6 Ways to Promote Self-Reliance In Your Community
Self-reliance isn’t just about being able to provide for yourself with your own two hands. Your own self-reliance is intrinsically tied to the community and larger world around you. Learn how to promote self-reliance in your community and, in turn, support your own security and self-sufficiency by making conscious choices about where and how you spend your time, money and resources.
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Ah, self-reliance. Itās so, well, self-centred. Not in a bad, narcissistic sort of way. But in the sense that itās often depicted as living alone in a cabin in the woods, off-grid and far away from society, living completely off the land and producing, hunting or foraging for everything you need, enjoying the complete freedom and solitude that such a lifestyle affords.
We rarely equate self-reliance with dependency on other people. After all, the definition of self-reliance means to rely wholly on your own skills and resources without needing help from anyone else to provide for your own basic needs. And while that might be a nice thought, the reality is that self-reliance looks nothing like that for most people. In fact, Iād venture to say that complete self-reliance is a myth for just about everyone.
While I love fantasizing about living alone in the woods, far from civilization, the reality is that itās tough if not impossible to be 100% self-reliant without depending on any outside sources for anything else. Even Ma Ingalls had to go to town for flour and sugar and coffee that she couldnāt grow herself!
And even if you do manage to produce 100% of what you need to live all by yourself from your own land using nothing but your bare hands, youāre still affected by the health of the environment and the community around you, as well as by the politics, laws and regulations in your area. No one exists in a bubble, whether we like it or not.
The good news is, you can actually support your own self-reliance by supporting self-reliance in your own community. Because while we can’t do and produce everything we need by ourselves, when we support our local communities, we reduce our overall dependency on goods and resources that have to be shipped in from far away via large, faceless corporations who put profits over the health and wellbeing of the people and communities they’re supposed to serve.
So today I want to touch on six different ways you can promote self-reliance in your own community and, in turn, support your own self-reliance.
Of course, there are more than six things you can do to get more involved in your own community. But these are good starting points. Still, I encourage you to add to the list in the comments section below so let me know what other suggestions you have!
Related: 25 Self-Sufficiency Goals to Set and Smash This Year
Six ways to promote self-reliance in your community
1. Support your local farmers
This is something Iām really passionate about. Even though we grow a lot of our own food, we still donāt produce our own meat, eggs or dairy, and we certainly donāt grow everything we eat on our little homestead. Far from it.
Luckily where we live there are tons of small-scale organic farms, a widely-renowned year-round weekly farmers market and a community of like-minded people passionate about sustainability and food security in our area. And obviously as a homesteader, food security and sustainability are also very important values of mine (and I hope yours too!) So what we donāt grow ourselves, we try to source locally if possible.
Of course, this isnāt always possible with everything, and itās not always the most affordable option. But I know firsthand that growing food (the sustainable, healthy way) is hard work, so I try to buy local as much as possible and give my money to our wonderful local farmers rather than to the Walmarts and Superstores in our area whenever I can.
I believe we vote with our dollars, and that we should (whenever possible) support small farms and farmers who have the same values and vested interest in our communities that we do, rather than a faceless corporation that makes it hard for local farmers to compete.
By purchasing from your local farmers, youāll be helping keep them in business and also ensuring that your whole community (including you) has some level of food security (and is therefore self-reliant) should something ever happen where the grocery store shelves are bare and you have no access to outside food sources.
Where we live on Vancouver Island, this is a very real possibility that a major Earthquake or other large-scale disaster prevent the boats from running back and forth between here and the mainland. If that happened and we were on our own, we would need to rely only on what we were able to produce here on the island. So while you might grow your own food, your neighbour might not, and lest you want everyone banging on your door in the middle of a disaster, supporting local farmers in your area will help to ensure both your family AND the other members of your community have access to good, healthy food in both good times and bad.
You can support local farmers by:
- buying direct from them (a great way to stock your freezer is to place bulk meat orders directly from a local farmer in your area)
- shopping at your local farmers market
- purchasing local foods from the grocery store or asking for local, organic food (grocers will listen to customers when enough of them ask for something)
- investing in a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program in your area
2. Shop/buy local
While I think farmers deserve a mention of their own on this list due to the specific importance of food security, I also think itās important to support all local artisans, services and businesses whenever possible for many of the same reasons as I listed above.
