Energy at Kimberton Hills

courtesy of Kimberton Hills

Camphill Village Kimberton Hills has a 8.3 photovoltaic solar array on top of a garage. It powers almost 5% of the village. Although hooked up to the grid, Kimberton Hills purchases all green energy from carbonfund.org. They also have two buildings heated using geothermal technology. Most homes have wood stoves that are used for heating and cooking. Deidra Heitzman acknowledges that although there are greenhouse gases emitted from burning wood, it is better than emitting petrochemicals into the atmosphere. All of the wood used in the stoves comes from wind fallen wood.

Photos of Kimberton Hills

courtesy of Kimberton Hills


courtesy of Kimberton Hills

courtesy of Kimberton Hills

Camphill Kimberton Hills-- Google Map

Camphill Village Kimberton Hills in Kimberton, PA. Scroll around to see the distance between Philadelphia and Kimberton.


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Directions to Kimberton Hills

From Philadelphia:
Take I76 west to 202 south. Exit at 252 and go north through Valley Forge Park to 23. Turn left on 23. Take 23 through Phoenixville to 113 (about 6 miles) and turn left (south) on 113. Take 113 south approx. 2 miles to Coldstream Road and turn right. Take Coldstream Road to where it ends at Kimberton Road. Turn left on Kimberton Road (which turns into Pughtown Rd). Kimberton Hills is 1.2 miles down on the right side of the road.

Directions are courtesy of Camphill Village Kimberton website

A Visit to Kimberton Hills: Insights on Biodynamics

On April 20th, John, Matt and I visited Camphill Village Kimberton Hills, located in Kimberton, PA. Kimberton Hills is just 30 miles outside of Philadelphia. We were eager and excited to be visiting an ecovillage so close to home. The property boasts 432 acres of lush green rolling hills and beautiful old trees. We were pleasantly greeted by a group working in the weavery. We came in through the back door but were nonetheless warmly welcomed. The weavery was equipped with over 6 weaving machines and beautifully woven panchos and wool seat cushions, all made by the residents.

We spoke with Diedra Heitzmann, the Executive Director of Kimberton Hills. She graciously and quite impressively answered all of our questions on how the village addresses farming, energy, recycling, waste, water and sustainable design. Diedra had been living at Kimberton Hills for 26 years, raised her family there and seemed to be the village mom.

Diedra explained how biodynamic farming works in lay mans terms. She said biodynamics is a farming technique that "pays attention to whats going on", referring to the stars, planets, moon and sun. Many people forget that there is a whole solar system out there that greatly affects plants, animals, and other biological cycles. She brought up how the moon affects the tides, to prove how the solar system plays a role in physical properties on the earth. Biodynamics integrates the earth and the world above into a whole systems approach. As well as being connected to the earth, Biodynamics also believes that plants and animals have a close connection to the sun, moon, stars, and plants. Diedra told us that many experiments show plants growing to their full capacity during certain astrological time frames. She also explained that harvesting a crop can result quite differently depending on the cycles of the cosmos. A cosmic calendar is used to reflect the optimum times for farming practices.

Diedra also spoke of the biodynamic preparations. Preparations are used to enrich the soil with nutrients and increase its fertility. She said, "soil started healthy in nature and we need to help heal what has been made unhealthy". Diedra shed insight on the strange use of horn manure. She said that the reason biodynamics uses a cow's horn is because they believe that the soul and spirit of the animal is located in the horn. All of the cows on the property still have their horns for this reason.

We spoke with Diedra for about an hour or so and then went on a long tour through the property, despite the rain. Kimberton Hills had a peaceful and spiritual energy. All of the residents were friendly and seemed content living and working at Kimberton Hills. I think it is an ideal place for an adult with developmental disabilities to live. In Camphill villages adults with special needs can learn and be enriched by a wide variety of real life activities. There they can have a fulfilling and rewarding life and feel like they are part of a special community. Camphill communities are also rewarding for adults and children without developmental disabilities.

