#102, in practice, july/aug 2005

INS IDE THIS ISSUE

July/August 2005 * Number 102 www.holisticmanagement.org

Having and using a holistic goal iswithout doubt the secret to success.One’s holistic goal and the desire to

achieve it are the main sources of motivationand creativity to achieve the life one desires.Constant reference to the holistic goal sustainsthat positive influence, and use of the holisticgoal in decision-making sorts the day-to-dayactions into definitive movement towards yourholistic goal. It also limits movement off track.

Although you never achieve your holisticgoal as such (as personal growth anddevelopment keep it evolving and shifting), youstill wish to be continually moving in thedirection you have set with your holistic goal.But as most holistic managers have discovered,sustained shift toward the holistic goal is not assimple as it sounds.

After the Beginning

Certified Educators and practitioners havefound that often the enthusiasm linked withnew knowledge and the motivation behind anew holistic goal lead to swift, positivemovement, initially. After some time though,there is a tendency for the new HolisticManagement practitioners to slip back into theirold ways of doing things. This generally resultsin reduced shift and movement toward theirholistic goal and an inevitable drop inenthusiasm for Holistic Management and theirown situation. At this low point, people oftensearch for or create habits and recipes by whichto manage their wholes. One finds that planningstarts to slip, and it is easy to justify why. They

Making Progress Toward YourHolistic Goal—Creating Policy andStrategy at Homeby Dick Richardson

INS IDE THIS ISSUE

IN PRACTICEIN PRACTICE

On-Going LearningKelly Pasztor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Savory Center Grapevine . . . . . . . . . . .16Savory Center Forum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17Certified Educators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18Marketplace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

FEATURE STORIES

NEWS & NETWORK

Making Progress Toward Your HolisticGoal

Dick Richardson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1Holistic Management in a Nutshell

Aspen Edge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4Holistic Decision-Making in a Nutshell

Aspen Edge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4Tailoring Your Holistic Financial Planning

Lee Johnson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

continued on page 2

Monitoring and paying attention to thefeedback loop is one of the keys to makingprogress toward your holistic goal. GeorgeWhitten (pictured right of Craig Leggett)found that sometimes life requires a breakfrom your comfort zone to find the solutionto problems you face. In his article, “In theMouth of the Tiger” on page 10, Georgeshares how he learned a lot more abouthimself and Holistic Management.

LAND & LIVESTOCKPartnering with Oil Companies

Ann Adams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7In the Mouth of the Tiger

George Whitten . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9Pasture Walk Health

Wayne Burleson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12Pasture Walking For Solutions

Wayne Burleson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

quietly stop talking about Holistic Management,their holistic goal, testing guidelines and evendecisions altogether.

Policies & Strategies

The best way to make progress toward yourholistic goal and have it link easily to your dailyactions is through the development of policies,strategies, and procedures, which work asguidelines to decision making. Policy, strategy,structure, staffing, procedures and actions allflow into one another, and their boundaries arethus indistinct.

Policy is, in fact, an idea or broader ruling setup to avoid or address problems. Policy isbroadly the “how” things are done. Strategies, onthe other hand, are the priorities or “what” in agiven timeframe for making ideas or policiesbecome a reality—getting the right things linedup to be in the right place at the right time.Procedures, planning, putting into practice,monitoring and controlling are all activities thatfollow strategy and structure (a subset of policy)in implementation to achieve the original intentor idea. All policies can thus be fleshed out toinclude strategy and tactics, but not visa versa.All policies and strategies therefore giveguidelines for decision making at the crux ofimplementation.

In essence, policy and strategy provideguidelines for decision making, thought andplanning. These guidelines will help dramaticallyto cut down indecision and research time in planning.

a p u b l i c a t i o n o f t h e s a v o r y c e n t e r

situation—including links, supportingopportunities and new opportunities.

Management areas: Look at your currentdecision-making and management and find areaswhere decisions are often being made—call themmanagement areas. A few examples in familysituations would be time management, purchasing,transportation, entertainment, and investment. Inranching situations labor, livestock breeding,safety, supplementation, feeding, and financial areexamples. Each of these management areasrequires its own policy and strategy to make theholistic goal become a reality.

Determine the intent of each policy: Gatherrepresentatives from parties who’ll be affectedby this policy to help generate it. Take eachmanagement area, like environment or safety,and create a statement of intent for the policy.Then look carefully that this “intent” wouldactually lead to the holistic goal rather thanaway. Many policies and strategies generatedtraditionally create conflict due the stated intentnot leading to what would be the holistic goalfor that particular whole.

A very good example is South Africa’sculture policy, which intends to unify SouthAfricans and create a new culture. However, if a generic holistic goal were set for SouthAfrica, it would have to include, in the forms of production, respect and recognition fordifferent cultures and people. It then becomespainfully obvious that these two, the holisticgoal and the stated intent of the policy, aremutually exclusive.

State policy: Now create a broad frameworkof guidelines and structure for each area ofmanagement. Avoid detail at this stage, as it willonly bog you down. Go through each statementin the holistic goal (statement of purpose whereapplicable, quality of life, forms of production,and the future resource base) and generate somebroad guidelines that would lead toward thatstatement if it is applicable to that managementarea. For example, the forms of productionstatement, “respect and recognition for differentcultures and people,” could lead to the generalguideline or policy: “all regulations must supportdifferent cultures living harmoniously while allpracticing and developing their uniqueness in anatmosphere of respect and recognition.”

Recheck that these rough guidelines in theframework will actually lead to the holistic goal.

2 IN PRACTICE * Ju l y / Augus t 2005

Making Progress Toward your Holistic Goalcontinued from page 1

Having clear cut guidelines to decision-makingthat you know will lead to soundness and, mostimportantly, towards your holistic goal willcertainly simplify life. Minute by minute choicesbecome obvious and do not need indepththought. Most importantly, this means less stressfrom facing millions of niggly little decisions thatyou would otherwise have to apply your mind tothroughout the day all adding up to a feeling of“Am I doing the right thing?”

Inevitable Evolution

While policy and strategy create largerdecision-making guidelines, like the holistic goalthey may well evolve over time. All these aspectsof decision-making need to be regularlyrevisited, appraised, and updated wherenecessary. From a monitoring perspective thereare some questions you could ask to ascertain if a policy or strategy is still valuable.• Do the procedures/actions/guidelines suggestedby this policy or strategy lead toward theintended result or purpose and the holistic goal?• Is this policy/strategy still necessary? Somepolicies and strategies have a life span, and whenthe desired outcome has been achieved, theythen become redundant and can be scraped.• Are there any new ideas, thoughts, or actionsthat could be brought in to replace any of theseguidelines or procedures? Any ideas must betested toward the holistic goal and must lead to the desired outcome of the specific policy or strategy.• Are there any ambiguities or gray areas left bythis policy or strategy that still make decision-making difficult or lead to conflict in decision-making teams?

Creating Policy and Strategies

After creating a holistic goal, work throughthe following steps:

History: To generate creative tension oneneeds to have a clear idea of where you are and a clear idea of where you wish to be. Thediscrepancy between the two should drive youto greater heights. To do this we analyze the past to help format thinking for the future.

Fully assess your current situation and yourhistory or how you got here (why, where, what,when, how and what next).

Do a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses,opportunities, and trends) analysis of the current

SavoryCENTER

TheSavoryTHE SAVORY CENTER is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. The Savory Center worksto restore the vitality of communities and thenatural resources on which they depend byadvancing the practice of Holistic Managementand coordinating its development worldwide.

FOUNDERSAllan Savory * Jody Butterfield

STAFFShannon Horst, Interim Executive Director

Kelly Pasztor,Director of Educational Services;

Constance Neely, International Training Programs Director

Ann Adams,Managing Editor, IN PRACTICE and Director of

Publications and Outreach Maryann West, Executive Assistant

Donna Torrez, Administrative Assistant

BOARD OF DIRECTORSRon Chapman, Chair

Terry Word, Vice-ChairJody Butterfield, Secretary

Sue Probart, TreasurerBen BartlettClint JoseyJim Parker

Judy RichardsonBruce Ward

Jose Ramon Villar

ADVISORY COUNCILJim Shelton, Chair, Vinita, OKRobert Anderson, Corrales, NM

Michael Bowman,Wray, COSam Brown, Austin, TX

Lee Dueringer, Scottsdale, AZGretel Ehrlich, Gaviota, CA

Cynthia & Leo Harris, Albuquerque, NMClint Josey, Dallas, TX

Doug McDaniel, Lostine, ORGuillermo Osuna, Coahuila, Mexico

Jim Parker, Montrose, COYork Schueller, El Segundo, CA

Africa Centre for Holistic ManagementPrivate Bag 5950, Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

Tel: (263) (11) 404 979; email: [email protected] Matanga, Director

HOLISTIC MANAGEMENT IN PRACTICE (ISSN: 1098-8157) is published six times a year by The Savory Center, 1010 Tijeras NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102, 505/842-5252, fax: 505/843-7900; email: [email protected].; website: www.holisticmanagement.org Copyright © 2005.

AD DEFINITUM FINEM

CENTER

The

(what next) for the completion of the feedbackloop. Control and replanning will be necessaryfrom time to time when monitoring showschange away from plan. When this occurs, clearguidelines need to be laid out with contingencyplans so that there will be no delay between earlywarning monitoring and early action to makeadjustments to ensure the holistic goal and desiredoutcome of the intent are achieved.

Vehicle Policy for Braklaagte Farm

For example, if we were to look at a vehiclepolicy for a farm to provide guidelines for thepurchase and management of vehicles, wewould want a policy in which vehicles are safe,affordable, require low maintenance and can bealso be used for recreation.

Our strategy to achieve this policy would beto select vehicles that are cost-effective—fuelmiles/gallons and servicing/miles; role effectiveand flexible—farming, capacity to carry load,firefighting, personal use for recreation; and safeand in good condition. Maintenance policieswould be that all vehicles are serviced every10,000 miles by an official agent to maintainwarranty; oil, water, tires to be checked at eachrefueling; and vehicles to be cleaned weekly.

Use policy would include: effective timemanagement is required to ensure that use ofvehicles is cost effective with high marginalreaction; each driver is responsible formaintenance of his vehicle; only licensed driversare allowed to use vehicles and for farm businessonly; no private use of vehicles is allowed by

staff at any time.Marketing the procedures would involve:

including people in the financial situation togenerate understanding for cost effectiveness andarranging basic training in maintenance, safety,driving, and licenses.

Early warning monitoring would include:logbooks and service books to be assessed bymanagement monthly; diesel tank to be dippedmonthly and usage reconciled by management;and quality checks to be arranged for weeklycleaning and maintenance.

The procedure for the ongoing feedbackloop for that policy would include: involving the individual who is responsible in theredevelopment of the plan and activity; revisitingthe whole policy every year in September; andintegrating the financial aspects of the vehiclepolicy with the financial planning monitoring.

Set the Course

To make progress toward your holistic goalyou need good guidelines for decision makingand sound policies. These guidelines are bestpresented in policies and strategies definingwhat to do and what not to do, or what ourfamily rules of engagement are or what ourpatterns of production are in our businesses.Some of these are written policies and others arethe unmentioned written and unwritten, andlargely misunderstood, policies or strategies oftradition and pattern.