Maybe do your Christmas shopping at a local craft fair. If you donāt make your own soap or candles or clothes, consider purchasing from someone local instead of from the mall or Amazon. And even if the thing youāre after is a brand name item, you can still order it through a local store so that youāll be supporting your local economy and keeping people employed in your town.
As an example, I got my daughter a Lego princess castle for Christmas this year (Shhh! Donāt tell!) But instead of ordering it on Amazon (the default method of shopping for many of us nowadays), I got it from our local toy store. And guess what… It was actually CHEAPER than the Amazon price!
Honestly, even if I did end up paying a few dollars more, it would be worth it just to know that my money was going to support a local business instead of becoming a drop in the bucket of Jeff Bezos’ multi-billion dollar fortune.
Remember, we vote with our dollars!
Plus, if you have your own local business or goods or services to trade or sell, this is also a great way to make connections in the local community and advertise through word of mouth (or even find people to trade with!). My husband and I have actually sold many of our local handmade items like candles and custom carpentry pieces in other peopleās local stores because we originally went in to buy something ourselves and made a connection with the store owner. Weāve also traded goods many times at local craft fairs weāve set up at.
3. Volunteer/Teach your skills
You can further support your community members and your communityās overall self-reliance by volunteering and/or teaching your skills to other people. Iām a firm believer that weāre all better together, and that when others are more self-reliant, we support our own self-reliance and security because there are other capable people who are able to support themselves and contribute to the community. Ya know, hence the old saying “give a man a fish and you’ll feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you’ll feed him for a lifetime.”
You could volunteer at a local community garden or a school where you help others learn how to grow, cook and prepare their own food. Or you could host free or paid classes at your local community centre and teach cooking, crafting or homesteading skills or even things like home economics, natural health, preparedness and financial literacy to other members of your community. Any of the above things could help to increase the self-reliance of others in your community which benefits you as well (and could even be another source of income). Plus youāre likely to make valuable connections with other people and learn new skills yourself while youāre at it!
4. Get to know your neighbours
This one sort of sounds like a no-brainer, but itās a little shocking how many people donāt know their neighbours nowadays. And even though us folks who live rurally tend to live farther away from each other (geographically), I can say from experience growing up in the city that itās even more common not to know your next door neighbour (or the guy who lives in the apartment on top of you) when you live in an urban environment.
Nevertheless, no matter where you live, it would behoove you to get to know your neighbours and foster positive relationships with them.
Even if youāre a bit of an introvert (like me), try to push yourself out of your comfort zone and introduce yourself, invite your neighbours over for a drink or dinner, or simply chat in the lobby of your apartment building if thatās all you can do. Once again, doing this opens doors and allows you to make connections with others who you could trade goods, skills or simply create good friendships with.
Plus, if ever there is a disaster or emergency in your area, you and your neighbours may have to rely on each other, so getting to know each other AND if possible getting to know what skills and resources each person/household can contribute beforehand will help increase your overall preparedness and self-reliance and make responding to a crisis just that much easier if and when disaster strikes.
An example of this came up last night for us as we sat around the bonfire in our backyard with our neighbours who we invited over. As we chatted with them, we found out they have a rather extensive gun collection and buckets of food with a 25 year shelf life, just in case of anything. So we know what their level of self-reliance is, and we know that if the SHTF, they are well-armed and could help provide security for our neighbourhood.
These same neighbours also look after our animals whenever we go away and we bring them fresh produce, home-canned and homemade goods in return. Then thereās our neighbours out back who have chickens and who have traded their eggs with us for seedlings weāve grown, and our other neighbours who brought us tomato jam that they made with tomatoes from seedlings we gave them, and then who lent us their smoker when we were processing the salmon we caught last week. In return, we gifted them a package of smoked salmon and some seeds from our garden. The bartering system is alive and well in our little neighbourhood!
I encourage you to get to know your neighbours and trade skills, goods and services with each other to increase your overall self-reliance and that of your neighbourhood too!
