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Hi – my name is Pam Marshall. I’m the creator of The Self-Sufficiency Shoppe and the ‘Living in Harmony with the Planet’ Workshops and author of ‘The Shoppe’ publications.\u00a0 Here’s a little about me…..<\/p>\nHi – my name is Pam Marshall. I’m the creator of The Self-Sufficiency Shoppe and the ‘Living in Harmony with the Planet’ Workshops and author of ‘The Shoppe’ publications.\u00a0 Here’s a little about me…..<\/p>\n
I was born and raised in country South Australia. \u00a0After leaving school I went to the \u2018big city\u2019 (Adelaide) to pursue a career. I first trained and worked as a general nurse before venturing into the psychiatric field \u2013 which I enjoyed and remained for 10 years. But something yearned inside me for a more \u2018earth-connected\u2019 and self-sustained \u2018occupation\u2019, so in 1986 I left full-time work and pursued a (less reliable) \u2018career\u2019 as a writer of topics related to self-sufficiency and environmental responsibility. During those years I researched and published over 100 publications. I have continued to be an avid writer and researcher of all things \u2018alternative\u2019.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The Environment<\/span><\/p>\n From my youth I have felt concerned about the plight of the environment.\u00a0 The planet has limitations on how long it will be able to sustain the human race and it’s\u00a0environmentally extravagant \u2018consumer lifestyle\u2019.\u00a0 The problem has originated from the fact that short-term \u2018profit and progress\u2019 have become far more important than protecting the environment for our future.\u00a0 I believe the basic skills of self-reliance, self-sufficiency and resourcefulness (i.e. working with the planet as opposed to against it) are vital for our future survival as a community.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Even in my short life, I have noticed a significant change in the natural habitat and wildlife. As a small child I would catch tadpoles in pools of water by the side of the road \u2013 today, due to changes in the natural environment, tadpoles are a rarity and echidnas, that were once a source of great delight, have long since disappeared. Where eucalypts flourished now remains soil of high salinity and deteriorated native trees and scrub-land.<\/p>\n So, having given up a career in full-time nursing to fulfill a driving ambition to \u2018work for the planet\u2019 in 1989 I came across the idea of a \u2018self-sufficiency shop\u2019 based upon the \u2018back-to-basics\u2019 and self-sufficiency concepts of my writings.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Over that time I have developed The Shoppe through various phases – from\u00a0publications to offering stock and basic materials to\u00a0products and more recently – the ‘Living in\u00a0Harmony with the Planet’ Workshops.<\/p>\n Establishing the Workshops:<\/span><\/p>\n In 2004 I was invited by my local Community Centre to run workshops along the theme of my back-to-basics writings. The workshops quickly became quite popular.\u00a0 Since then I have extended the range of workshops to offer sixteen different topics.\u00a0 I now spend the majority of my time running workshops at various suburban Adelaide and country venues \u2013 for councils, commun I attribute, in part, the success of the workshops to the six years of my\u00a0nursing career spent co-ordinating a rehabilitation unit.\u00a0 The unit\u2019s focus was on alternative approaches to dealing with health issues.\u00a0 An important part of its programme was\u00a0 \u2018group-work\u2019\u00a0on social and living skill development.\u00a0 Many of my clients at the time\u00a0were facing surviving on a low income \u2013 I became adept at finding ways to teach people how to live frugally (but comfortably).\u00a0 My learning and experiences in this area have proved invaluable in making the \u2018Living in Harmony with the Planet Workshops\u2019 successful.\u00a0 Educating\u2019 people about the simplicity of self-sufficiency and environmental responsibility has been a very pleasurable experience.\u00a0 The look of surprise on people\u2019s faces when they make or use something that is \u2018cheap and simple\u2019 is wonderfully encouraging.\u00a0 They are genuinely surprised.\u00a0 It reflects the huge impact consumerism and commercialism has had on people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n
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<\/a>ity centres, community groups, business\u00a0and groups\/associations.<\/p>\n