Nicodemus Wilderness Project -- Global Registry of Apprentice Ecologists

Greening In the Valley of Death
Many people don't consider deserts to be primary habitable places for long term sustainable living, and Las Vegas, Nevada isn't on the number one list of places for eco-initiatives. But living here has helped me to develop an appreciation for resources like water and solar power, especially solar. We have some of the highest rates of sunlight exposure in the Western Hemisphere. Here in town we have community gardens and some farms, both of which I have volunteered at on numerous occasions. I have also worked for one of the local farms for a brief period.
My name is Kaleb Montano Hoeffgen, I am twenty-two years old and a first generation Filipino-American living in one of the driest deserts in North America. The future I see for coming generations seem grim considering the current economic depression as well as implications of ecological collapse, which include present attitudes in regard to nature and its' systems. The consequence of the current disregard for nature and its' systems lead to my personal worries for my family. I worry for my younger siblings who, by the time they are of college age, will be forgaging for hard to come by food rather than foraging for knowledge. I worry for my parents, who may find their golden years filled with struggle rather than spending their last years enjoying their grand-children and family. In response to these worries, I have become a certified permaculturist with the little amount of money my family had saved for my college education. I also intend to become a certified solar photovoltaics technician. Besides my interest in implementing renewable resources, as a solar photovoltaics techician, I may be able fund my four year degree after I finally from community college. I am also training to become a master gardener as well.
Becoming a certified permaculturist has provided an understanding of how isolated we, as a society, have become from nature. I have become even more diligent in my actions, as a result, my approach to living has become more wholistic. In Las Vegas we have one of the harshest climates and attitudes for gardening and ecological restorative projects. Trying to change the current atmosphere, I volunteered with the local Great Basin Permaculture Guild. The GBPA is a non-profit institute whose aims is to bring permaculture awareness, demonstrate sustainable alternatives to present society and its' constant growth based model. At our site, donated to us by one of the local community gardens, we have sheet mulched the entire area with horse manure from surrounding ranches and bark mulch from the local green waste facilities. We have also planted alfalfa seed for ground cover which keeps moisture from leaving the soil and we have built swales to start building a watershed on the site.
In order for the general public's enjoyment and inspiration, we have taken our first steps in creating a demonstration garden. We have also erected an ocotillo fence and had a community get together to paint an appealing sign for our location. My involvement thus far has included digging, sheet mulching, and soil restoration work, sign painting, and plant cultivation for the mesquite, agave, and prickly pear plants we have on site. There have also been many conversations on how we are going to build Las Vegas into a more sustainable city These conversations have led me to develop the ideas for building my own business as a non-profit concerned with sustainable off-the-grid alternatives for communities to be self-reliant. I also have drawn alot of inspiration from the Portland City Repair project which I encounted when I traveled to Portland, Oregon three years ago. The city repair project is a citizien activist based project that uses art and ecological design to build a sustainable and more inclusive urban environment for the people of the city. In an effort to build community, they built gardens and public gathering spaces for people to meet which encourages communal sentiment.
The permaculture project in Las Vegas has offerd me alot of hope for the future. If we can do it here in the Mohave Desert, we can do it anywhere. My experience has shown me that by simply helping organize community, getting a couple shovels, and having productive conversations, we can build a better more sustainable world for our families and for all of the Earth's inhabitants.