5. Join or create a community Facebook page
While I highly encourage you to actually get out in your community and get to know people face-to-face, in this age of social media, we also have the advantage of being able to connect with people online. And while itās really cool that we can connect with people all over the planet over social media, itās perhaps even cooler hat we can connect with likeminded members of our local community in much the same way, and then we can actually meet them face-to-face!
Many communities have local Facebook pages for different interest groups, for buying, selling and trading or even just for community news and neighbourhood watch programs for smaller communities, rural areas and suburbs. Here where we live, we have tons of local Facebook pages for every interest, including a local self-reliance group and a zero waste group through which I have already met several people in person and even managed to trade some goods with them!
Search on Facebook for keywords like āyour areaā + ācommunity page,ā āself-reliance,ā āhomesteading,ā āsustainableā or ābuy, sell and tradeāā depending on what youāre looking for.
Canāt find a local Facebook page for your area/community/interest? Create one! Our local zero waste page was started by a member of our community a year or so ago and has now grown to hundreds of members who share knowledge and information, trade goods and even meet up in person for various activities. Itās also a fantastic way to connect with others in your community if youāre new to the area or struggling to find people you connect with or share interests with.
6. Vote/Be politically active and informed
While politics might not seem to have much to do with homesteading and self-reliance, the political decisions that impact your area can have a very real effect on your community’s overall self-reliance and many aspects of your everyday life, including things like what you (and other community members) are legally allowed to do on your land, whether youāre allowed to have livestock, grow food and herbal medicine, run a business, have a farmstand, build your own structures on your property and and even whether youāre allowed to collect rainwater or hang your laundry to dry (yup, for real. Homeowner’s Associations in many states have tried to make it illegal to hang your clothes to dry outside. Luckily, “Right To Dry” laws have been passed in a handful of states, which override any HOA laws in these areas. Read more about this here and find out whether your state is protected by a “Right To Dry” law.)
Political decisions also influence things like environmental regulations (which can either have a positive or negative affect on the health of the land, water, air and species on and around you, your community and your homestead), and of course politics also affects things like how much money we all pay in taxes and what sort of funding goes back into our local communities, as well as what our overall rights are as citizens.
But beyond just voting once in a while when an election rolls around, do your best to stay informed about local politics and decisions in and about your area and maybe even consider taking a more active role by attending town halls, campaigning or petitioning for a cause youāre passionate about, writing your local representatives or even running for office.
Iām super proud to say that our district representative is also an organic farmer in our area so I know she has a vested interest in things like protecting agricultural land and advocating for food security and a clean, healthy environment.
No one fit to advocate for community self-reliance in your area? Maybe there’s a seat in government with your name on it š
Of course there are so many more ways you can get involved and promote self-reliance in your community by investing your time, money and resources locally. But the above suggestions are a good place to start and may just spark some other ideas.
What about you? Do you support your community in any of the above mentioned ways? Got any other suggestions or ideas regarding how you can promote self-reliance in your local community? As always, I invite and encourage you to share your thoughts in the comments section below and keep the conversation going!
Wishing you homemade, homegrown, homestead happiness š
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Despite fending off an eagle attack the other day, a sneaky raccoon got into the chicken run early this morning and took out one of our girls.
Having animals die is definitely the hardest part of homesteading, but itās a reality of this lifestyle that everyone must come to terms with sooner or later.
While we care for our chickens and want to give them the best life possible while theyāre here, we understand that theyāre livestock, not pets, and that weāre not the only creatures who see them as a food source.
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So this is 35ā¦
I decided to read my horoscope today (since itās my birthday and all). I donāt really buy into the horoscope predictions, but I do think thereās something to be said for the personality traits weāre born with when the stars are aligned just so. Here are a few snippets that I found to be almost eerily on point:
āTauruses born on May 18 are characterized by love of freedom and independenceā¦They possess extraordinary creative energy, and they are never without an important cause to champion. They enjoy taking risks, but only when they believe the risk really matters.
As a rule, most decided early in life what they wanted to do and are not likely to deviate from that path. Their independent spirit makes them ideally suited to careers where they are their own boss, or are at least autonomous within a larger structure.