Biodynamic Preparations

Biodynamic agriculture is complex and all encompassing. Check out this You Tube video to get a clearer picture on biodynamic farming and the preparation process. Its a pretty cool video about a woman farmer in New York.

Biodynamic Agriculture at Solberg and Kimberton

Biodynamic agriculture is based on lectures that Rudolf Steiner gave on agriculture in 1924, the last year of his life. Most Camphill villages have biodynamic farms because of Steiner's work and inspiration. Both Camphill Solborg in Norway and Camphill Kimberton in Pennsylvania practice the biodynamic farming philosophy. Jan Martin Bang, author of Ecovillages: A Practical Guide to Sustainable Communities, is a resident of Camphill Solborg. In his book, Bang describes biodynamic farming as, "farming with a full cosmic consciousness, aware of the cycle of the stars and planets, and of co-operation with the spirit world" (130). He goes on to summarize the key ideas of biodynamic farming, which think of the farm or garden as a living organism. The main focus of Biodynamics is to enrich and enhance the soil. Biodynamics wants to keep improving the soil so that it is the healthiest soil it can possibly be. Biodynamic farming strives to have as few inputs as possible. For example, all food for the livestock should come from the farm itself, and the fertilizer used for the farm should come from the compost made from the manure from the livestock. Biodynamic farming does not rely on chemical fertlizers and pesticides, rather it promotes great diversity of plants, composting, and the use of biological insect and weed controls. In this way it aims to "increase the fertility of the land and enhance the soil".

One of the most interesting part of Biodynamic agriculture is the use of "preparations". There are specific preparations that are made on site and sprayed on the land and on the plants. One type of field preparation is called horn manure, known as 500, in which manure is placed in a cow horn and buried in the earth in the summer. The following spring, the horn is uprooted and the manure inside has been decomposed into a highly rich form of humus. The horn manure is then added to water in very small doses and sprayed all over the soil. It is said that this horn manure enriches the soil like no other. Another type of field preparation is a silica preparation, known as 501, which uses ground up quartz and places it in the cow horn just like the horn manure. In the same process as the horn manure the silica preparation is sprayed on the plants to make the most of the sunlight. The silica attracts the sunlight and intensifies it, therefore bringing even more light to the plants for photosynthesis. To read more about other types of preparations, click here.

Cow horn preparation 500. Ready to be added to water and scattered on the land.
courtesy of Allotment blog of the Gaurdian

Biodynamic farming also uses a planting calendar that works with and is aligned with cosmic forces. The calendar can be used to find the optimum time for sowing seeds, planting, transplanting, and harvesting. Some more information about the biodynamic planting calendar can be found here.

The Camphill Movement

Rudolf Steiner, 1861-1925
courtesy of Adriana Sassoon @ Wordpress

Rudolf Steiner, Ph.D, was born in Austria in 1861. He studied science and philosophy, and over the course of his life he developed "Anthroposophy". This term is derived from two greek words, 'anthropos', which means 'human being', and 'sophia', which mean 'wisdom'. What Steiner meant for the term anthroposophy to mean, was the wisdom of the human being. Steiner wrote, "Anthroposophy is a way of knowledge -- a cognitive path -- that leads the spiritual in the human being to the spiritual in the universe".

After Steiner's death, Dr. Karl Koenig, a pediatrician and educator from Austria, was inspired by Steiner's work and founded the first Camphill community for children with special needs in 1939. The idea behind Camphill communities is to foster learning and development through day-to-day life activities and experiences for people with developmental disabilities. Camphill communities allow each person, with or without developmental disabilities, to share and offer their own special gifts and talents to the rest of the community. Currently there are over 100 Camphill communities in 22 countries. Check out the Camphill website to learn more.
The JEM group will be focusing on two of the Camphill communities that are closely connected to the Ecovillage movement, while not being officially recognized by the GEN organization. Both Camphill Solborg in Norway and Camphill Kimberton in Pennsylvania possess many of the same qualities as the other ecovillages previously featured. Even though these Camphill communities are not official ecovillages, I find it necessary to include them in our research because they are living a low impact lifestyle, one that is not only healthy for people with disabilities, but healthy for the environment as well.