Whatever the situation, a lot of positives willflow from having guidelines at all levels whichare written and clear cut, first of all, but, moreimportantly, sound. In other words, soundpolicies and strategies give clear guidelines fordecision-making that will be socially positive,while generating financial stability anddeveloping ecological health.

Most importantly, thinking through all themanagement areas and fleshing out the forms ofproduction will focus your mind and actions onmaking progress toward your holistic goal. Thiswill generate the creative tension and draw youinto thinking, scheming, and acting moreeffectively. The marginal reaction test and theHolistic Management® Financial Planningprocess will ensure that the right action will takeplace at the right time as you move forward. Allthis is a step in the right direction in terms ofleadership and management.

Dick Richardson is a Certified Educatorfrom Vryburg, South Africa. He can be reachedat: [email protected] or 27-53-927-4367.

Test the broad actions they suggest will achievethe desired intent.

Market the policy: In some situations you maynow need to take a look at how to market thispolicy successfully (ie. share with stakeholders).In other words you need to ensure that you willget the required buy in or support for the policy.This may well be a bigger step than you imagine,especially when the policy suggests actions thatare contrary to conventional thinking. A criticalcomponent here is the social weak link test. Becreative and brainstorm options that circumvent,clear up, or avoid human problems. When youhave selected the best ones, test each actionsuggested here and double check for conflictwith the intent. For example, using an advertisingcampaign that belittles one of the cultures wouldnot support the example used above.

Determine procedures: Before going into thisstep you’d probably need to take a break andallow time for the rough framework to becirculated and discussed publicly or by thoseaffected in a government or big businesssituation. In families or small businesses, a breakfor further thinking is good as well. This periodalso allows for ideas and thoughts aroundimplementation to come up.

You now need to brainstorm, as a team, finerdetails, ‘how to’ guidelines, procedures, strategies,and tactics for fleshing out the rough frameworkyou created.

If after testing and brainstorming all theoptions fail, then go back and brainstorm otheroptions. You may need to research other ideas(using the Holistic Management® model inresearch orientation mode). Such research isobviously a mammoth task and can take a while.In many situations it also requires lots of timefor circulation, allowing for input from a wideraudience. Such research is often not necessaryfor small business and family scenarios.

Marketing of procedures, actions and

activities: Once again marketing needs to beconsidered either step by step as part of othersteps or separately now. You are looking forfiner detail in your marketing strategy. Test allactions toward the holistic goal and for leadingtowards the desired outcome as stated in theintent of the policy.

Monitoring: Each action causes a reaction.What, where, who, when and how are yougoing to monitor to pickup early warningchange so that you can make adjustments assoon as possible to create the desired outcomeand move toward your holistic goal.

Control: The policy now needs clear guidelines

Number 102 * IN PRACTICE 3

PRODUCTIVITYPYRAMID

DAILYACTION

LIST

TARGETS{Intermediate)

OBJECTIVES(Long Range)

STRATEGY

POLICY

HOLISTIC GOAL(Qualify of Life, Forms of

Production, Future Resource Base)

The holistic goal influences policy, whichinfluences strategy, and so on up theproductivity pyramid, thus creating thenecessary alignment for effective managementfrom the big picture to the day-to-day action list.


It was during my own Certified Educatortraining that I came to realize the HolisticManagement® decision-making framework

was universally applicable, infinitely adaptable,and very simple. However, when I was firstfaced with the textbook, Holistic Management, Iwas quite frankly overwhelmed and spent agood part of my two years of studydetermining what aspects were the principles,what elements were the framework, and whatfeatures were the practices. I also wanted toaddress the comments I sometimes heard aboutwhat was, or was not, Holistic Management.

I regard the principles and the framework asthe unchangeable components of HolisticManagement, but the practices, I believe, evolveto suit the context within which it is beingpracticed. It seemed important to me that anyintroduction to Holistic Management shouldleave out all practices (as they changed), anyovert statement of the principles (as they were

Holistic Management in a Nutshellby Aspen Edge

Introduction

Behind every action we take, there is a decision. These decisions affect every aspect of life, often far from the site of the decision, for example, certain aerosol products used in the home contribute to ozone destruction. Every minute of our human history is made up of decisions and actions taken by individuals through to governments. It is these decisions that have brought us to where we stand today ... economic unpredictability, social instability and environmental degradation. We need to challenge the way in which we make decisions.

Our decisions tend to be focused on the achievement of a single aim and the discovery of a final solution. We generally do not include the broader vision that we have for our life, based on our personal values. We often do not consider the wider social, economic and environmental considerations on which our actions will impact. We rarely check to see whether our daily decisions are really contributing to the quality of life for which we would wish. We mostly deal with the symptoms rather than the causes of our life’s concerns. We are generally driven by our likes and dislikes. We are resistent to change and rarely monitor the impact of our decisions. However ....

holistic decisions enable us to create the quality of life to which we aspire whilst ensuring social, economic and

environmental sustainability

holistic decisions encourage us to be aware of our actions and their impact on the whole of life

holistic decisions ensure that we take responsibility and accept accountability for the decisions we make

holistic decisions empower us to be part of the ongoing process of change

potentially contentious), and concentrate onwhat I perceived to be the framework, whichdid not change regardless of the context inwhich it was used.

Simplify, Simplify

Although I live in a rural area of Spain, mycurrent market is among individuals and familiesliving in English-speaking urban environments.As Holistic Management was conceived anddeveloped within natural resource management,the details in The Savory Center’s materials areweighted in that area. Some of that detail (Iwould say practices) are not relevant to anurban dweller, such as grazing planning.

I also felt the introduction to HolisticManagement printed in a special edition of INPRACTICE contained too much detail for a firsttime enquirer from an urban background. Iwanted to produce a simple introduction thatwould be accessible to the average man or

woman in the street, to use words with whichthey were largely familiar, and to get themthinking across the social, economic andenvironmental board. Although thesafeguarding of our environment is essential toour survival as a species, I also wanted to giveweight to social and economic processes, whichare so inextricably bound up with our use ofnatural resources.

I realized that when we are familiar with abody of knowledge that it is very easy todescend into detail too soon. During the processof developing holistic decision-making in anutshell I had to keep clearly in the forefront ofmy mind the simplest representation of theframework. I had to ask myself what wasessential, and what was not, in an introductionto the subject. I wanted people’s response to be“that looks easy!” or “that’s common sense!” Idecided to opt for a three-part presentation ofthe holistic decision-making process:

Holistic Decision-Making in a Nutshellby Aspen Edge

Editor’s Note: The following is an excerpt from holistic decision-making in a nutshell.

Holistic decision making involves the use of a simple framework which enables us to:

t create definition to our life through determining direction and who and what will be involved

t ensure we have taken social, economic andenvironmental factors into consideration

t determine what action is to be takent create practices to manage our life and feed our

experiences back into the fine tuning of our way forward

Glossary

Before we move into a more detailed description of the holistic decision making framework, below are some of the terms that will be used, together with a brief explanation.

decision makersthese are all those people involved in making holistic decisions in the

area in which they exert influence

wholethis represents the interaction of all aspects of life in any identifiable

unit or community of relationships ... the smallest being a subatomic particle and the largest being all of life as we know it

whole under managementthis term is used to describe those who will be involved in making the

decisions and the area that the decision makers will be managing. It includes a definition of all the social,

economic and physical resources that the decision makerscan use in managing their whole under management. A whole could

be an individual or family home, an office, a department in an organisation, a whole organisation itself, even a government.

testing questionsa collection of challenging questions that test whether we have thoroughly considered the social, economic and environmental

implications of our decision, and that the proposed action will lead us towards the quality of life outlined in the mutually-agreed

holistic direction

To download the complete text in color go to The Savory Center’s website at www.holisticmanagement.org/nutshell.pdf.


They have found it easy to read and thoughtprovoking.

Throughout the development of the Nutshell,I referred to the original textbook to ensure that

I had left nothing of the essence of HolisticManagement out of my simplified rendition. Isent the Nutshell, together with mydevelopmental thinking, to Allan Savory to

ensure that I had not corrupted the essentials.His response was favorable as well, noting onepoint of concern: “The assets ... are not nearly asimportant as you might decide, as people oftendo, to sell or dispose of some as soon asdecisions are made holistically. I mention thisbecause I have observed people spending waytoo much time (and thus losing focus on theessential) trying to list all assets.”

Allan also went on to comment on my desireto differentiate between the principles, theframework and the practices, adding “I really likewhat you are doing—trying to come up with theessential skeletal structure that is not mutable asyou put it—trying to leave out in the firstinstance those aspects of detail that detract frompeople first grasping the profound simplicity ofthe decision-making framework. Your strugglewith this is coinciding with my own.”

The Nutshell is now undergoing “trials in thefield” to see if it is indeed living up to myexpectations of it!

Aspen Edge is a Certified Educator inGranada, Spain. She can be reached at: (0034)-958-347-053 or [email protected].

• what we needed to produce to createdefinition to our lives

• what aspects needed to be considered toensure sustainability

• what management practices needed to bedeveloped in order to keep us on track

I wanted to present this in a visual way aswell and so devised the dynamic arrow whichalso inferred a constant process throughdefinition, considerations and management. Iincluded simple paragraphs highlighting the wayin which we usually make decisions, howholistic decision-making was essential anddifferent, and what decision-makers might hopeto gain from using the process. I also addednew thinking in terms of the testing questions inthat I believe that the crucial aspect is that weinclude social, economic and environmentalconsiderations in our decision-making process,but that the current questions can be expandedto reflect further insights gained. I have giventhe Nutshell to friends, family and colleaguesand have had an overall favorable response.

Aspen Edge with husband, David, and son,Samuel.

create a mutually-agreed holistic direction that reflects all the decision makers values

Once we have determined who is to be involved in making the decisions, what whole we are managing and what resources we can use to manage that whole, we need to determine in what direction we need to be moving. If we do not determine where we are going, how will we work out how to get there or whether the actions we take are leading us in the right direction?

This involves the creation of a statement of the value-led quality of life to which the decision makers aspire, what needs to be done to create that quality of life and what the future needs to look like to sustain that quality of life. The holistic statement of direction includes social, economic and environmental values and represents a mutually-agreed focus for our personal lives.

Considerations to be Taken into Account

ensure that we have included social, economicand environmental considerations in our

decisions

As we are linking our own values with the social, economic and environmental health of the whole of which we are a part, we also need to consider the impact of our potential decisions on those aspects of life.

Social considerations would include geographical location, national history, culture, personal history, personal style, relationships, listening, responding, understanding, trust, co-operation and resolution. We need to ask ourselves whether the action we intend taking is going to enhance the health of the social elements of the whole we are managing.

Economic considerations would be the political climate, economic policies, income, expenses, profit, assets, savings, liabilities, resource conversion, product conversion and marketing. We need to ask ourselves whether the action we intend taking is going to enhance the health of the economic elements of the whole we are managing.