May 18 people want to make it on their own. No matter how successful they become, they never forget their roots and may even draw upon them for inspiration.ā
Every year on my birthday I reflect on where Iām at, where Iām headed and where Iāve come from, and all I can say is that each year Iām only more grateful to be living life on my own terms, doing what I love most next to the people I love more than anything else in the world.
Iāll never forget where I came from and Iāll never have any regrets, because I wouldnāt be right where I am now without all of the experiences -good, bad or otherwise- that Iāve had along the way.
I knew when I was a little girl that I wanted to be a writer and a content creator. Homesteading came a little later in life, but when I knew, I knew.
I hope to be doing what I love and sharing it with you all for the next 35 years too! (Well, actually, if Iām being honest, Iād like to retire and throw my phone in the river long before that;) But until that day comes, thanks for being here to celebrate life with me today and every day. Cheers to another turn around the sun š»
My daughter stayed overnight at her grandmaās last night, and this morning when I talked to my mom she said āEvelyn told me sheās never been to the doctor before.ā
Proudly, I replied āno, she hasnāt, because sheās never needed to.ā This is thanks in large part to the fact that we keep a well stocked natural medicine cabinet at home and do our best to treat everyday illnesses and ailments ourselves.
Having a well-stocked home apothecary (and the know-how to use herbal and natural medicine at home) is yet another important piece of the self-sufficiency puzzle, and one that weāre working on a lot right now, both in our home and in my membership program, the Society of Self-Reliance.
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This is also a great time to plant certain medicinal herbs so that youāve got a personal, sustainable supply of herbal medicine at home, because who knows what supply chain issues are gonna hit next!
To help make building and stocking your home apothecary or natural medicine cabinet a little easier, I compiled a list of all the ingredients I like to keep on hand for making my own medicinal preparations, as well as a suggested list of herbs to start growing or stocking up on, and some other great resources to help you get started preparing and using your own herbal medicine at home.
Link in bio @thehouseandhomestead to read the full article and download the checklist, or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/stock-a-home-apothecary/
With Easter just around the corner, why not forgo the dry, lackluster store-bought hot cross buns this year and make your own from scratch instead!
This recipe combines the warm and comforting flavours of vanilla, cinnamon nutmeg, ginger, allspice and cardamom with homemade sweetbread and raisins.
Oh, and none of those awful, hard, jujube candies that you often find in store-bought hot cross buns. (Seriously... Why the jujubes??)
As is the case with most homemade versions of things, homemade hot cross buns are about 1,000 times better than anything you'll find at the supermarket. But I'll let you be the judge! If you try the recipe (and I hope you do!) leave a review and let me know what you think:)
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Stinging nettles are one of my favourite things to forage for in early spring. Theyāre ready to harvest well before just about anything is ready in our garden, and theyāre a superfood as well as a medicinal plant packed with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals including vitamins A, B, C & K, calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and iron, plus theyāre super high in protein.
As a medicinal plant, nettles are a natural antihistamine and can help with season allergies, they have properties that reduce inflammation and especially joint inflammation and arthritis, they can be used to treat of urinary tract infections and enlarged prostate symptoms, the e been shown to lower blood pressure and control blood sugar and more!
Some people even swear by harvesting stinging nettles with their bare hands as the sting itself is said to help with muscle and joint pain/arthritis!
I, however, am not that brave. I definitely recommend wearing gloves, long sleeves, long pants and boots when harvesting stinging nettles! But the good news is that once you cook or dry the nettles, they no longer sting you. My favourite way to prepare them is to dry them and enjoy them as a herbal tea! But theyāre good sautĆ©ed in stir fry or added to soups (in place of spinach or Kale) too. Whatever you do, just donāt put them fresh into a salad!
Stinging nettles grow wild all over North America (as well as other places), and spring is the best time to forage for them. To learn how to safely identify them, harvest them and prepare/preserve them, check out the link in my bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/harvest-and-use-stinging-nettles/
Have you ever foraged for stinging nettle before?
