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127: Survival and Beyond…

In today’s podcast, Sam Coffman is interviewed by Ed Corcoran from Survival and Beyond.  Sam and Ed discuss general survival topics such as:

sustainable survival

  • The concept of “civilization” and how we have lost touch with who we are as humans
  • The idea behind The Human Path as a school
  • The importance of the topic of community as part of any realistic survival training
  • Herbal medicine and its place in a post-disaster or remote setting
  • Modern medicine as compared to herbal or natural medicine
  • Wilderness vs. Urban survival and cummunity sustainability
  • Speculation on what might be most likely looming in our future as a species
  • What role does our culture play in forming our perception of reality?

Find out what's going on at The Human Path!Our class calendar

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#122: How Do I Get Started?

In today's podcast, Sam Coffman discusses the entire structure of classes and programs at The Human Path.

urban survival

He addresses many of the questions that people have about how the program is structured at The Human Path, to include:

  • What are the differences between core classes and peripheral or elective classes?
  • What are the 4 paths or specialties that a person can follow within the core curriculum?
  • What specific things do students learn in each of the specialties?
  • What makes The Human Path so different from other survival schools?
  • How does learning these skills make a difference in day-to-day life?
  • What is the difference between Urban and Primitive tracks of instruction?
  • What are the "Four A's" of survival that are a part of the core curriculum?
  • How does a student move up from level 1 to level 2 in a specialty?
  • How are concepts like teamwork, leadership and community taught as part of the classes?

The next Urban Core Basic class is January 25 - 27th, 2013.

Check out the Winter 2013 schedule for the next 2-3 months!

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#121: The Human Path in 2013

In this podcast, Sam Coffman discusses The Human Path growth, classes and real-world action during 2012, as well as the direction for 2013 and beyond.

Human Path training intensives

Sam answers questions such as:

  • What kinds of learning experiences were developed throughout 2012 and what can we look forward to in 2013?
  • How has the breadth of the curriculum has been defined over the past few years at The Human Path? What exactly does that breadth of information include?
  • How have The Human Path instructors evolved with the school?
  • Why is it necessary to implement testing and selection procedures for higher level classes and real-world teams?  What might that testing procedure look like, and at what point in the different levels will we see it?
  • As we focus in the 4 areas of our curriculum delivery - Lecture, Hands-on, Scenario and Real-world missions – how does this all merge to create an ideal learning and even life-changing environment?
  • How did Nicaragua figure into learning experience during 2012, and what's next?
  • What can we expect to see in 2013 in regards to real-world missions and new classes?

Our new calendar for 2013 is up online here.

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Urban Guerrilla Gardening

In today's podcast, Sam Coffman discusses a recent news story in which a woman's medicinal and food garden were destroyed by an HOA and the city.

urban guerrilla garden

He covers topics such as:

  • How can we prepare our own medicinal gardens to avoid falling prey to this kind of ignorance?
  • What are some of the different types of urban camouflage gardening (Guerilla Gardening)?
  • What are the different height levels and how can we create a medicinal garden in the front yard that uses this to help fit the garden in with HOA and municipal idiot-regulations?
  • What are some very good medicinal plants that grow as ground cover and can replace a yard?
  • What are some very good medicinal plants that are high ground cover, low-herbaceous level?
  • What are some good medicinal herbaceous plants and how can we fit that into our yard in a way that doesn't stand out?
  • What is the concept behind forest gardening and how can that help us be more prepared?
  • What is the advantage of using local plants?

To learn more about using medicinal plants that you can grow, as well as harvest locally in the wild, sign up for the next Herbology Level 1 class here

Related Items:

More information about the incident discussed in this podcast about the mowed-down garden, news report

Companion Article, 'On Your Side of the Fence'

Upcoming class in Austin, TX: 'Cooking With Wild Edibles', July 26th

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116: The Rabbit and The Herb

In today's podcast Sam Coffman talks with Rick Worden of Rise and Shine Rabbitry, about healing herbs and food for rabbits.  For those of you raising rabbits, Sam and Rick get into details on specific herbs and health issues with rabbits, such as:

self sustaining food source

  • Nutrients that are important for rabbits to give them a more natural diet
  • Immune boosting with apple cider vinegar, and how this helps keep them from getting sick
  • How to use echinacea and what it does for them
  • Dried or fresh, which is better?
  • Ear mite treatment using natural oils and herbs
  • Eye washes for rabbit eye infections
  • How normal "rabbit feed" can cause gastric problems in the rabbits
  • Herbs to help rabbit digestion and counteract some of the problems called by pellets
  • Grasses vs. pellets: How do you prepare grasses and herbs for their diet?
  • Herbs for rabbit diarrhea and to improve digestive issues

Learn more about herbs for humans at the next herbology level 1 class here.

Also, check out our earlier podcast on rabbitry and creating your own sustainable meat food source, Episode #100, The Self Sustaining Food.

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112: Food Is Free!

food is free Today Sam Coffman discusses the Food Is Free Project with its founder, Jon Edwards.

