Self-compassion and belonging
Real food, health, and regeneration
In a world where everything is connected
Tend Yourself
self-compassion and self-leadership
so you can be more effective at caring for what's important to you in the world around you
Real Food and Real Health
building health sustainably and ethically
without the guilt and perfectionism
Everything is Connected
exploring our relationship with the world around us in hopeful, encouraging ways
let your life be a vote for the kind of world you want your kids and grandkids to grow up in
Hi, I'm Kate.
I write about self-compassion and self-leadership, belonging, real food, health, and regeneration.
I believe everything is connected, so it doesn't matter where you start. And whether you focus on sleeping better, becoming a calmer parent, homegrown food, or ethical/sustainable living, no action or choice is too small to make a difference.
My goal is to help you feel the difference inside yourself. Everything else ripples out from there.
Learn more about me here.
Read 9 ways to know if you're the kind of person who might enjoy my work.
Read what I mean by "a real green life," including how to dodge the eco-guilt.
Or, keep scrolling for reader comments and featured posts 🙂
Readers say ...
Well researched, honest and inspiring
"Kate is a regular contributing author to Permaculture News and I always look forward to receiving her articles. They are always thought provoking, well researched, honest and inspiring.
Kate's articles present different perspectives on the world (Everything is Connected), and our place in it (Tend Yourself) or share valuable knowledge, hints and tips (Real Food, Real Health). I know the wider Permaculture community also appreciate Kate's contributions; many comments are shared on her posts.
Thanks Kate."
Anna
Your posts aid me in reviewing where I'm at in my life and how I can best contribute in my waning years
I do love your posts and am often re-inspired by them. At the moment I'm recovering from an accident that has made me pause and review where I'm at in my life and how I can best contribute in my waning years. I appreciate that your posts aid me in pondering all this.
Warmly,
Karen Sherwood
Karen Sherwood
No fluff
"So much interesting and important info, neatly packaged, no fluff. "
Gunter
Lucid insights
"Thank you Kate. You express your insights and understandings lucidly. I appreciate the broad perspective you share on subjects that are meaningful to you—social, spiritual, environmental, economical—and the research and reading you do to inform your writing."
Meg
Realizing how numb we are
"Dear Kate, Thank you for posting such deep and thought provoking blog posts. ... I think you are doing a great service to make us all aware of the consequences of our actions. It makes me realize how numb we are, and how comfortable it is to be numb, just doing what everyone else does and not questioning the real impacts of our lives."
Anonymous
Insightful ideas and concepts
"I love your stuff - you come up with very insightful ideas and concepts. For example, I never realized that Essential Oils had become such a big industry that it was impacting on the environment."
Cathy
Honest, genuine, thought provoking
"As a homeschooling Mum pursuing a more meaningful life for my family, ARealGreenLife supports me in questioning and expanding my existing world view."
Melita
Wisdom I can sit with
"Kate, I really like "When Nothing You Can Do Makes a Difference." It's wisdom I can sit with -- wisdom I've been looking for as I think about how to prioritize things going forward. I have it right next to my journal as a reminder."
Lorraine
Food for thought
"I subscribe to quite a few homestead/green lifestyle newsletters. Yours is so relatable, informative, and gives excellent food for thought; Get Off the Bus is a great example. Thanks so much for your work. Cheers from a Nova Scotia!"
Jessica
Recent TEND YOURSELF Posts
March 8, 2026
Anxiety and overwhelm feel horrible. And a scattered, dis-regulated nervous system affects EVERYTHING, especially our relationships. Breathing can help. In this post I share how paying attention to your breath can help you calm your nervous system, bring you back to yourself, and even help ease the sense that there is never enough time.
August 18, 2025
Volition is a source of energy that informs our intentions and energizes our actions, but not all volition comes from the heart. When we’re swept away by clever, compelling messaging from outside of ourselves, we lose touch with our internal volition — with our values and our authentic desires.
August 6, 2025
If you grew up without learning that mistakes are ok you may have developed a strong inner critic who, like a 5 year old trying to prevent trouble, now controls your adult life to keep you from taking risks. The antidote is to give your self the compassionate leadership you missed out on when you were growing up.
April 11, 2025
Locating power outside of myself leads to me trying to create safety for myself by controlling the people and events around me. Conversely, locating power within myself liberates me to change my internal experience regardless of my outer relationships or circumstances — and that makes a difference to how satisfied and effective I can be both personally and in my efforts to make a difference in the world around me.
October 22, 2023
It’s uncomfortable to be around someone who is suffering because it wakes up all that’s untended to within our own selves. We can’t stand that, so we hurry to put a band aide over what-ever is hurting in the other person, to quiet things down again, so we can get back to pretending we’re fine.
On HOMEGROWN FOOD and HOME HEALTH CARE
June 9, 2026
Batch cooked rice can provide a base for a variety of meals without having to be prepped and cooked from scratch each time. I use brown rice and soak/ferment it using a perpetual rice starter, for maximum nutrition and digestibility.
READ MOREApril 12, 2026
There are so many ways to use chokos and choko vines. People food (including recipes), animal food, weed control, and mulch are among the uses listed in this post.
READ MOREMarch 24, 2026
Organ meats were among the most prized foods humans ate prior to industrialization. Here’s why, along with how to start eating them again.
READ MORENovember 18, 2025
Purslane is one of those “weeds” that volunteer themselves right on our doorsteps to provide free, nutritious food far surpassing anything we’ll ever find in a supermarket. Its eaten throughout the warm, dry parts of the world, in an endless variety of ways.
READ MOREOctober 27, 2025
Real food is regenerative, not extractive. Small-scale, regenerative agriculture can help address our food, climate, and community crises.
READ MOREAugust 7, 2025
Taro is an easy-to-grow, nutritious homegrown alternative to rice and pasta from the supermarket. It can be a self-renewing food source, especially useful for when extreme weather events cut supply chains — because the wetter it gets, the happier taro is.
READ MOREApril 15, 2025
I used to put off the task of rendering fat for cooking, soap making, and skin care – because it was time consuming, messy, and intimidating. After making every imaginable (and some un-imaginable) mistake, here’s the simple method I use now. Clean, odour-free rendered fat without the mess and stress.
READ MORENovember 24, 2024
Sweet potato tubers + greens combined give you a calorie AND nutrient dense food from one growing space. Here’s how to grow them at home, including ideas for protecting them from rodents.
READ MOREOctober 10, 2024
Over time, wild edibles (weeds) can help us build deep health and resilience, offering a spectrum of nutrition that no supermarket shelf or bottle of pills can ever provide — and weeds are free! Here are six that grow almost everywhere.
READ MOREOn HEALTHIER SUPERMARKET HABITS
January 31, 2023
Whole foods require more planning and organization than processed convenience foods, but the pay-off is worth it. The benefits include: better nutrition, a feeling of empowerment and reconnection as you learn to engage with your food closer to its source, and the satisfaction in knowing you’re taking better care of the Earth just by how you eat.
November 14, 2022
Our physical and social environments have huge influence on our habits and behaviors. People who design supermarkets and sell products know this and take full advantage of it. This post will help you examine what’s shaping your shopping routines and your buying decisions, and learn how to change them.