If you're looking to increase production in your own home garden, you know how important bees and other pollinators are to your overall yield.ā
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Honeybees get a lot of the glory, and for good reason: It's said that honeybees alone are responsible for pollinating 80% of our fruits and vegetables! Not to mention, they make honey... Sweet, glorious, highly nutritious and DELICIOUS honey!ā
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In this day and age of global food shortages, we need to do whatever we can to help increase food production at home and abroad, and helping honeybees is one of the best ways to do just that.ā
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Click the link in my bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/3-easy-ways-to-help-save-the-bees/ to learn what you can do at home to help save the bees, and the many, MANY reasons why it matters!ā
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I don't know about you, but around here spring officially marks the beginning of what we call "busy season."ā
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I always remind myself, though, that the payoff from the work we put in at this time of year is so totally worth the extra elbow grease and long hours.ā
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The seeds we sow now will provide us with food and medicine to stock our pantry and apothecary with in the summer and fall.ā
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The projects we start now will (hopefully) be finished and ready to serve us later in the year.ā
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And the deep cleaning and organizing we do now in our homes will set the stage and the tone for the rest of the season.ā
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Personally, I don't operate very well in a disorganized, messy or dirty environment. Whether I'm working or just relaxing, if my home is in disarray I feel like I can't fully concentrate on or enjoy whatever I'm doing.ā
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For most of the year this means sticking to a daily routine of tidying up and light cleaning when necessary. But in the spring, I like to take a few days to deep clean our home so that the rest of the season runs smoother; So that when I'm in the thick of gardening and harvesting and preserving season, I'm not also contending with dirt and stains and pine needles from Christmas!ā
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That being said, I don't like to use any commercially produced chemical cleaners, so I always make sure to keep a few natural ingredients on hand to get the job done.ā
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If the spring cleaning bug has bit you too, be sure to check out my DIY Spring Cleaning Recipes via the link in my bio. Every recipe is made with simple, natural ingredients that you probably have on hand already. I also like to add essential oils to my cleaning products for their scent and natural cleaning and disinfecting power, but you can omit them if you like:)ā
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Link in bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/spring-cleaning-recipes/
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A couple years ago when I launched my first gardening course, I mentioned in my sales video that we were just one emergency situation away from grocery store shelves being cleared out entirely. Within two weeks of that video, the pandemic hit, and the rest is history.ā
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Here are just a few of the presentations coming up this week:ā
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š± 7 Ways To Maximize Space In Your Urban Gardenā
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And more!ā
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Plus, don't miss my masterclass where I teach you everything you need to know to grow a BUMPER CROP OF TOMATOES in your backyard! š
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From starting your seeds to planting out and caring for your tomato plants all season long, I'll show you the exact method we use to grow hundreds of pounds of tomatoes at home for fresh eating and preserving each year.ā
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The summit officially starts TODAY! If you haven't registered yet, click the link in my bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/bvgs to save your seat and start watching and learning right away!
āWhen I think of self-reliance, I think of any ability to rely less on āthe system.āā
I sat down with Ashley Constance from @dirtypawshomestead and the @alittleselfreliant podcast to talk about what it means to be self-reliant, if itās even possible to be 100% self-reliant and why itās a goal worth striving for even if complete and total self-reliance isnāt possible.
Be sure to check out the full interview in the latest issue of Modern Homesteading Magazine!
Subscribe @ modernhomesteadingnmagazine.com
Iād love to know, what are you currently doing to become a little (more) self-reliant? Let me know in the comments!š
What self-reliance skills do YOU want to learn most??
If you've been reading my posts or getting my emails lately, you've probably heard me mention my brand new private membership program called the Society of Self-Reliance, which is set to launch for the first time TOMORROW!!!
I'm so excited about this project as it's something I've been dreaming of creating for a long time. With everything going on in the world right now, I knew I had to stop overthinking it and just go for it!
The membership will include video lessons and downloads on a wide range of topics related to homesteading and self-reliant living, as well as a private community message board (ie. OFF social media;)
Each month we'll focus on a different theme or aspect of self-reliance, and then once a month we'll get together for a live group coaching call to discuss that month's topic (and whatever other questions you have and self-reliance topics you'd like to discuss!)