Environmental considerations would concern the likely impact of our decisions upon the healthy functioning of our planet’s key natural processes as determined through the soil’s ability to cycle water and nutrients, sustain diversity of species and generate plant life to cover bare ground. We need to ask ourselves whether the action we intend taking is going to enhance the health of the environmental elements of the whole we are managing.

conduct a final testing process to ensure we haveleft nothing out of our considerations

In order to ensure that these considerations have been taken into account and that any intended action reflects the values outlined in our holistic direction, we run our decisions through a final process using the following testing questions which ensure that we are:

t addressing the root cause of any problem rather than a symptom

t focusing our attention on the area which is slowing progress towards our holistic direction

t considering all the possible options available to ust making the decision that is going to provide the best

overall return of all the options availablet obtaining resources from sound sources t using those resources in sound wayst acting at the best possible timet ensuring that any action taken will be sustainablet satisfied that the action we propose taking also

sits well with our feeling or intuition about the matter

These questions are always applied within a social, economic and environmental context. As you develop your own experience you may want to add other testing questions of your own.

The Holistic Decision Making Framework in detail

Create Definition

ensure those who are involved in managing these resources are involved in the decision making process

If we are to have a real commitment to any decision, we need to feel that we are an equal partner in the decision making process ...that our concerns will be respected and taken into account, that we will be involved in the final outcome, that we will have responsibility and accountability for the final decision and that we are supported in this process by being part of a team.

define what area and what resources the decision makers will be managing

Before we can set about making decisions and taking action, we need to decide what our whole under management is (an individual or a family) and what social, economic and environmental resources the decision makers can draw on. All the decision makers are involved.

When the decision makers are clear what it is they are managing, then they identify what social resources (people, skills, knowledge, advice, schools, libraries) economic resources (money in the bank, loans, overdrafts) and physical resources (clean air, water, garden, land) they can draw on to manage the whole.


Ihate tracking receipts, balancing columns,etc. The structures that I had come up with to support my holistic financial

planning contained far too much of theseactivities for it to be workable for me. So I went back to a few of the basic principles forholistic financial planning and also looked at my quality of life statements in my holistic goal. In my quality of life statement I wrote: I am financially independent, and I experiencefreedom and power in the arena of money.

Well I can’t say that I am financiallyindependent yet, but I can say that I amexperiencing much greater freedom and power in the arena of money. Tracking receipts, etc. was not working or leading to that quality of life.

Money Management

I guess I let go of “doing it right” and askedmyself “Is this empowering me and leadingtoward my holistic goal?” And I looked for theprinciples in holistic financial planning that Iwanted to incorporate into my moneymanagement system. I love the principle of not letting your expenses rise to meet yourincome, as well as the planning your profit and taking that out first, but I needed a money management system that would work for me.

The other thing that made a big differencefor me was experimenting with variousstructures to find what works for this quirkypersonality of mine. So here’s a glimpse of what the system looks like at present. I havegone to a cash system. I get my check fromwork and go to the bank. I deposit money into my savings accounts—I now have four that support the various arenas of my life for which I am saving. I have a loan paymentsavings account, one for a vacation, etc. (I was a little embarrassed to open up so many accounts—but I got past that and put the bank to work for me. Just like in their commercials!)

Then I put money in my checking accountto cover my automatic withdrawals for certainbills, plus a little extra. (I planned all this out inadvance using the basic format of holistic

financial planning.) I then get an exact amountin cash. (I have it all broken down into howmany $50s I need and how many $20s.) I then take that home and put it into separatepouches that are part of my Daytimer/PalmPilot set up—it’s like a wallet in my Daytimer if you will.

I have a pouch for groceries. I put $50 aweek in there for that. I don’t keep receipts andwhen the money is gone, I eat what I have untilI get paid again. Sometimes at the end of amonth I have money left. Sometimes I run outand hope to get invited to dinner somewhere,

andsometimes it’sjust right. Butthe thing Ilike about thisis that I don’thave to trackanything!! (Ialso knowhow much Ihave to spendon groceries atany point intime). Believeit or not, forme, it’s lessstressful torun out of

food or cut it close at the end of the monththan it is to try and keep track of receipts,balance columns, and try to figure out howmuch money I have left in the third week ofthe month for groceries.

I have a pouch for education and one forplay. I like that one! I used to feel guilty forgoing to a movie or buying a book when I stillhad some debt. I had to justify it to myself. Now, if I have money for education and want a book, I enjoy buying it and reading it. And, I don’t keep track of the receipt. I have a pouchfor dining out. I have a pouch I keep in a safeplace at home that I call my “contingency”pouch. I put $200 a month in there (that’s whatI can afford after I pay down my debt.). Thismoney I save for emergencies, like car troubleand unexpected breakdowns. Now

this pouch is a little like a savingsaccount/emergency funding.

I like this pouch because of the way it isstructured/labeled. I don’t feel bad about usingit for emergencies and such. If I had that moneyin a “savings” and had to use it, then that would“feel” different taking it out and using it. It is likea savings account in that I am saving it andhave specific uses for it. When it reaches acertain level—beyond what I think I need foremergencies—then I’ll stop putting money intothis pouch and begin putting that money intodebt reduction.

What Works for You

The main point I want to communicate isthat I think it’s great to experiment with theprinciples of holistic financial planning anddifferent support or money managementstructures if what you are currently doing isn’tworking for you. The best system in the world—if you don’t use it—or it doesn’t work for youfor some reason—is possibly not the best systemin the world—for you.

I sooooo enjoy my system now. I feel muchmore freedom and power in relation to mymoney—and I’m paying down debt—and savingfor other arenas of my holistic goal. When Iwas trying to keep track of how much money Ihad spent, and I got to the grocery store andcouldn’t figure out what I had left to spend andthen had to keep the receipt and track that, Ifailed miserably in that approach. That systemmay have worked really well for someone else.It just demanded something of me that I wasunwilling to provide.

I expect my system may evolve some more over time, but for now I am feelingempowered by it. I can’t encourage enough the experimentation and continued efforts to find/develop/tailor your financialmanagement to fit you and your holistic goal and your quirks.

Lee Johnson is currently a trainee in TheSavory Center’s Certified Educator TrainingProgram and lives in Lenox, Massachusetts. Hecan be reached at: 413/298-3069 [email protected].

Tailoring Your Holistic Financial Planningby Lee Johnson

Lee Johnson played with the principles of holisticfinancial planning to createa financial practice that works for him.

Number 102 * Land & Livestock 7

Schreibers worked with BLM Range Conservationist Ray Sanchez to negotiatea Special Use Permit so they could graze 23 AUM for four months.

While some people might say, “What’s the point of all that work for sofew animals,” the Schreibers were gripped with a passion to improve theland under their care, especially after seeing the possibilities of reclamationin studying their Holistic Management materials. In fact, after writing theirholistic goal in April and working on the land into the summer, they were

so excited about ranching that they boughtDevil’s Spring Ranch in August 1999 when theowner decided to sell.

Decay & Degradation

Part of the Schreibers’ enthusiasm for theirwork came from their holistic goal andrecognizing how their ranching was meetingtheir desire to be involved in social programsthat helped others, work that allowed them tobe part of a solution. The Schreibers’ ranch isin the 4.6 million-acre (1.8 million-ha) San JuanBasin, located in the Four Corners region ofthe U.S., one of the richest deposits of naturalgas in the country. Currently there are 19,000wells in the New Mexico part of the San JuanBasin. In 2003, the BLM analyzed the impact of10,000 additional wells over the next 20 years,and 700 wells were approved in 2004. Each

well sits on an approximately 3-acre (1.2-ha) site, and about 20,000 miles(32,000 km) of roads and pipelines connect those wells.

In the 1940s, when El Paso Natural Gas first started developing the SanJuan Basin, they created community camps throughout the fields. These“towns,” with permanent housing, trees, streets, and fenced yards supported30-50 families and provided an interface with the existing ranching and ruralcommunities. As El Paso sold their interest to other companies, these campswere abandoned and people had to relocate to cities like Farmington andcommute to their work for these oil companies. Ranching had already beenreduced as a source of employment as land degradation worsened withcontinuous grazing practices. Likewise, the well pads and roads were an

In 1998 Don and Jane Schreiber were preparing for retirement (Donfrom insurance and Jane from teaching) in Farmington, New Mexicowhere they built their retirement home complete with horse corrals,

fishing pond, and airstrip. They planned to become more involved inpolitics, travel, and volunteer work.

But one fateful day in late fall, Don went out with an insurancecustomer to his new ranch, The Devil’sSpring Ranch, and found out the manneeded someone to manage the Bureauof Land Management (BLM) grazing lease.Don agreed to take it on before evenchecking with Jane, or really eventhinking about the decision since he hadnever ranched before. Upon hearing ofDon’s decision, Jane was willing tocooperate, knowing that horses would be part of the deal. Thus began theSchreibers’ odyssey into ranching.

Emergency Research

The BLM lease was set to begin inApril 1999. The Schreibers knew they hadto do a lot of learning quickly to preparefor that event. So in the winter of 1999they set out for a local stock show andran into Certified Educator Cindy Dvergsten. She told them about HolisticManagement, and they began their home course study as soon as theyreturned home and ordered all The Savory Center’s educational materialsby Federal Express.

The Schreibers didn’t stop there. They next called Certified Educator JimHowell to get some help with their grazing plan. Through a series of emails,Jim gave them some pointers on how to determine stocking rate and recoveryperiods. Their allotment was less than 3,000 acres (1,200 ha), and the ranchitself was 465 acres (186 ha) with an average of 10-inch (250-mm) rainfall.However, more of the land was vertical than an approximation of horizontalwith many canyons and mesas. The allotment allowed for 7 animal unitmonths (AUM). Realizing that they needed to increase the stock density, the

Devil’s Spring Ranch—Partnering with Oil Companiesby Ann Adams

Don Schreiber had quite a schooling in learning how torun cattle in canyon country when he took over aBureau of Land Management allotment lease. HolisticManagement helped him make the transistion.

&L I V E S T O C K &

continued on page 8

ongoing source of erosion since 99 percent of the roads were below gradeand effectively developed into arroyos that increased the volume and speedof water leaving the land.

The Weed Lady

The Schreibers began to see a way of improving the land and the abilityto make a living from it as their new vocation. The first volunteer to helpthem in their efforts was knapweed. Some pads were covered with it, andthe oil company’s (Burlington Resources) approach was to blade the siteand spray herbicides.

This approach wasn’t working, and since Devil’s Spring was downhillfrom most of the knapweed locations, they stood a good chance of gettingmore seed head and lots of erosion. So Jane took on Burlington Resourcesinsisting that they needed to improve their response to the weed problemthey were exacerbating from their actions. Jane became known to theworkers sent out to respond to the complaints as “the noxious weed lady.”She wasn’t sure if noxious referred to the weeds or to her.

Burlington Resources’ response to Jane’s persistent efforts to holdBurlington accountable was to hire her to monitor the knapweed and get herlicensed so she could spot spray it. The Schreibers knew this was an interimstep that would help reduce the erosion because with this solution only theknapweed was being killed instead of a whole site being leveled with moreerosion to follow. This opportunity to work with Burlington also gave themmore potential for engaging with Burlington for a positive relationship.