Together, Sam and Jon discuss:

  • How the Food Is Free project got started and what it is
  • How making wicking beds and planting food has brought community together
  • How many houses are participating in the neighborhood in Austin that they are working with
  • The kinds of community aspects that have blossomed as a result of the neighborhood being involved in growing their own food.
  • The practicality of raised, wicking beds for growing food in an urban area
  • Some of the potential conflicts with city officials and HOA's to front-yard food gardens
  • Upcoming events in Austin for the Food Is Free organization
  • How anyone can get started, and the toolkit that is available to help people lead a similar project in their own neighborhood

You can read more about the project at their website and blog here: http://foodisfreeproject.org/

Be sure to like them on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/foodisfree

Contact them directly here: foodisfreeproject@gmail.com

community gardening

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111: The Forest Garden In Your Midst

In today's podcast, Sam Coffman talks about forest gardening.

forest garden

Forest gardening is a great way to grow both food and medicine in a space and labor-efficient environment.  Sam talks about:

  • Why a forest garden is a great idea for preppers
  • What are the different layers of a forest garden?
  • How can you get started on a forest garden even if you don't have any canopy trees?
  • How much room does a forest garden take up?
  • What are the advantages of food and medicine grown in a forest garden?
  • What are some of the examples of food and medicine that Sam has growing in his own forest garden?

To learn more about plant medicine, make sure you are on the mailing list for notification as our herbology level 1 online class comes out over the next few weeks...

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107: Hunter/Gathering In The City

Each day, grocery stores throw out thousands of pounds of fresh and useable produce, meat and food staples.  These items are not spoiled, they are often times not damaged, and might be tossed just because there is too much overstock.   Today, Sam Coffman talks with a Human Path Facebook follower, who watched a video trailer we posted, 'Dive',  about 2 months ago and decided to try her hand at dumpster diving to help her family through a rough financial spot.  She was shocked at the amount of waste with perfectly good food being thrown away and now her family eats healthier than ever.

good food salvaged

Sam and listener Zoe discuss:

  • what led her family to try dumpster diving and the negative stigma that they had to overcome in order to try it out
  • the movie 'Dive' that changed their attitude about the practice of dumpster diving
  • the volume of fresh organic food being thrown away and the great variety of high-end healthy food
  • how they share with friends and neighbors when they collect more than they need
  • how they were able to stock up for their family of 5 for a full year after 2 months of dumpster diving
  • store dumpsters may often be full (and locked) even though stores claim to donate everything to charities and shelters
  • the dangers to note and precautions that divers must take before going out
  • the best times to go and where
  • the idea of a co-op for divers to share and distribute collected food to make sure perfectly good food doesn't just got tossed
  • making extra cash by selling cast-off items
  • dumpster diving as a growing and thriving sub-culture, sometimes called 'freegans'
  • learning about food safety

long term food storage

Waste and over-consumption are a huge problem with our country's landfills being packed with things that can either be consumed, re-used or re-purposed.  When thousands of pounds of good food are being thrown out, natural resources continue to be depleted.

Learn how to sharpen your urban awareness and survival skills. See how to be a part of the eco-solution and not part of the problem.

Upcoming Urban Core Basic courses begin in May. Online registration and details.

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106: Prepping For The Apocalypse

In today’s podcast, Sam Coffman reviews last night’s “Doomsday Preppers” show (National Geographic channel) –

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/doomsday-preppers/

survival bunker

Sam gives his own feedback on the preppers that were featured in this show, as well as some of the concepts involved in their method of prepping.  Aside from talking about the details of each individual prepper and some various feedback on their plans, he also talks about:

  • bird alarms as a method of early warning in a rural environment
  • lifestyle adjustments for the first family of primitive skills enthusiasts for prepping
  • over-population as a possible disaster scenario and why it works well
  • firearms' role in survival
  • living off the 'fat of the land'
  • surviving in a bunker: what happens when they have to inevitably emerge from the bunker?
  • changing a culture of 'distraction' to ensure a positive survival of the species
  • security: humans vs. machinery
  • prepping for martial law: what this means
  • water: what is the bare minimum per person needed, and how much for comfort?
  • what is to be gained through sniper tactics in a survival situation?
  • the difference between these prepper's everyday lifestyle compared to what they are prepping for

There are two survival courses coming up that deal specifically with survival in all types of situations.

See the online schedule for:

The Primitive Core Basic: 5-Day Intensive, March 12 - 16th, online registration

The Urban Core Basic: Part one, May 4 - 6th, online registration

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103: In The Pantry With The Preppers

In today’s podcast, Sam Coffman reviews last night’s “Doomsday Preppers” show (National Geographic channel) –

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/doomsday-preppers/

long term food storage

Sam gives his own feedback on the preppers that were featured in this show, as well as some of the concepts involved in their method of prepping.  Aside from talking about the details of each individual prepper and some various feedback on their plans, he also talks about:

  • The general 2 main types of preppers
  • Gear vs. Skills
  • Prepping in a huge urban area like NYC, and bugging in
  • Security vs. Food
  • The “stereotypical” prepper and where that idea will lead us
  • The concepts behind “prepping” at The Human Path

There are still a few slots open in the Urban Core Basic, where you can learn, practice and apply preparedness concepts in hands-on and scenario-based environments - Online calendar and registration

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