Since we're just starting out, I'm offering new members a special introductory rate of just $20/month. This is the only time I plan on offering it for this price, so if you want to get in and lock in at this rate, you'll be able to do so as soon as the doors open tomorrow!
If you haven't yet joined the waitlist, click the link in my bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to https://thehouseandhomestead.com/society to add your name and save your spot. Waitlist members will be the first to know when enrollment opens tomorrow morning!
Hopefully you're just as excited as I am about this new venture! I've already got the first 8 video lessons up, as well as a few sweet bonuses too:)
We'll be kicking things off with the theme "Grow Your Own Groceries," and then we'll move into other topics like herbal medicine and food preservation over the summer months. But I'd also love to know from you, what self-reliance topics would YOU like to learn most over the next few months?
Let me know below š
I hope to see you inside!
Iāve been thinking a lot lately about what it really means to be "self-reliant."
We talk a lot about self-reliance (or self-sufficiency) in the homesteading community, and outwardly it may seem as if the goal of "achieving" self-reliance is what ultimately drives many of us to live this lifestyle in the first place.
But what does self-reliance look like in the 21st century? Is it actually achievable, or just a pipe dream?
Is it even possible to be truly self-reliant?
A few years ago, Forbes published an article titledĀ Dear Homesteaders, Self-Reliance is a Delusion.
In the article, the author arguesĀ that "self-reliance is for the most part a myth. Unless they live in an extremely remote region, use all homemade tools, and will refuse the safety net if they need it, most homesteaders are far from self-reliant."
While he makes some compelling points, but I've always felt as if he missed the point of what self-reliance actually means in real life.
No man (or woman) is an island. None of us can ever be 100% self-reliant without ever relying on anyone other than ourselves. But that doesn't mean that we should give up trying altogether.
Even one small step toward being more self-sufficient is a step in the right direction.
Maybe the point is not to everĀ BECOMEĀ self-reliant, but rather to becomeĀ MOREĀ self-reliant as we progress on our journey. Maybe self-reliance isn't a destination, but a pursuit.
Like just about everything that's worth doing,Ā working toward greater self-reliance and independence is worth doing imperfectly.Ā It's better to take a single step in the right direction than no step at all.
I decided to unpack this in more detail on the blog this week. (Link in bio @thehouseandhomestead or go to thehouseandhomestead.com/what-is-self-reliance to read the full article).
With the doors to theĀ Society of Self-RelianceĀ opening in just a couple more days, I wanted to be sure I can confidently provide an answer to the question "what is self-reliance?"
But Iād also love to hear what YOU think!
Is self-reliance just a delusion? Is it an achievable goal? Or is it more about the journey than the destination?
Share your thoughts in the comments below!
š± Have you started any seeds yet?
If not, NOW is the time!
March is a great time to start tomato seeds, peppers, lettuce, brassicas (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, etc.) and direct sow peas in most gardening zones.
Starting from seed is exponentially cheaper than buying starts from the nursery, especially is youāre growing on a larger scale. But seed starting supplies can add up quickly if youāre not careful.
In the spring issue of Modern Homesteading Magazine, contributor Kayla Adams of @oatsandhoneyhomestead shares her best tips for finding cheap or even free seed starting supplies. From pots and lighting options to soil and the seeds themselves, Kayla covers everything you *actually* need to start your edible garden completely from seed (and not break the bank).
Check out the full article, along with a preview of the spring issue at modernhomesteadingmagazine.com
Link in bio @thehouseandhomestead to SUBSCRIBE or login to the magazine library and read the full issue (for current subscribers).
What are you MOST excited to grow in your garden this year??
Let me know! š
#seedstarting #seeds #springgardening #growyourowngroceries
Great opinion and article. I too believe a little self-reliance is good for everyone! I really liked your suggestion to get to know your neighbors. You never know how cool the people around you might be unless you get to know them.
I’m a total Amazon mom, especially around the holidays. Your article has inspired me to check out the local stores first this year before I hop online. Thanks!
https://ahappiereasierlife.com/
That’s so great! I know, Amazon is so easy and has EVERYTHING! Don’t get me wrong, I love Amazon and order from there a lot. But if I can get something locally I usually try to. And yes! Getting to know your neighbours has so many benefits:)