A Common Language

The chance of that new relationship came in 2002. Don came to TheSavory Center to visit with Executive Director Shannon Horst and ProjectManager Craig Leggett to see about the possibility of applying with TheSavory Center for an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Water Qualitygrant that would focus on using livestock as a means for rehabilitating thewell locations. The emphasis of this grant was that while federal reclamationpolicy requires that certain reclamation activities be undertaken by oil andgas producers, it does not require that a reclaimed state be achieved.

The Schreibers’ project was to actually achieve a reclaimed state andreduce sediment in the Encierro Canyon drainage that fed into the San JuanRiver. The project was ambitious, yet BLM and Burlington Resources puttheir name to the project. When the EPA didn’t fund the proposal, Donapproached Steve Henke, Manager of the Farmington District BLM, abouthelping the Schreibers team up with Burlington Resources and the BLM andfinding resources to fund a pilot project of a similar nature. Through thatfunding, Burlington would be relieved of their regular reclamation work forthose well locations.

At first Burlington wasn’t too excited because the reclamation workwould cost significantly more from their typical scrape and spray treatmentthat cost them only $150 per location. But John Zent, General Manager,Compliance, for Burlington, who had been involved in the EPA proposal,was willing to listen when Henke called, and Zent got the go ahead forBurlington’s participation in the pilot project.

The common language among all parties was that the work on thesewell locations must be a holistic rehabilitation utilizing a HolisticManagement approach with holistic planned grazing. In the fall of 2003,

Burlington agreed to fund thereclamation of six new wellsand six old wells. Burlingtonwould pay for fencing, time,and materials, and the BLMwould supervise the processto insure that the impact ofthe stocking rate, type of feed,fencing, duration and timingof grazing would be confinedto the specified well locations.

The idea was to fence thetwo-acre (.8-ha) area aroundthe one-acre (.4-ha) locationwhere the well actually was.The fencing would be done insuch a manner that workerseasily had access to the well.The Schreibers would fence theexclosure with woven wire and then fence the enclosure with barbed wire.They would then run 30 head of cattle for two weeks on the enclosure,feeding them a ton of feed hay a day. The Schreibers also could delegate toBurlington the clean up of the pads which were often littered with brokenconcrete pads, spools of wire, abandoned equipment, and unlined pits. Lastly,Burlington would improve the roads by building them up above grade tomake the site accessible for feed and water trucks and to reduce erosion.

In the process of negotiating this project, the Schreibers also approachedthe pipeline company, Williams Field Service, to see how they couldmitigate the effect of pipeline laying and maintenance. Again, with BLMhelp, they convinced Williams to reduce pipeline disturbance from the 40feet (12 meters) they are allowed, to the 12 feet (3.6 meters) that was reallyneeded. They reduced the negative impact on the land by operating theirmachinery from the road bed rather than on the pipeline easement, andthey placed slash in arroyos to reduce erosion rather than chipping it andspreading it on the ground. In return, the Schreibers took on thereclamation liability for the next five years and will use their livestock forreclamation work along the pipeline easements as well.

While the BLM has not completed the first round of monitoring , theSchreibers have already noticed improvement in the well locations theyhave worked including a reduction of rank vegetation, a dramatic increasein litter, an increase in new grass seedlings and four-wing saltbush, and arounding of steep drop offs on the pad. Likewise, the project has giventhem opportunity to collaborate with their neighbor, Joe Sanchez. With hisextensive knowledge of ranching and willingness to help, Mr. Sanchez hasbecome an invaluable member of the team and a friend.

In Don and Jane’s holistic goal, the Schreibers write: We want “to beengaged in environmentally redeeming actions… to know that we are indeedmaking the world a better place for all children… to daily aspire to the Navajostate of ‘horzo’—‘… a blend of being in harmony with the environment, atpeace with one’s circumstances, content with the day, free from anxieties.” AsDon and Jane use their human creativity to collaborate with the BLM andBurlington Resources to create the results they can all feel proud of, theymust surely feel like they are moving toward the quality of life they desire.

Don and Jane Schreiber can be reached at: 505/320-0032 [email protected].

8 Land & Livestock * Ju l y / Augus t 2005

Jane Schreiber (aka The NoxiousWeed Lady) has worked extensivelywith Burlington Resources to reducethe erosion caused from oil roads.

Devil’s Spring Ranch continued from page 7


In the Mouth of the Tiger—Practicing Holistic Management on the Edgeby George Whitten

Editor’s Note: The following article explains how George Whitten becameinvolved in collaborating with The Savory Center on a revegetationcontract for the New Mexico State Land Office, using animal impact asthe key revegetation tool, on an area of state land that had been heavilydisturbed as a proving ground by the military. The Savory Center isextremely appreciative of all George’s work and his enthusiasm andpassion to learn.

This article is about our journey from the San Luis Valley ofColorado to La Semilla, New Mexico and back, and back again.

It’s about paying attention and patienceIt’s a journey through collaboration,

heartache, and joy, of new discovery andre-discovery. It’s about practicing HolisticManagement in the mouth of the tiger andlearning what can happen when peopleplan to do something and monitor theirprogress, control their actions accordingly,and replan.

From the collaborations that evolvedduring this journey have come the kind offriendships that last a lifetime, connectionswith people and organizations that willtake us all farther than we ever dreamedwe might go. For me, it is themanifestation of a string of dreamsbeginning almost as far back as I canremember.

Desperation to Opportunity

Imagine picking up your entire cattle herd and taking it to a placewhere you’re dependent on a government agency, a large developer, and abusy non-profit. Position yourself next to an international airport, an activemilitary proving ground, and an Indian reservation. Oh, and by the way,don’t forget—on the other side of the fence are approximately 500,000people. Add the worst drought in several hundred years, the lowest cattleprices in a long time, and you’ve got the makings for a good ole’ time.

When you add two negatives you get a positive, and sometimes whenyou add lots of negatives you really get a big positive. That is how I woulddescribe this journey.

The drought of 2000-2001 was devastating for us. We had managed toget by on the strength of our land for the dry years prior to that time, butwhen we went from less than five inches (125 mm) of precipitation for theyear, to half that, the handwriting was on the wall; something drasticneeded to be done. I look back on that time as the point when thingsstarted to get better.

I am a rancher, a man of the land, a sheep camp kid. That is all I reallyknow how to do. I can busy myself with peripheral things like accountingand computer literacy, but in my core it comes back to the land. It’s in my

guts and in my blood. That is why coming to La Semilla was the perfectthing for me to do, even though I didn’t know it at the time.

The spring of 2003 I knew it was time to replan, and so I went to theonly place I felt might help us move toward our holistic goal: The SavoryCenter. This is where I feel most grounded. I hoped that perhaps I couldfurther educate myself and develop opportunities that would enable me tocontinue working on the land. And as it turned out, I could take my cowsto school with me—quite the field trip.

My initial visit was to explore the options for training, but my interestwas really piqued when Shannon Horst mentioned she had just leased12,000 acres (4,800 ha) of land right next to Albuquerque and did I know

anyone who had some cows? “Uh,let’s see…”

La Semilla (The Seed) and MesaDel Sol (Island in the Sun) areseparated only by ownership. Theyare situated just south ofAlbuquerque, New Mexico, east ofKirtland Air Force Base, and northof the Isleta Pueblo. It is piece ofground that has attracted dreamersfor many hundreds of years, notso much by its beauty, but by itslocation. It is middle ground, landbetween mountains and river. Thekind of place you wind up whenyou are on the way somewhereand never quite make it. It is

composed of sand and clay, sage and grass, gentle slope and dry playa (lakebeds), with water a scarce commodity. It is the sort of place that on firstinspection people tend to forget as they pass. It also will seep into yourbones if you stay a little while.

Of Bombs and Turtles

On my first trip across the flat land and down to the revegetation site Ihave to tell you I had some doubts. Like home, it had not rained or snowedon this piece of land in years. Craig Leggett, who was project manager withThe Savory Center, took me down, and we chatted as we drove along thetwo-track road. It leads, like an arrow, to the old windmill that is theheadstone of the McCormick Ranch, the historic site of earlier dreamerswho were here from the early 1900s through the 1940s. We stopped andlooked at the plants, some of which I didn’t know, and discussed thedrought.

Craig then took me down to the revegetation site, where the cattle wereto be fed. It was a piece of land that Kirtland Air Force Base had used fortesting through the 1960s and 1970s. As a dust devil danced through bombcraters and down roads to nowhere, I noticed an odd formation of four-wing saltbush, lined up like soldiers, stretching off into the distance. Thispattern was the result of the mechanical revegetation done some years

Using hay to create high stock density and herd effect, GeorgeWhitten was able to kick start some biological activity on therevegetation site. In Transect #2, soil cover was increased by almost 400 percent in a two-year period.

back. Four-wing was the only thing that established on these heavilydisturbed soils at that time.

The pounding rotors of military helicopters, practicing for desert missionsin Iraq, made conversation impossible as heat waves rose from bare cappedsoil. The shock ofthe first explosioncame as a surpriseto me, but Craig,now used to suchactivity, justchuckled and said“Oh yeah, I forgotto tell you aboutthe bomb testingthey do every day.”Things lookedbetter back home.

We hoppedback into Craig’struck and headedwest off of the LaSemilla land on tothe adjoining landcalled Mesa delSol. As the landrose gently toward the ridge that breaks down to the river, I began to getmore interested. In a short time we broke out onto a sea of gamma andgalleta and sandropseed that had not seen a cow in several years. The Isletareservation lands, just across the fence to the south, were denuded of grass,and the sage was grazed down to about six inches (150 mm) high. On theMesa del Sol side, the plants had two years of old growth; and while theywere sparse, they looked good to me. They certainly needed grazing toremove some of the old material.

Craig suddenly stopped and jumped out and walked to the front of thetruck. I got out to look, and there in the track was a box turtle walking atits own pace toward the west. I looked at its tracks and followed them backto the wheel of the truck. Good thing Craig was paying more attention thanI was. He carefully picked the little fellow up and placed him to the side.“By the way, we are responsible for the wildlife out here too,” he said. I wasgetting hooked by now.

We drove for several more miles and came to an old set of corrals. “Thisis where the well is, and we might use these as a temporary facility,” hesaid. The last people here were not stewards in any way. There was notone fence that was up. Years of broken ropes, whips and bad tempers hadtaken their toll. It was pretty bleak, but something about that turtle andthose grass plants had begun to seep into my soul. This place, like us,needed a chance. I said, ok, we should sit down and talk.

Water Challenges

The job, as it turned out, was fairly simple: Get the land ready for rain.We would use the cattle to break up the capped soil as we fed them, createlitter, fence behind them in such a way as to allow the land to recover, andhope for rain. We did transects on three sites inside the revegetation areaand one outside in the “untreated” land. Land Renewal Inc., a subsidiary ofThe Savory Center, contracted with the New Mexico State Land Office, whofunded the project, and we began.

We arrived in June with about 120 cow/calf pairs and started to grazenear the corral where water was reliable. Craig and Lee Johnson, an internwith the Center, had done an enormous amount of work on the corrals andwater tanks, so we had a chance to make it work without too much risk.