Energy, a Slow but Steady Feat

It's taken me a while to write a post about energy at The Farm in Tennessee and at EcoVillage at Ithaca. Most of what I found through their websites and articles about the ecovillages have shown me that they are both currently hooked up to the grid. For The Farm, this means getting some energy from nuclear power and Appalachian coal fired power plants. Even so, most ecovillagers at The Farm are buying more power from a local wind farm than fossil fuels. The Farm also makes extensive use of solar panels by adding them to the roofs of most of their buildings. At EcoVillage at Ithaca, ecovillagers practice conservation measures. They also have one natural gas boiler per cluster of 8 homes for heat and hot water. SONG, one of the neighborhoods at EVI, has been pretty progressive in utilizing renewable energy. Some energy features include, a solar electric grid system supplemented by green grid power (I'm not completely sure what that means, the link on the website wouldn't work). Solar hot water heaters, and energy star machines in their community laundry room have also been implemented. Both ecovillages are also utilizing sustainable building techniques to maximize passive heating and cooling, natural lighting and other design techniques that can be found on John's blog-- Ecovillage Design.

At first, I was a little disappointed and thought, "These ecovillages are supposed to be leaders, living 100% off the grid and generating their own renewable energy!" But then I realized that at this point in time, its not feasible to live that way. Currently, there is no perfect alternative to using commercial fossil fuel generated electricity from a local grid. It is the cheapest and most convenient source of energy. Its a lot more expensive to buy all of one's power from local wind farms, or to buy enough solar panels to generate all of the electricity needed to power an entire community. I think this is one of the biggest challenges of our time-- to get off our dependence of cheap fossil fuel derived energy. But you have to start somewhere, and both The Farm and EVI have incorporated impressive renewable energy techniques. They also both plan to incorporate more renewable energy as technology increases and costs for these energy sources decrease as they become more widely used. Another thing they are both doing are implementing conservation measures, something that needs to be incorporated into everyone's life. Even though you may be hooked up to the grid and your electricity may come from a coal fired power plant, all hope is not lost. As long as you conserve, use less lights, turn off computers when they are not in use, use compact flourescent light bulbs, unplug electronics when not in use, etc, it can dramatically reduce the amount of energy you are consuming and thereby contribute to more sustainable means of energy consumption.

Veggie Garden Getting Ready for the Season

courtesy of Eco Village Ithaca

This is a community vegetable garden at EVI, not the West Haven Farm.

Yummy Compost!

courtesy of Eco Village Ithaca

Yess!! Every member composts! ...It's not as gross as it looks I promise! Check out the EPA's composting website for more details on what and what not to compost, environmental benefits, and ways to start your own compost too!

CSA Share and Farmer's Market

One week's CSA bounty
courtesy of West Haven Farm

Veggies at the Farmer's Market
courtesy of West Haven Farm

West Haven Farm, Ithaca, NY

West Haven Farm is a large part of Ecovillage at Ithaca (EVI). The farm is certified organic by the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA). It's 10 acres feeds about 1,000 people a week! Jen and John Bokaer-Smith, Ecovillage members, established the farm in 1992. Today the farm's acerage is divided accordingly: 8 1/2 acres of vegetables and 1 1/2 acres of fruit. In a nearby town they also have an apple orchard, which they share with another farmer. West Haven Farm grows just about every vegetable that can be grown in the Northeast.

The West Haven Farm is a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm. 60% of the crops go to CSA members. CSA is a great way for small scale farms to flourish. They way it works is that CSA members pay for some of the farm's expenses and in return receive a weekly bounty of fresh produce. CSA shares range depending on the farm, but a single share for the season at West Haven Farm is around $475, although there is a sliding scale of $374-$575 depending on one's income. A single share generally feeds 1-3 people. Many farms, like Greensgrow Farm in Philly, also allow people to do half shares, where the member receives produce on a biweekly schedule. This reduces the cost but also reduces that amount of produce the member receives. Some farms, like West Haven Farm, also allow members to work on the farm to reduce the cost of their share. This makes it more affordable for lower income households to receive healthy, fresh, and local produce.

