Small House Society – News 200901 | 31 January 2009 | Saturday
Dear Friend of Smaller and Simpler Living,
I know that time is precious for everyone these days, so I’ll try to keep this update short. The approximate reading time for this message is about 3 minutes. Feel free to reduce your reading time even more by skipping over topics that don’t interest you. This newsletter contains some repeated news from last month for those who just recently joined our list or didn’t get a chance to read last month’s newsletter. The new content is at the top and repeated information is further down the page.
Membership. January is membership renewal month at the Small House Society. Many thanks to all those who have already joined or renewed their membership this year at the $5 annual level. If you’ve not done so already, please visit the membership page. Your support helps us support simpler and smaller living initiatives.
Green Building Presentation. Don Otto of DPO Construction is one of the foremost experts on green construction, and an advocate of building small. Don built Iowa’s first 5-star energy rated home in 1995. Don has just started building his latest home, and is welcoming visitors to follow the construction process with him. More will be posted on his website in the months ahead, where Don hopes to offer an online presentation of the construction process as well.
How a House is Built. The latest book from Dennis Fukai and Barbara Fukai offers a detailed and three-dimensional presentation of home construction. Learn more about How a House is Built on their website.
Media Coverage. There continues to be excellent media exposure for the movement toward smaller and simpler living. Just about every week we receive media inquires from print and television journalists around the world.
India Tour. This month I completed a second visit to India (from December 25 to January 15). This second trip offered an opportunity to learn more about housing and urban planning issues. I encourage you to read my full report if you didn’t yet get a chance to do so before. During this trip, I learned about a planned community called Lavasa.
Radio Interviews. Audio is now available for recent interviews with Gregory Johnson on ABC News Australia (includes Jay Shafer), National Radio in Ireland, Iowa Public Radio Book Reading/Interview, and Public Radio Interview with Ben Kieffer from February 2007. I hope to have more audio available in December.
Website Redesign. The Small House Society web pages have been significantly upgraded with new navigation links at the top of each page and the addition of a Facebook group.
Kiva Lending Team. Resources For Life now has a Kiva Funding Team. If you’ve not yet heard about Kiva, I encourage you to check it out.
Border to Border Tour. If you’ve not had an opportunity to visit the Border to Border Tour page, I encourage you to do so. The tour was an amazing success. Photos from the tour area now available. Many thanks to all those who attended the tour events and provided us with encouragement and support.
Book With Membership Payment. You’ll notice there is now an option for those donating $20 or more to receive a free copy of Put Your Life on a Diet by Gregory Johnson. There’s also still the option for those donating $30 or more to receive a free copy of Living Small by Dennis Fukai.
Thanks. I want to thank the global team of volunteers and contributors “behind the scenes” who help make all this possible. I’m very grateful to the many people who continue to uphold and advance the mission of the Small House Society. Thanks again for your support. Please let me know if there is any way that the Small House Society can serve you better.
Regards,
Gregory Johnson, Facilitator
Small House Society
Internet: http://www.smallhousesociety.org
E-Mail: shs @ resourcesforlife.com (without spaces)
Postal: c/o Resources for Life, PO Box 2717, Iowa City, IA 52244-2717
Phone: (319) 621-4911
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