They had also purchased a used water truck that couldhold 2,000 gallons (7,600 liters) for a backup water supply.We spent the next week running 1.25-inch (31.25 mm)black plastic pipe for two and a half miles (4 km) to therevegetation site, hooking up a tank we moved to the site,and building an electric fence around the whole thing tocontrol the cattle once they got there. Everything was


There wasn’t much to work with on the revegetation site monitored in Transect #2, although it had been“revegetated” once conventionally years ago. Baselinemonitoring began in September 2003 (top left), andsubsequent monitoring and photo point in April 2004(right), and March 2005 (far right) demonstratedincreased land productivity and health.

ready; we had covered every detail. We’d thought of everything. Easy as pie.We moved the cattle onto the site.

When I stuck my hand into the water tank, I almost scalded it. Thecattle couldn’t drink this water—it came down the black plastic line in 107degree F (42 C) temperature. During the trek, the water heated up to 145 F(63 C) and came into the tank at that temperature. Time to replan. I startedthinking about my meadow back home again.

Then we realized we had a possible solution—the water truck waspainted white. We put the water line into the truck and attached a float toit. We then attached another water line from the water truck to the tank.By next morning we had 2000 gallons of cool water that came into thetruck overnight and by midday the cattle were happily drinking. They justneeded to learn to take tea in the afternoon as Allan Savory said.

Do No Harm

The feeding process was fairly simple. Lee, Craig, my wife, Julie, and Ifed approximately 28 lbs (12.5 kg) per head of a mix of 75 percent oat hayand 25 percent alfalfa per day on the bare capped soil. This created a stockdensity of around 245 animals per acre (98/ha) for two to three hours. Eachday we moved the portable fence toward the water tank, fencing off therecently treated ground. This worked well with a minimal amount of extralabor, and achieved our goal of breaking the capping and adding biomass(i.e. hay, dung, urine and heavy litter). It also prevented excessive trampling,which causes compaction.

We once again hoped we had everything figured out. There were,however, two forces at work here, which we hadn’t considered at theoutset—one was biological; the other was logistical. First, the herd wasgrowing in mass as the calves were gaining weight every day. Secondly, the“untreated” area in which the herd could roam was shrinking. This caused abuildup of manure that they could not leave behind, as they normallywould do. We were, in essence, creating a feedlot. We began to notice quite

contact and not transfer into the dung beetle and other insect populations,and we decided to give it a try. We placed six panels around the water tankwith two three-foot (one-meter) openings so the cattle would have to brushunder the bags both going in and coming out of the water tank. The dustcontrolled the flies in several days, and we were back on track.

We finished this first phase of the revegetation project in October 2003.We shipped the steers to the sale from the site, and they weighed a littleover 500 lbs (225 kg)—just about right for these cattle. We preg checked inNovember and came up with a 97 percent conception rate.

The second phase of the project was a repeat of the first phase, runningthis time in the winter months for six weeks from the beginning ofFebruary through March 2004. Lee Johnson handled this part of the projectquite ably with humor and hard work, assisted by Shannon Horst and KellyPasztor. The cattle came back home to Colorado April 1, 2004 to calve andspend the summer on the range in the mountains.

The Journey Continues

We did transects in June of 2004 after about one and one half inches(37.5 mm) of rain, and the results were very encouraging as you can seefrom the accompanying tables selected from our monitoring data. The sitewas rested through the growing season, and the cattle returned to Mesa DelSol in December of 2004. We redid the transects in March of 2005. Inconferring with Shaun Knox, the biologist with the State Land Office, wedecided to retreat the area in early March due to the possibility ofdisturbing ground nesting birds later in the season.

We began retreating the site by feeding 3 lb (1.35 kg) of alfalfa per headper day on the recent capping and using the forage on site as the major


The following tables offer some insight into theland’s response to the revegatation treatment at LaSemilla. Transects #1 and #2 were previously

heavily disturbed sites on which the cattle were fed in theproportions mentioned in the article. Transect #3 was apreviously undisturbed site, but in which George laiddown no feed and the plants were subjected to continuousgrazing and heavy impact. Transect #4 was the control areaon which there was very light grazing.

The 2005 monitoring was done earlier in the year thanthe other monitoring because a report was due to the NewMexico State Land Office. For that reason, some of theresults may have been skewed due to plants and bugs stillin dormancy.

Likewise, in Transect #3 the perennial plant spacinggrew because prior to the treatment most of the perennials(black gamma) were dead and dying. After the treatment,they became litter so more ground was covered with litterbut the living perennials were all that remained making theperennial spacing further apart. The plant transition in themonitoring showed the transition from a higher percentagedecadent and dying to more normal age ratio.

a few horn flies on the cattle. One morning when we arrived to feed, theywere so thick on the truck that I had to turn on the windshield wipers tosee where we were going! Time to replan.

As the owner of the cattle, I just wanted to kill the flies (even though Iknew better), and Craig and I sat down and began to research options. Wecontacted the etymology lab in Durango, Colorado to see about a biologicalcontrol for the fly larvae. They had the answer in an imported wasp thatwould attack the larvae and in a few days the problem would be solved.The only problem was the wasp also killed many dung beetle larvae.

The next option was to abandon the feeding process and move the cattleout to open range where they could outwalk the fly larvae before they

hatched. That meant abandoning the project until winter. We thought weshould further research chemicals before we abandoned the entire project.Finally, we found a chemical dust bag product that would kill the flies on

Selected Monitoring Data for La Semilla Transects

Transect Bare Ground %

2003 2004 2005

Transect #1 75 73 40



Transect #4control 63 NA 52

Overall, George found the land’s response amazing as he watched the evolution. Ofparticular interest to him was noting that all dung had been incorporated in the soil byinsects and microbes, evidence that the mineral cycle was functioning more effectively.

Transect Signs of Insect

2003 2004 2005

Transect #1 27 88 8

Transect #2 0 33 0

Transect #3 13 37 0

Transect#4 control 5 NA 10

Transect Distance to nearestperennial (in)

2003 2004 2005

Transect #1 17.56 5 7.6


Transect #3 2.7 4 5.1

Transect#4 control 2.4 NA 3.2

Transect Covered Soil Percentage

2003 2004 2005




Transect#4 control 34 NA 42

continued on page 12

feed source. This treatment only lasted 12 days, and the cattle were movedon to Mesa Del Sol where they will calve and go back to Colorado in June. Iexamined the site again in mid April 2005 and determined that due to wetsoil conditions during the last treatment, we had a thick cap and hadactually hardened some of the soils in the process.

We have learned that when it is wet it is better to feed on the land thathas not been severely disturbed. Areas where substrata clays have beenincorporated are prone to this heavy capping if trampled in wet condition.From similar work with my land in Colorado over a period of years, I amalso learning that adding litter and biomass to the soil makes a much-improved habitat for seedlings and insects. But this isn’t all there is to it.

Heavy clay soils have a high potential for severe recapping whichresults in insufficient biological activity to facilitate rapid decomposition ofthe biomass within three years. We intend to learn more about thisphenomenon and how to deal with it in the next phase of our journey. Iwould like to try some compost teas or something along that line.

The Savory Center and Shannon Horst have been our mentors andsupport throughout the project. We all learned a lot about HolisticManagement and ourselves along the way.

The data that we gathered over the last three years will be our guide intothe future. It tells us many things about our past management and what todo next. The process is ongoing, and the land will not heal long term with aone shot approach. The New Mexico State Land Office has shown a greatdeal of support through their cooperation, commitment, and dedicated staff:Dana Vacker Strang, Environmental Specialist Field Operations; David Eck,

State Archeologist; and Shaun Knox, Biologist. They are even working withus to help us obtain organic certification for the area.

We’ve also begun involving the local community in this most recentphase of the project, working with local volunteers, Charlie Jacobi, RobertKaiser, and Jerry Ragel, on site. Likewise we have involved our interns inthis project including Nathaniel Holmes, our graduate student intern fromthe Audubon Expedition Institute at Lesley University’s Masters in Sciencein Environmental Education program, for which Julie teaches, and JasonSchmidt, an intern with the Mennonite Volunteer Service. Phil Kiep, anintern from Yale University will be joining us this summer, and we have awaiting list of interns from a number of different colleges. We’d love to takeon more of these folks, but currently are limited in our ability to housethem either in New Mexico or Colorado.

Sometimes it seems futile to try and save a few box turtles or give somegrass seedlings a chance when there are bombs going off and helicopterspracticing for war above us, or the sound of the interstate highwayscreaming with traffic and knowing bulldozers are waiting to develop someof this land, but that is what practicing in the mouth of the tiger is about.The tiger’s mouth is hardship, challenge, and the fact that things aren’tperfect. Practicing means staying true to your values; it is applying yourselfwith good will, insight, humor and a willingness to be wrong and to learn.Practicing in the tiger’s mouth is contemplation and action, reflection andresponse. It is a journey; it is collaboration; it is about succession. We arecommitted to those things and this forgotten piece of land.

George Whitten ranches in the San Luis Valley of southern Coloradowhen he’s not cavorting with his cattle outside of Albuquerque, NewMexico. He and his wife, Julie, can be reached at: 719/655-2003 [email protected].


Pasture Walk Healthby Wayne Burleson

Editor’s Note: Certified Educator WayneBurleson is known for his “pasture walking”workshops. He has graciously agreed to share theeducational materials he has used to help peoplesee the results of management practices and toexplore possible causes of what they see on theground. Wayne makes monitoring quick andeasy so more people will monitor theirmanagement results.

Pasture Walk Health Guide

Instructions: 1) Walk areas. 2) Determine whichphases are occurring; mark problem & healthyareas, and determine causes. 3) Fine-tune orchange management. Optional: Dig or cut plantsto help make comparisons of phases. Establish re-locateable close-up photos of plants & soil anddistant photo points. Complete Pasture Walkingfor Solutions questions.

Wayne Burleson lives in Absarokee,Montana and can be reached at: 406/328-6808or www.PastureManagement.com

Plant AppearanceShorter, stemmy, old lookingLight green and gray leavesNarrow and/or wide leavesStandard or thin stems

Litter:Old gray-colored litter

standing or mattedLitter oxidizing into the air

Soil appearance:Soils low/high organic matterSoils cappedPoor mineral cycle

Plant Production:Old aged and dying plantsHigh & low productionHigh quantity of forageLow quality of forage

Causes:No disturbances occurringNo grazing occurringToo much restLacks grazing

Results:Losing or wasting resourcesNo profits

Plant AppearanceVery tall lush lookingDark green leavesHealthy wide thick leavesVertical leaf growth

Litter:High amount of litter leftLitter cycling into the soilsHigh organic matter in soils

Soil appearance:Soils high in organic matterVery good mineral cycle

Plant Production:Healthy plantsHigh productionHigh quantity of forageHigh quality of forage

Causes:Regenerative disturbanceshealthy grazing managmentAdequate full rest/recovery Regenerative grazing

Results:Regenerating resourcesHigher profits

Plant AppearanceVery short flattened-out lookYellow or light green leavesNarrow shorter leavesThin shorter stems

Litter:No standing litterVery little amounts of litter

on the soil surface

Soil appearance:Soils low in organic matterPoor mineral cycle

Plant Production:Short, weak and dying plantsLow productionLow quantity of forageHigh quality of forage

Causes:Too many disturbances(selective & repetitive)Overgrazing of plantsLacks adequate rest periodsDestructive grazing

Results:Losing resourcesLowering profits

PHASE I = Stressed PHASE II = Healthy PHASE III = Idle

In the Mouth of the Tiger continued from page 11


2nd. Write out what you want this land to looklike long-range.