The other 40% of the crops are sold at a local Farmer's Market and sold wholesale at EVI.

Farming sure is tough work, and Jen and John have felt the burden. In the book Ecovillage at Ithaca: Pioneering a Sustainable Culture, author Liz Walker, long-time resident of EVI, interviewed the couple about the financial hardships associated with being farmers. In the beginning both Jen and John farmed together and enjoyed it very much, but it did not prove to give them the financial support they needed to pay off their college loans and their mortgage. Jen is now a teacher during the year, while John is the full time farmer. He now has other employees and the CSA has brought them great success.

While EVI receives most of its produce from the West Haven Farm, they also have a community garden, and small home gardens as well. What EVI does not produce, they buy from a regional organic food distributor, United Natural Foods. EVI is dedicated to supporting organic farming methods because it enriches the soil, rather than depleting it. Liz Walker explains, "our commitment to growing and buying mostly organic is a fundamental aspect of our larger commitment to becoming more sustainable here at EVI" (131).

Ecovillage at Ithaca

Check out the Eco Village Evolution Main Page (link on the sidebar) to read up on a brief history on Ecovillage at Ithaca.

A Discussion of Food at The Farm, Tennessee

The Farm in Summertown Tennessee, founded in 1971, is located on 1750 acres. It began as an intentional community that grew into an ecovillage over the years. They now have an Ecovillage Training Center located on site as well. In an article, Is The Farm an Ecovillage?, written by a member Earthaven Ecovillage in North Carolina, it's status as an "ecovillage" is debated over. There is definitely controversy over whether The Farm is acting as an ecovillage by not growing food on their abundant fields that used to be cultivated in the 1970's. But The Farm has reasonable justifications for neglecting 50-60 acres of land, which have already been cleared.

Back in the early days, The Farm boasted around 1400 residents, now there are only around 175 residents. This is one of the biggest reasons for the change in food production over the last 38 years. Because of the large population in the 70's, there was greater man power to work the fields. In recent years, many community meetings have been held so that residents can discuss the subject of growing food at The Farm again. Some residents have suggested getting tractors, which would enable them to cultivate the land with a minimal amount of labor. But that wouldn't be very environmentally friendly now would it. Residents of The Farm have realized that fossil fuel based farming techniques is not the route they want to go.

Other residents advocate for home gardens. Many households already have home gardens that produce much or their fruit and vegetable needs. This could be a possible solution to growing more food on site, but to me this seems like a diversion away from community.

The article mentions one of the best ideas that residents have come up with, which is to create a "regional food-growing network" to foster "local food interdependence". Instead of growing everything on site, The Farm could team up with near by Amish and Mennonite farmers that are already growing food in abundance. The Farm could grow vegetables and other specialty products that would allow them to trade those products for food that their neighbors have grown. They could also get products that are grown in other areas through a "regional food-buying co-op". This seems to make the most sense for The Farm. This also is something that could be utilized in all regions around the world. When farmers team up with one another they can create massive networks of farmers, communities, and households that are dedicated to supporting and securing local food initiatives in order to promote ecologically sound ways of living. In the case of The Farm, this would enable them to cultivate some of their acres of cleared land. It would reduce the stress of feeling like they needed to utilize every acre, and would probably make them feel like they were a part of the local food movement.

Ecovillages in the News

As I was researching for this week's ecovillage, I came across an article on Forbes.com that highlights "Eight Modern Utopias" in pictures with a little bio of each. Click here to check out the article and the ecovillages they showcase. Findhorn is mentioned, as well as this week's ecovillages: The Farm in Tennessee, and Ecovillage at Ithaca.