As with most rural communities, the reservation has little access to a healthy and organic food supply, and what is available is overpriced and simply not an option for a population focused on day to day survival. With food being such a fundamental element of our existence, it’s unnatural to have become as disconnected from it as we have, and only through a rebirth of our relationship to the Earth will we experience the wealth of abundance she has to offer.
Here we will tend the garden together as we share in community meals, when food is held sacred, all of life is held sacred. In addition to summer gardens, we’ll be incorporating the knowledge of indigenous food systems and modern day permaculture, a vast catalog of wisdoms that regenerate the Earth as they regenerate ourselves.
Phase two of construction will include a greenhouse attached to the southern exposure of the community lodge, which will at the same time create a temperature buffer zone and expand our passive solar capabilities. We’ll also use earthbags to build a walipini , an underground greenhouse that utilizes the same thermal mass properties to drastically extend the growing season, these have been very successful in nearby Nebraska, where they’ve grown decades old citrus trees throughout the sub-zero winters.