STATE the FUTURE LANDSCAPE DESCRIPTION

4th. A. Name any problems orconcerns found.

THE PROBLEMS or CONCERNS

5th. Brainstorm and list some goodsolutions thataddress the cause(s) of theproblems.

LIST several GOOD IDEAS

1st. Determine themost importantpurpose of the land you are about to walk.

NAME the MAIN PURPOSE and LIST OTHERS

3rd. Where are theindividual plantsand soils you arelooking at on theSlippery Slope.

THE CURRENT PLANT & LAND HEALTH CONDITIONS

4th. B. Become adetective andsearch for the realcause(s) of anyfound problems.

CAUSE(S)

6th. Test the best solution for the “WHOLE” SITUATION using the testing guidelines. (Use other people to help you)

NAME THE BEST SOLUTION

7th. WHO IS RESPONSIBLE? Name theperson that is going to make the neededchanges and monitor the effects of thischange.

Pasture Walking for Solutionsby Wayne Burleson

WHO (name)

__________________________

WHAT

__________________________

By WHEN

______________________(date)

Report back to WHOM

__________________________

1.

2.

3.

4. Think both short- and long-term

Phase I, II or III or combination of phases

Place an arrow on the Slippery Slope and state the location of this condition.


process of learning to balance, put one foot infront of the other? None of us remembers whatthis learning experience was like, but most of ushave had the pleasure of watching a toddler gothrough it. There is spontaneity to the effort. Theopen learning environment here provides thateach potential step is laden with curiosity, justenough fear to make it exciting, and, more often,

with laughter and a feeling of accomplishment. And think about the support and

encouragement the toddler receives from thoseoutside his effort. This support is often critical toaccepting change and moving forward with newlearning. This type of experience is what ismeant by an “open learning environment.”

When I first went into teaching, this was theexperience I wanted to provide for my students,the joy and awe of discovery, a curiosity abouteverything, and fearless spontaneity. I wasdetermined to provide each child with one openlearning experience after another. But this wasnot what I was able to create, and I found ithard to figure out what was missing.

The majority of us went from being that tinytot learning to walk with heaps of praise andencouragement, to sitting on our bum and

The following is an excerpt from a speech KellyPasztor, The Savory Center’s Director ofEducational Services, delivered at theAustralian Conference at Armidale, New SouthWales in April 2005.

Iwas educated and trained as a teacher so theprocess of learning is near and dear to me. But, I must tell you that it wasn’t through

university that I found out what I now knowabout learning, and it wasn’t in a classroom that I discovered learning’s connection to my overallwell-being. It has been through my personalpractice of Holistic Management, a framework fordecision making, that I have learned to valuechange, what it contributes to the learning process,and to see the often complex and un-seeableconnections between people, land, and money.

It is through my developing anunderstanding of this framework that I ambecoming ever better at seeing the connectionsbetween the decisions I make, the land I live on,and the money available to manage the two.And it is in my day to day sharing of thisdecision-making framework with others that myunderstanding and practice continue to grow,and I live a more and more meaningful life.

The Process of Learning

Martina Horner, President of Radcliffe College,noted, “What is important is to keep learning, toenjoy challenge, and to tolerate ambiguity. In theend, there are no certain answers.” This quotespeaks to me of what I have experienced in mywork as an educator, my life as a farmer, and theinteresting environment in which we chose toraise our three children where they resided on 10 acres along with their grandparents, severalaunts and uncles, and numerous cousins in acommunity we call El Nido.

I know I am not the first to have thisrealization, but one of my most excitingdiscoveries is that it’s really all about process andnot destination. Life itself is a process as we neveractually “arrive.” And the process of change andthe process of learning are what make theprocess of living worthwhile and meaningful.

Do you remember learning to walk? Do youremember how many times you fell during the

having someone talk at us and tell us what weneed to learn and why it was important,although the relevancy to our own life alwaysseemed to be missing somehow. The learningenvironment became “closed.”

I was most fortunate in that much of myMasters program was centered on creating openlearning environments for students, and I hadtruly taken this task to heart. When I beganteaching, I was determined not to create a closedlearning environment. For many years I putincredible thought, energy and my own moneyinto my role as a public school teacher. I dideverything I could to change the environmentmy students were in, in an effort to allow for apositive learning experience.

I sponge painted the walls, I made creativebulletin boards, and I pasted posters and cleversayings on the ceiling and walls and more. Ispent hours developing activities that I hopedwould get them excited about Shakespeare, theparts of speech, the history of their nation, andwriting term papers. But to no avail. They stillwere not entirely engaged in the actual processof learning. For the most part it was a lot ofinformation with little or no understanding ofwhy that information should be meaningful tothem. And in truth, none of it was ever movingthem toward creating the life they wanted tolive. There was, sadly, no feeling of ownership,and everything was still dictated or contrived.

The Power of Paradigms

The problem was my paradigms weredictating the how, what, where, when and whyof my teaching. No one can learn for someoneelse. It is personal. It is powerful, and I believemore than anything else, it is essential to living afull life. It was my former beliefs about learningand education that were preventing me fromtruly providing my students with something thatwould change their lives.

It’s important to note, these paradigms aboutteaching and education were also keeping mypersonal progress as a teacher at a standstill.With my very best of intentions, my excellentconventional training and education, andextremely strong human will, I was determinedto move a failing educational system forwardinstead of figuring out what was missing for me.

Putting It Together

As my family and I began to use holisticdecision-making in our day to day decisions, Ibegan to realize the infinite possibilities availableto me. And it wasn’t much more than 18 months

On-Going Learning—Producing Health & Well-Being

Kelly Pasztor sharing her experiences withongoing learning.


following this realization that a workopportunity presented itself to me. The newposition would allow me to use far more of myskills and abilities and educational knowledgethan working for the school district.

On the home front, things were becomingconsiderably different. We were learning to takedecisions in a different way than we had beenbefore. Everything we were doing was toward adefined outcome. As a family, we had describedwhat we wanted our lives both individually andcollectively to be, and we were getting more andmore clear about what we would need to do orput in place to live such a life.

We were also becoming more keenly awareof what the land and community around uswould have to look like if we were going to livethe life we wanted for any length of time. Wemade decisions such as finding an alternativepublic school program for our children thatallowed for both time in a classroom setting withother kids of all ages, but also included homeschooling and time with parents, grandparents,and other adult mentors.

Each of our decisions, such as gettinginvolved in an extra-curricular activity, wasevaluated toward the life we’d described, andwhether doing that activity was going to movethat person, and anyone else involved, toward or away from living life the way it should be. I realized that closed learning was no longersomething we were experiencing at El Nido, andI began to experiment with ways to bring thisnew way of taking decisions into the lives of my students.

More and more, as I worked to integrate an understanding of this decision-makingframework into a humanities curriculum for my students, I began to realize the infinitepossibilities available to me. When the newwork opportunity arose, I realized I now had themeans for evaluating its potential, and whetheror not it was right for me.

For example, leaving my position would meanloss of tenure with the school district. I could nolonger contribute to the established retirementfund and would have to eventually move thismoney. And all the benefits of life and healthinsurance would no longer exist. If all I looked atwas the financial ramifications of this decision, Iwould never have put in my resignation.

What I was able to see through the new wayof making decisions I was learning was that thenew position would allow me to use far more of my skills and abilities and educationalknowledge than working for the school district.

And our family’s new way of managing moneyand looking at our financial decisions allowed usto reorganize my income and contribution toinvestments so that it far exceeded what was inplace before. At the same time we were able toincrease my husband’s benefits to include me.

There is perhaps nothing more difficult forhuman beings than change. We would moreoften prefer to be miserable than put forth theenergy to figure out what and/or how to dosomething differently. Most likely this is becausewe’re afraid; but I so much enjoy the profoundtruth to one definition of insanity: someonecontinuing to do something the same old waywhile expecting different results.

At El Nido we were discovering that changeis vital to creating the life we want to live bothfrom an individual and a collective perspective.And we found that holistic decision-making gaveus the necessary lens from which to view all theinformation about all the possibilities available tous. It provided a means for altering our beliefsand making us more open minded and aware ofwhat was possible. It allowed for everyone tofully engage in the actual practice of holisticdecision-making as it relates to the running of afamily and a farm. The kids felt more autonomyand independence and made wiser decisions asthey were less self-centered and more creative.

On the whole, we all became morethoughtful and felt more knowledgeable as wewent about our daily activities. What wasexciting was seeing the evidence as we paid offeverything but our home mortgage, producedenough food for ourselves so our grocery budgetfor five was a mere $125 a month, and took afamily vacation without creating any debt.

The Process of Learning

What I was discovering was that learning is a four-way process. This process includes“information” as only the starting point. What isnecessary for information to have meaning is“understanding,” and specifically to understandhow that information relates to you and yourlife, directly or indirectly. But understanding

doesn’t just happen. What we need to add to theprocess of learning is “practice.” Practice is theaction part of the learning process, and it’simportant to realize that more often learningdoesn’t happen unless action is taken. Thataction can be as simple as taking informationand connecting it to a past experience, but it’sactive all the same.

And finally, as the old saying goes, “If youwant to know something well, teach it.” I havefound that I cannot adequately teach somethingI have not practiced enough to understand well.

And so what we’re talking about here is aprocess. And a process isn’t linear. We may beginat anywhere within the process—information orteaching, practice or understanding. As I practicesomething, I become better at teaching. As Iteach something, I find information missing andneed to go searching. As I see new information, I can’t incorporate it and don’t know what to do with it until it becomes relevant, and Iunderstand it through my practice.

What was perhaps most exciting about ourpractice of holistic decision-making was the wayin which it incorporated the people we weremost concerned about, our financial situation,and the land we were managing. And it wasobvious that whether we were living off theland or not, land and the environment had to beconsidered when we were making decisions forthe long haul and future members of our littlefarm community.

For me the learning process I was finallyfully engaged in, and helping others to practice,moved us each toward social well-being. It alsoincorporated financial well-being. And for thefirst time, there was a means for looking atenvironmental well-being when someone took decisions.

I am learning more and more each day howmy health and well-being is directly tied to myon-going learning. My practice of holisticdecision-making provides for my continuedlearning. The complexity of social and biologicalspheres along with the challenges ofdetermining what wealth is and what is enoughwealth will continue. But, this framework I amlearning to use provides that I make ever betterdecisions regarding how I want my life to be.And very importantly, it is in sharing andteaching others about this that I engage in andmaintain the overall learning process. Mypractice of holistic decision-making allows me tobecome ever happier and healthier with eachday and each decision. I no longer am surviving,but am truly focused on thriving.

