Richard however encouraged his audience to view peak oil as a positive opportunity to recreate community, rediscover how to produce the food we eat and learn to make the things we need. We were left with an exciting sense of optimism rather than one of cataclysmic doom and gloom.

The following night we were privileged to hear a talk from another expert in his field, Andrew Whitley, a baking visionary and founder of The Village Bakery. The talk on the Saturday evening that took place in the Ruskin Mill gallery was hard hitting. He exposed the truth about modern, less nutritious varieties of wheat, milling methods which remove a large proportion of the fibre and minerals, additives that are harmful and unnecessary and mechanised proving and baking methods which do not allow the release of the nutrients present. The resulting bread does not sustain us.

Having exposed some truths he offered advice on changes we can make, for example, producing organic and biodynamic grain, growing the old varieties of wheat and using traditional methods of milling, proving and baking. Once again I was left with a feeling of optimism and added determination to use land under my care to produce healthy grain and a resolve to work to regain control of the most basic requirement of all, our daily bread. Andrew ran a workshop over the weekend where the participants created much excellent bread baked in the Ruskin Mill wood fired bread oven. The highlight for me was the sourdough rye bread made from a culture sourced by Andrew 17 years ago in Russia which has over this time been passed on from baker to baker. Having baked bread with children aged 8 to 12 using wood fired ovens I feel the value of such an elemental experience as part of their education must not be underestimated, particularly if they have also been involved in the growing and milling processes.

I recently witnessed Wendy Cook give a presentation to a class 7 about nutrition and the value of colour in food. The children were so inspired that they insisted that the food they prepared on a class canoeing trip was carefully planned with a range of coloured vegetables. Wendy’s workshop “ Biodynamic Food and Nutrition” explored how to plan a balanced meal using root, leaf, stem and fruit, and cook it in such a way so as to retain the vital forces. Wendy’s wealth of knowledge and personal experience helps us to appreciate the healing, health-giving and therefore life changing potential of food when well grown and prepared.

Originally a permaculture teacher, Rob Hopkins was inspired by Richard Heinburg’s book “Power Down” which explores what life beyond Peak Oil may look like. He began tackling Peak Oil by co-ordinating an “Energy Dissent Action Plan” with his students at Kinsale. During his workshop at the Hiram conference “Transition Towns – Land and Society in the Post Peak Oil Culture”, the group explored the first twelve steps necessary towards creating the transition to life beyond oil. The Transition Town movement successfully and clearly brings into focus the need to develop local, sustainable methods of food production.

In Richard’s talk on Friday night he expressed the urgent plea “We must teach our children how to grow food”, a statement that strongly resonated with me. During my workshop we explored how land work can be integrated into the curriculum from class 1 right through to the end of the upper school. The more we explored this potential it became clear that the fertility of the curriculum is enriched when the outdoor classroom is used as a resource and reference point engendering a truly experiential learning.

Those who joined the Goethean Observation workshop run by Nathan Hughes. Dr Isis Brook and Dr Midge hitelegg were to be seen around the beautiful gardens deepening their experience of elder and plantain. I caught up with them in Nathan’s apothecary on the Sunday where the plants were being prepared for medicinal use. It
was my feeling that the depth of understanding and insight achieved by the group that weekend, along with the essence of the plants, was present in those small jars of healing balm.

To finish the conference there was a rich and fertile sharing and discussion during which the energy and excitement in the room was palpable. We passed around bread samples, artefacts from the Green Woodwork workshop run by Richard Turley, the beautiful felted fleece made by those attending Elizabeth Deering’s workshop and knives, some of which were made by children attending Michael de Herdt’s Iron Age Forge workshop and we tested the balm made by the Goethean Observers.

I was fortunate enough to be given some of Andrew’s sourdough starter culture with which to bake my own bread and pass on to other bakers. Looking back this has become a metaphor for the conference, which created the perfect conditions for a culture to grow and nourish us sufficiently to be able to take that essence into our future work.