Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Thats great, I am really glad that you at least have the opportunity to be a positive influence, some of it has to rub off.

i know this forum isnt about parenting and stuff but i completely agree, children are sponges they suck up what they see and what influences them, i have spent a lot of time in parental counciling due to my own parents ways of parenting or lack there of, and i hope that with the tools iv learned i can help my own children can benifit, i see a lot of these kids who come to my work hooked on drugs at 15, smoking, drinking, crime etc that come from "well to do homes", with parents who have been to interested in careers and hobbies to spend time to educate there children of the fundamentals of life, or buying off there children with lavish expensive items to deal with there own guilt of not being there enough for there kids

I guess the sustainable teachings are something a lot of kids lack, the value of a dollar, how $400 on an aquaponics setup and a lot of hard work can save $$$ in the long run etc.... as a large family my children understand the value of a dollar as theres not too many to go around and if they want some they earn it, not as a gestapo camp or anything but simple things IE Making Beds, keeping rooms tidy, helping each other every day with simple things values that children dont tend to posess these days, and it pays off with awards from school and general willingness to help, now im not saying there perfect by any means they fight get into trouble and upto mistchiff but i hope that learning the fundamentals will keep in the back of there heads when they are older to hopefully not go too far off the rails.

wow i could go on with this for hours but i understand this is not the place or time hahaha, just very passionate about kids and trying to get back to the bare roots of life.

Very happy to see somone like Jaymie who is possibly going to put some of the fundamental roots of life back into some kids

not sure if this would help but ive done a couple of sustainability units and the tutes tend to get a bit hands on. we do things like working out a carbon footprint before and after the semester, to see if we can change. also do workshops on what goes into plastic bottles and where the materials are sourced from, environmental impacts etc.

Im using my AP system in a major sustainability project, im loking at all the inputs vs outputs, cost effectivness, the materials used for the AP system, and will probably look at the possibility of mass producing similar systems for small villages with limited water/food acess. anything hands on is always good, we do 'think tanks' where we will take a issue, role play it from different perspectives and present any findings.

chocolate is always a good incentive to speak up

i remember one tutor brought in a load of different stuff (bottles, cosmetics, rubber, wood, maccas burger) and asked us what and where we thought they came from, and the possible enviro issues. he then told us the fact, BIG shock.

I had to google search "maccas burger" ...and I'm still not sure. Just a nickname for that omnipresent fast food place?

Yep.. maccas... McDonalds.... an Australian habit of abbreviating things...

Hi Jaymie just some scattered thoughts that may be useful
I have had the pleasure of teaching many 17 - 25 yo, sarcastically I say these are the best people to employ as they know everything but hey so did I when I was that age.
In general I find this group to be intelligent and sophisticated and deeply concerned with the woes of our consumer obsessed society and degraded environment and are keen to be proactively part of the solution.
I think the best way the older generation can guide/influence the younger generation is through example.
My 4 kids who are in this age bracket (17-25) often joked about their "Hippy old man" but I'm slowly seeing their attitudes and values change and hope I have instilled "question everything" and "consider and assess all points of view" in my offspring.
I guess what I'm saying in relation to eduction is that your home Jaymie will be an example of what can be done and this should be highlighted by "why you do what you do" eg 1 gram of food grown in our modern agricultural system takes 9 grams of oil to produce.
I would suggest showing one of the following videos "Food Inc", "Fresh" or "Give us our daily bread" as an Introduction to "why you do what you do".
And lastly setup "hands on" activities that enable students to take control, this is the challenging part that takes a lot of planning and imagination on the part of the trainer but when planned and delivered accordingly is very rewarding for all participants. I may have some ideas and no doubt other forum members on some of these prac sessions, just PM me