The process of change and theprocess of learning are whatmake the process of living

worthwhile and meaningful.


Landcare groups working together to achievecommon goals. The session was completed bySavory Center International Training ProgramsDirector, Constance Neely, who emphasized theimportance of creating linkages and working incooperative partnerships, and, as an example,provided a review of the complementaritiesbetween Holistic Management and Landcare.

The second day theme was empowering peopleto create the future they want. Morning sessionsfocused on the importance of environmentaleducation at all levels including what can be learnedfrom Aboriginal practices to effective educationprocesses at universities and at school. The “grandfinale” was the keynote address by Allan Savory.

The final activity of the event was the field dayheld at Tim and Karen Wright’s property “Lana.” Thisevent was a great opportunity to see the impact ofHolistic Management® Planned Grazing on thecondition of the land and the livestock. CertifiedEducator Dick Richardson from South Africainformed and entertained the crowd with ananimated display of pasture monitoring methodsand spent some time explaining the finer points ofreading animal dung and learning what your stockis telling you about the land.

Other presentations on the day were fromproject managers for Integrated Parasite Managementin Sheep and Land,Water & Wool, NorthernTablelands. Tim and Karen are active participants inboth projects, and the presentations each highlightedthe importance of collaborativeon-farm research in generatingvaluable and meaningful resultsfor all involved and the widercommunity.

Transcripts and PowerPointpresentations from “People in the Landscape” may be viewed on the web at:www.grassgrowers.org

Southern Africa HolisticManagement Conference

For the first time, theSouthern Africa annual

conference took place inNamibia on April 26-28.

This conference was organized by Community

Dynamics, the Southern Africa Certified EducatorAssociation. Speakers from Kenya, Zimbabwe, SouthAfrica and Namibia addressed topics related to thetheme of “Creating a Sustainable Future on the Landin Africa.” The roughly 100 participants representeda lively mix of commercial and communal farmers,NGOs (non-governmental organizations), andgovernment officials from Namibia, as well as somemore urban-based newcomers and influential media.

A pre- and a post-conference tour, as well as afield day during the conference to three long-time,holistically-managed farms, gave opportunities forexchanging practical management ideas. Mostconference participants remarked on theencouraging fellowship among likeminded andcurious people, reaching beyond traditional ethnic,class, and gender boundaries, and presentationsincluded dealing with violence and race relations,the mounting problems of urbanization and poverty,and the challenges of communal land-ownership.

Great inspiration came from a presentation byCertified Educator trainee Colin Nott on the use ofthe Holistic Management® framework in communalconservancies in Namibia.

One of the messages that permeated most talkswas the need for people to make themselves visibleand participate in all kinds of public forum if theywant to build a sense of community and live afulfilling life in the constantly changing economiesand socio-political dynamics of Southern Africa. Formany, this work means leaving their comfort zone, butthe contributions and exchanges at the conferencerevealed that such engagement also provides ampleopportunities to find one’s “cherished zone,” asdescribed by many in their particular holistic goals.

A compilation of the conference presentations can be obtained [email protected] or fromWiebke Volkmann at [email protected].

T h eGRAPEVINE

news f rom t he savo r y cen te r * peop le , p rog rams & p ro jec t s

Australian Conference A Success

This April in Australia the Holistic Managementsupport group, the Grass Growers Tea Party

(GGTP), joined forces with Southern New EnglandLandcare (SNEL) to host the People in theLandscape—Produce it, Protect it, Profit Conferenceheld in Armidale, New South Wales. Over 300people from across Australia, New Zealand, SouthAfrica, and the USA gathered to hear a diverserange of outstanding presentations from local andinternational speakers.

Judi Earl, one of the conference coordinators,noted a number of key factors contributing to thesuccess of the event, including the collaborativeapproach to inviting speakers who represented arange of groups from diverse backgrounds withcommon messages. The active involvement of the

graduates, instructors, and mentors of The SavoryCenter’s Certified Educator Training Program (CETP)added another dimension to the event.

Proceedings opened with an address by formerYoung Australian of the Year, Arron Wood, whospoke of the need for us all to create a sense ofplace and the importance of involving children inenvironmental management decisions. SavoryCenter Director of Educational Services, Kelly

Pasztor, built on that theme by focusing attentionon the importance of ongoing learning for collective wellbeing.

Kàren Forge and Sonia Williams from SNELhighlighted the outstanding achievements of local

Allan Savory delivering keynote speech at Peoplein the Landscape Conference.

Participants at the Southern African Holistic Management conferencehad an opportunity to learn from a variety of international speakers.From left to right: Wiebke Volkmann (Namibia), Willie Auret (SouthAfrica), Dick Richardson (South Africa), Reimer von Hase (Namibia),Fanie Kruger (Kenya).


Book ReviewThe Grassfed Gourmet Cookbook: Healthy Cookingand Good Living with Pasture-Raised FoodsBy Shannon HayesEating Fresh Publications; www.eatingfresh.compp 288; ISBN: 0-9673670-2-6; $22.95

If you are looking for the perfect book toeducate your customers or friends about thebenefits of pasture-raised animals and what

to do with those products, look no further.Shannon Hayes’ The Grassfed GourmetCookbook: Healthy Cooking and Good Livingwith Pasture-Raised Foods is a great book to get people comfortable and familiar withcooking and eating a variety of meats. With herbackground in sustainable agriculture and herexperience on the family farm, Hayes is perfectlysituated to create a text that addresses the needof the pasture-raised food consumer.

One comment I have heard from numerousagricultural producers is that they know howto raise grassfed beef, but the public doesn’tknow what to do with it. Even those consumerswho are eager to be part of the solution bypurchasing from farmers’ markets are hesitant to take on the “challenges” of meat, particularlycuts with which they aren’t familiar.

The good news is there are many consumers

who are listening to the countless studies andorganizations touting the merits of pasture-raisedfood. A book like The Grassfed Gourmet is allthey need to get them in gear with their grillsand crockpots and help them be the grassfedadvocates they want to be.

The reason The Grassfed Gourmet is aneffective educational tool is because it is a greatcookbook. It provides a variety of recipesdivided by types of meat or product (beef, lamband goat, pork, poultry, and dairy and desserts)and gives the kind of detail needed for agrassfed gourmet neophyte to be successful. For example, it explains the various cuts of meatand also the difference between the USDArecommended internal temperature for “safely”prepared food and those recommended bygrassfed meat connoisseurs.

I own several meat cookbooks, and I foundHayes’ cookbook one of the best because it hada good mix of more intricate recipes and simple,easy ones for families that don’t have a lot oftime for food preparation or a lot of ingredientson hand. It also offered suggestions forreplacement cuts or types of meat so that moreof the recipes were “accessible” to the reader.

As a “regenerative agriculture advocate,” Ialso appreciated the stories and research Hayesincluded in her cookbook to educate theconsumer. These additions are skillfully

interwoven to catch the readers’ eyes as theymove from one recipe to the next, thusencouraging them to learn more about theresource they are using through this cookbook.All the information is offered in an engaging,easy-to-digest manner so readers can absorb theinformation and move on to the recipes to putinto action their new knowledge.

My favorite section is “Rubs & Resources.” As Hayes mentions in the beginning of hercookbook, the idea is to use seasonings toenhance the grassfed flavor, not to compete withit. In this section, there are several rubs andmarinades to experiment with separate fromthose that are offered within specific recipes.

Shannon Hayes has a PhD from CornellUniversity in sustainable agriculture andcommunity development. She and her familyoperate Sap Bush Hollow Farm, a pasture-basedfarm in New York State. Her essays and articleson food, agriculture, and rural living haveappeared in Adirondack Life and YankeeMagazine and on Northeast Public Radio. WithThe Grassfed Gourmet, Hayes has produced aproduct grassfed producers can use as a keycomponent for their marketing campaign. This is a resource you will refer to over and over.

—Ann AdamsFor information on purchasing

The Grassfed Gourmet, turn to page 21.

The Savory Center’s 2002 HolisticManagement® Certified Educator class did most of our training in Wisconsin but

decided to do our graduation week training inAustralia. In addition to seeing new country, threemembers of our class were from Australia, and wewanted to share the travel burden. The graduationexperience and the trip turned out to be a mostmemorable and fantastic learning experience.

Given that background, what did the Class of 2002learn during our trip to Australia? Obviously, the openspaces, the gum trees, and, of course, the kangarooswere noted, but it was the “random acts of kindnessand hospitality” that made the biggest impression. OurAustralian hosts in particular, and Australians ingeneral, raised the art of being a gracious host to awhole new level.

What a relief to have a “mother” to look aftereverything, and we hereby bestow the great honor of“Mother Hen” to Judi Earl. Judi took care of thetraveling Americans before and during graduationseminar week and then organized the AustralianGathering for over 300 people. Judi was always thereto keep the big things organized or to take care ofanyone’s needs, large or small. Thanks ‘Jude’ and to all who helped to make it happen!

Here’s trying to squeeze two weeks of hospitalityinto three paragraphs: the cocktails and fantastic viewfrom the balcony over Sidney Harbor, handmadecookies with a story to greet us at Yaraandoo, thewillingness to answer all the questions (some werepretty dumb) about the history, fauna, and flora of thecountryside, and the fact that all the meals were servedwith class and the special feeling of taking time to sharea meal and conversation with good friends.

Have you ever sat around and said, “Let’s inviteover 50 people to our house for supper” and then decided to make it really special by cookingsupper over an open fire, bush tucker style? OurAustralian hosts are not only gracious, but they are alsofearless! And to top off a great meal, we had poetryreadings done with passion and talent and then aballad recited by the fireside. That evening will beremembered by everyone for many years to come.

There were lots of friends and friends of friendswho hosted members of our group during theconference. They allowed us to stop by before, duringand after the conference and generously made theirtime, their homes, and their agricultural operationsavailable to us. These personal visits really made theopportunity to visit Australia a special learningexperience. Seeing the country through a bus windowis good, but nothing equals walking on the land andtalking to the men and women who make their livingfrom that land.

