Inspired by a childhood of growing strange plants, Shane trained in research biochemistry, but abandoned academia when the GFC provided ample warning of the unfolding arc of history. He is now retired to a sprawling, weed choked experimental farm in subtropical eastern Australia. He puts potential crops through a gruelling gauntlet of challenges to see which are suitable for zero input agriculture, where they are pushed to perform without irrigation, pest control, imported fertility or mechanised assistance.
Dr. Shane Simonsen has been a guest on 2 episodes.
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Mini Episode: Shane Simonsen on Farming, Podcasts, Books and Population
July 26th, 2024 | Season 6 | 15 mins 13 secs
degrowth, going to seed podcast, our vitreous womb, population, shane simonsen, taming the acocalypse, zero input agriculture
We caught up with Shane to get an update of the farm - including the addition of some new four legged residents - only to discover that Shane has branched out accross many projects including: Cohosting the 'Going to Seed' podcast; authoring 'Our Vitreous Womb' and 'Taming the Apocalypse' as well as two articles on overpopulation written for 'Zero Input Agriculture'.
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Zero Input Agriculture with Shane Simonsen
March 21st, 2022 | Season 3 | 1 hr 2 mins
collapse, fenner conference, food security, post-growth, shane simonsen, shock octopus, sustainable population australia, zero input agriculture
With the twin horsemen of climate change and diminishing fossil fuels impacting food security (did you know that 10 calories of fossil fuel are required per calorie of food?) it is evident that the future of industrial agriculture looks more than a little grim. Given that food is critical for survival, PGAP continues to explore the essential answers to the question: how do we radically change our approach to growing food in the years to come?
Dr. Shane Simonsen operates a ‘Zero Input Agriculture’ farm in the highlands of South-East Queensland. What does zero input mean and does it work? Shane shares with PGAP how a zero input system works, in addition to weaving his vast knowledge and unique insights into a very pithy conversation with PGAP host Michael Bayliss.