You’ve perhaps heard of Dunbar’s Number: 150. Put forward by anthropologist Robin Dunbar, humans can only maintain stable social relationships with around 150 people; a cognitive limit based on the size of the neocortex. While 150 is the most famous figure suggested by Dunbar, there were others. Best viewed as nested concentric circles of 5 […]
“The gift moves in a circle, and it returns transformed.” ~ Charles Eisenstein Our economic system is based on the pursuit of endless growth, often at the expense of social and ecological health. But it hasn’t always been this way. In traditional societies, gift economies were foundational. Food, labour, and resources were shared within communities, […]
Originally presented by Steve Hardy on January 18, 2025 at the Virtual Tiny Home Show. This presentation was in part inspired by The Herd of Cats 10 years earlier.
In computing, a tech stack is a collection of independent components that work together to support the execution of software. For example, to develop a web application, the architect defines the stack as the target operating system, web server, database, programming language, and so on. In permaculture, the practice of stacking functions ensures that every element […]
The term self-reliance brings to mind a lone homesteader living off-grid in a home built with reclaimed materials. They harvest their rainwater; capture and store energy with a solar panel and a battery; and grow and preserve their own food. They may have a wood stove to cook and heat their home with, and have […]
Join Natalie Brake of Tiny House Listings Canada for a “deep dive” conversation with Big Calm cofounder Steve Hardy. Wide-ranging topics include nature, permaculture, edge space, zones, supply chains, prefab tiny houses, pocket neighbourhoods, Dunbars numbers, resilience, birding, community, and more!
This infinity loop is called the Adaptive Cycle. It was first developed to explain the life cycle of forests, and is the most powerfully simple way to describe resilience. More than just bouncing back from adversity, resilience is a loop – constant and in multitudes. Once you see it this way you’ll see it everywhere […]
Tiny Houses on Wheels (THoWs) are odd creatures. They seldom move, yet are lumped into the recreational vehicle (RV) category. They are, increasingly, all-season residences yet they must connect to permanent houses or to basic campground pedestals for services. And they are often someone’s highly curated, minimalist nest yet they aren’t considered fixed property in […]
On July 9th, lightning struck a peak east of Winlaw and started a fire. It quickly grew out of control into a “Fire of Note” and began spreading to the backcountry behind us.
When we first contemplated building a tiny home community in the Slocan Valley, we thought a lot about how it would impact, and ideally, benefit both the land and the larger community.