Thank you, Australia. We learned a lot about howto respond to the challenges facing farmers andstockman on both sides of the world. We sure hope to have the opportunity to share our hospitality andexpand on this great experience. —Class of 2002

Class of 2002 Goes Down Under

TheReader’s ForumIdeas, Suggestions, Comments & Corrections


ARIZONATim Morrison230 1st Ave N, Phoenix, AZ 85003602/280-8803 • [email protected]

CALIFORNIAMonte Bell 325 Meadowood Dr., Orland, CA 95963530/865-3246 • [email protected]

Julie Bohannon 652 Milo Terrace, Los Angeles, CA 90042323/257-1915 • [email protected]

Bill Burrows12250 Colyear Springs Rd., Red Bluff, CA 96080530/529-1535 • [email protected]

Richard King1675 Adobe Rd., Petaluma, CA 94954707/769-1490 • 707/794-8692 (w)[email protected]

Tim McGaffic13592 Bora Bora Way #327Marina Del Rey, CA 90292310/741-0167 • [email protected]

Kelly Mulville225 Portola State Park, Lahonda, CA 94020650/704-5157 (c) 650/917-6120 (w)[email protected]

Christopher PeckP.O. Box 2286, Sebastopol, CA 95472707/758-0171 • [email protected]

* Rob RutherfordCA Polytechnic State UniversitySan Luis Obispo, CA 93407805/756-1475 • [email protected]

Tom Walther5550 Griffin St., Oakland, CA 94605510/530-6410 • 510/482-1846 • [email protected]

COLORADOJoel Benson P.O. Box 4924, Buena Vista, CO 81211719/395-6119 • [email protected]

Cindy Dvergsten17702 County Rd. 23, Dolores, CO 81323970/882-4222 • [email protected]

Rio de la VistaP.O. Box 777, Monte Vista, CO 81144 719/850-2255 • [email protected]

Daniela and Jim Howell P.O. Box 67, Cimarron, CO 81220-0067970/249-0353 • [email protected]

Craig Leggett2078 County Rd. 234, Durango, CO 81301970/259-8998 • [email protected]

Chadwick McKellar16775 Southwood Dr., Colorado Springs, CO 80908719/495-4641 • [email protected]

NEBRASKATerry GompertP.O. Box 45, Center, NE 68724-0045402/288-5612 (w) • [email protected]

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Seth Wilner104 Cornish Turnpike, Newport, NH 03773603/863-4497 (w) 603/863-9200 (h)[email protected]

NEW MEXICO* Ann AdamsThe Savory Center1010 Tijeras NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102505/842-5252 • [email protected]

Amy Driggs1131 Los Tomases NWAlbuquerque, NM 87102505/242-2787 • [email protected]

Mark Duran58 Arroyo Salado #B, Santa Fe, NM 87508505/422-2280 • [email protected]

Kirk GadziaP.O. Box 1100, Bernalillo, NM 87004505/867-4685 • fax: 505/[email protected]

Ken Jacobson12101 Menaul Blvd. NE, Ste AAlbuquerque, NM 87112; 505/[email protected]

* Kelly PasztorThe Savory Center1010 Tijeras NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102505/842-5252 • [email protected]

Sue ProbartP.O. Box 81827, Albuquerque, NM 87198505/265-4554 • [email protected]

David Trew369 Montezuma Ave. #243, Santa Fe, NM 87501505/751-0471 • [email protected]

Vicki Turpen03 El Nido Amado SWAlbuquerque, NM 87121505/873-0473 • [email protected]

NEW YORKErica Frenay112 W. Marshall St., Ithaca, NY 14850607/279-7978 • [email protected]

Phil Metzger99 N. Broad St., Norwich, NY 13815607/334-3231 x4 (w); 607/334-2407 (h)[email protected]

Karl North3501 Hoxie Gorge Rd., Marathon, NY 13803607/849-3328 • [email protected]

John Thurgood44 West St. Ste 1, Walton, NY 13856607/832-4617 • 607/865-7090 • [email protected]

NORTH CAROLINASam Bingham394 Vanderbilt Rd., Asheville, NC 28803828/274-1309 • [email protected]

NORTH DAKOTA* Wayne BerryUniversity of North Dakota—WillistonP.O. Box 1326, Williston, ND 58802 701/774-4269 or 701/[email protected]

OKLAHOMAKim BarkerRT 2, Box 67, Waynoka, OK 73860580/824-9011 • [email protected]

Byron Shelton33900 Surrey Lane, Buena Vista, CO 81211719/395-8157 • [email protected]

GEORGIAConstance Neely1160 Twelve Oaks CircleWatkinsville, GA 30677 • 706/[email protected]

IOWABill Casey1800 Grand Ave., Keokuk, IA 52632-2944319/524-5098 • [email protected]

LOUISIANATina Pilione P.O. 923, Eunice, LA 70535phone: 337/580-0068 • [email protected]

MAINEVivianne Holmes239 E. Buckfield Rd., Buckfield, ME 04220-4209207/336-2484 • [email protected]

MASSACHUSETTS* Christine Jost Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine200 Westboro Rd., North Grafton, MA 01536508/887-4763 • [email protected]

MICHIGANBen BartlettN 4632 ET Rd., Traunik, MI 49891906/439-5210 (h) 906/439-5880 (w)[email protected]

MINNESOTATerri Goodfellow-Heyer4660 Cottonwood Lane North, Plymouth, MN 55442763/559-0099 • [email protected]

MISSISSIPPI

Preston Sullivan610 Ed Sullivan Lane, NE, Meadville, MS 39653601/384-5310 • [email protected]

MONTANAElizabeth Bird3009 Langohr Ave., Bozeman, MT 59715406/586-8799 • [email protected]

Wayne BurlesonRT 1, Box 2780, Absarokee, MT 59001406/328-6808 • [email protected]

Roland Kroos4926 Itana Circle, Bozeman, MT 59715406/522-3862 • [email protected]

* Cliff MontagneMontana State University Department of Land Resources &Environmental ScienceBozeman, MT 59717406/994-5079 • [email protected]

Certified Educators

U N I T E D S T A T E S

* These educators provide Holistic Management instruction on behalf of the institutions they represent.

To our knowledge, Certified Educators are the best qualified individuals to help others learn topractice Holistic Management and to provide them with technical assistance when necessary. On ayearly basis, Certified Educators renew their agreement to be affiliated with the Center. Thisagreement requires their commitment to practice Holistic Management in their own lives, to seek outopportunities for staying current with the latest developments in Holistic Management and tomaintain a high standard of ethical conduct in their work. For more information about or application forms for the U.S., Africa, or International Certified EducatorTraining Programs, contact Kelly Pasztor at the Savory Center or visit our website atwww.holisticmanagement.org/wwo_certed.cfm?

Certified Educators


PENNSYLVANIAJim Weaver428 Copp Hollow Rd.Wellsboro, PA 16901-8976570/724-7788 • [email protected]

TEXAS

Christina Allday-Bondy2703 Grennock Dr., Austin, TX 78745512/441-2019 • [email protected]

Guy Glosson 6717 Hwy 380, Snyder, TX 79549806/237-2554 • [email protected]

Jennifer Hamre602 W. St. Johns Ave., Austin, TX 78752512/374-0104; [email protected] MaddoxP.O. Box 694, Ozona, TX 76943-0694325/392-2292 • [email protected]

* R.H. (Dick) Richardson University of Texas at Austin Department of Integrative BiologyAustin, TX 78712512/471-4128 • [email protected]

Peggy Sechrist 25 Thunderbird Rd.Fredericksburg, TX 78624830/990-2529 • [email protected]

Liz Williams 4106 Avenue BAustin, TX 78751-4220512/323-2858 • [email protected]

WASHINGTONCraig MadsenP.O. Box 107, Edwall, WA 99008509/[email protected]

Sandra Matheson228 E. Smith Rd.Bellingham, WA 98226360/398-7866 • [email protected]

* Don NelsonWashington State University P.O. Box 646310, Pullman, WA 99164509/335-2922 • [email protected]

Maurice RobinetteS. 16102 Wolfe Rd., Cheney, WA 99004509/299-4942 • [email protected]

Doug Warnock151 Cedar Cove Rd., Ellensburg, WA 98926509/925-9127 • [email protected]

WEST VIRGINIAFred HayesP.O. Box 241, Elkview, WV 25071304/548-7117 • [email protected]

Steve RitzHC 63, Box 2240, Romney, WV 26757304/822-5818; 304/[email protected]

WISCONSINHeather Flashinski1633 Valmont Ave., Eau Claire, WI 54701-4448715/552-7861 • [email protected]

Andy HagerW. 3597 Pine Ave., Stetsonville, WI 54480-9559715/748-3327 • [email protected]

Larry JohnsonW886 State Road 92, Brooklyn, WI 53521608/455-1685 • [email protected]

Laura PaineP.O. Box 567, Portage, WI 53901-0567608/742-9682 (h) 920/623-4407 (w)[email protected]

AUSTRALIA

Helen CarrellP.O. Box 1263Warwick, QLD 437061-7-46617393 • 61-7-46670835 [email protected]

Steve Hailstone5 Lampert Rd., Crafers, SA [email protected]

Graeme Hand“Inverary”Caroona Lane, Branxholme, VIC 330261-3-5578-6272 • [email protected]

Mark GardnerP.O. Box 1395, Dubbo, NSW [email protected]

Brian MarshallP.O. Box 300, Guyra NSW 236561-2-6779-1927 • fax: [email protected]

Bruce WardP.O. Box 103, Milsons Pt., NSW 156561-2-9929-5568 • fax: [email protected]

Brian Wehlburgc/o “Sunnyholt”, Injue, QLD [email protected]

CANADADon and Randee Halladay

Box 2, Site 2, RR 1Rocky Mountain House, AB, T0M 1T0403/[email protected]

Noel McNaughton5704-144 St., Edmondton, AB, T6H 4H4s780/[email protected]

Len PigottBox 222, Dysart, SK, SOH 1HO 306/432-4583 • [email protected]

Kelly SidorykBox 374, Lloydminster, AB, S9V 0Y4403/[email protected]

MEXICOIvan AguirreLa InmaculadaApdo. Postal 304Hermosillo, Sonora 83000tel/fax: [email protected]

Elco Blanco-Madrid Cristobal de Olid #307 Chihuahua Chih., 3124052-614-415-3497 • fax: [email protected]

Manuel Casas-PerezCalle Amarguva No. 61Lomas Herradura Huixquilucan, Mexico City CP 5278552-55-5291-3934 (w) 52-55-54020090 (c)

Jose Ramon “Moncho” VillarAv. Las Americas #1178Fracc. Cumbres, Saltillo, Coahuila 2527052-844-415-1542 • [email protected]

NAMIBIA

Gero Diekmann P.O. Box 363, Okahandja [email protected]

Colin Nott P.O. Box 11977, [email protected]

Wiebke Volkmann P.O. Box 182, Otavi264-67-234-557 or [email protected]

NEW ZEALAND

John King P.O. Box 3440, Richmond, [email protected]

SOUTH AFRICA

Sheldon BarnesP.O. Box 300, Kimberly [email protected]

Johan BlomP.O. Box 568, Graaf-Reinet [email protected]

Ian Mitchell-Innes P.O. Box 52, Elandslaagte [email protected]

Norman Neave P.O. Box 69, Mtubatuba 393527-084-2452/[email protected]

Dick Richardson P.O. Box 1806, Vryburg 8600tel/fax: 27-53-927-4367 [email protected]

Colleen ToddP.O. Box 21, Hoedspruit 138027-82-335-3901 (cell)[email protected]

SPAINAspen EdgeApartado de Correos 19, 18420 LanjaronGranada(0034)[email protected]

ZAMBIAMutizwa MukutePELUM Zambia OfficeP.O. Box 36524, Lusaka260-1-261119/261124/261118/[email protected]

ZIMBABWE

Liberty Mabhena Spring CabinetP.O. Box 853, Harare263-4-210021/2 • 263-4-210577/8fax: 263-4-210273

Huggins MatangaPrivate Bag 5950, Victoria [email protected]

Elias NcubeP. Bag 5950, Victoria [email protected]

I N T E R N A T I O N A L

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#102, in practice, july/aug 2005

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