 9
7. Design from Patterns to Details Whether designing a new vegetable garden, or an entire new sustainable way of life, we have to look at the big picture before we get bogged down in the little things. Thinking wholistically, about all areas of our lives, can help us move forwards in a positive direction. […]

REALLY BIG NEWS! – AND A BIG CALL OUT FOR SUPPORT:
A message from Gord Baird, one of OUR local teachers from ECOSENSE (Victoria, BC): I have bounced in and out of OUR ECOVILLAGE for some time now, most recently designing their new water systems. I gave them some bad news this month and let them know that I was going to be a little […]

Healing Herbs: Rose
Rose (Rosa acicularis) brings to my mind thoughts of budding love, matters of the heart, softness, beauty, and desire. fIn herbal medicine, both the petals and fruit (rosehips) of the rose are used. Not surprisingly then, rose petals are a good supportive tonic for the heart, and the scent of rose contains phenylethylamine-related compounds […]

OUR ECOVILLAGE Cooperative – General Newsletter Outreach
Having rounded the equinox and feeling the chill in the air….OUR team is finally surrendering to the fall season and BIG changes! We have moved through perhaps 3 of the most challenging seasons on the land since spring 1999 – and yet in terms of positive change it has also heralded in times of […]

OUR Eater’s Manifesto
O.U.R. Vision is to joyfully share food as medicine for O.U.R.selves, O.U.R. land and for O.U.R. broader worlds socioeconomic, ecological and political systems. O.U.R. core approach works toward collaborative respect with all of O.U.R. living companions: animals, plants, micro-organisms and of course humans. We try to keep O.U.R. food affordable, accessible and healthy. O.U.R. […]
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Land acknowledgment
OUR ECOVILLAGE is situated on unceded Indigenous lands. The Coast Salish Peoples are the guardians of these lands and waters where we live, work, pray, and play. Quw’utsun (Cowichan) is a historical place of gathering and Na’tsa’ maht Shqwaluwun/”one-heart one-mind” for many Indigenous peoples.
OUR ECOVILLAGE is committed to regenerate land and all ecosystems while acknowledging and respecting Indigenous knowledge that ensures thriving for all beings; we call this Permaculture.
OUR ECOVILLAGE is dedicated to continuously educating ourselves and our communities about the history and peoples of OUR bio-region, to assist in decolonization and re-villaging as a path towards peacemaking, from local to global.