MedicineCrow Blog

One of the world's great modern herbalists, Richo Cech, was recently interviewed by David Crow and Jai Dev Singh on MedicineCrow Radio.

Listen to a segment of their talk, in which Richo describes a spiritual lifestyle living close to the land in relationship with the plants, below.

Nuclear Energy Critic Clarifies The Dangers
Watch the Video...

Dr. Helen Caldicott is a widely traveled and well-spoken critic of nuclear weapons and energy technologies.

We look forward to hosting her for an exclusive webcast on MedicineCrow in the coming months.

In the meantime, we don't want anyone to miss a talk she gave on April 9th in Seattle Washington, titled What Have We Learned From Fukushima?

She offers a thorough overview of the dangers of radioactive materials being released into the environment, and an astue overview of the economic, political, and psychological conditions that allow these technologies to be developed and deployed.

Watch the video after the break.

World Renowned Ayurveda Expert
Interviewed on MedicineCrow

MedicineCrow was proud to host Karta Purkh Khalsa for an interview with David Crow and Jai Dev Singh. We've had great response from the interview and webcast, and we're excited to share the complete audio of the interview with you here.

I've had the privilege of receiving teachings from Mr. Khalsa in person, and his easy style and depth of knowledge make him one of my favorite teachers of botanical medicine.

Take a listen after the break, and please let us know what you think in the comments!

In spite of the unfortunate setback the Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association has faced with the dismissal of their case against Monsanto, the movement to expose and regulate genetically modified organisms continues to grow. OSGATA will appeal, and GMO labeling is likely to get on the ballot in California. The issues of transgenic technology are global in scope, as clearly described by OSGATA President Jim Gerritsen in his recent interview on MedicineCrow with David Crow. The interview is now available to the public to download from MedicineCrow for free.
Listen to the audio after the break.

David Crow is known for his visionary ecological approach to business, a cosmological view that keeps the focus on the plants in the center of the mandala. This view was never better expressed than at the In the Garden of the Medicine Buddha retreat in 2009. Just before the retreat, David expressed the entire worldview in a concise, profound, and inspiring talk: The Dharma of Essential Oils and the Flowering of Spiritual Culture.

MedicineCrow Teacher Community
Represented at National Ayurveda Conference

National Ayurvedic Medical Association hosts one of the primary conferences for professional practitioners of Ayurveda. These annual retreats feature the most brilliant teachers and thinkers as speakers and attendees. Many MedicineCrow interview videos were created at past NAMA conferences.

The 2012 conference will feature MedicineCrow founder David Crow as a keynote speaker, opening the conference on April 19th 2012. David is known as an advocate of grassroots healthcare, which he defines as local, affordable, and non-toxic, and his classes are well received by home enthusiasts and professional practitioners alike.

David Crow Interviews
Deb Soule

Deb Soule is a lifetime herbalist. Her small herbal company Avena Botanicals continues to grow, prompted by friendly visits from government officials. David Crow visited the Avena Botanicals farm and wrote about his experiences in October. More recently, Deb was interviewed by David as a guest on MedicineCrow, when she shared her experiences as an herbalist, farmer, and business owner.

Feather Jones
Southwest Herbalist

Chronic Inflammation
"The Silent Killer"

Inflammation, the body’s natural immunity and healing response, when unchecked causes damage to the body. Acute inflammation such as redness and swelling ought to resolve when the trauma or illness has healed. However contributing factors such as diet or radiation can cause inflammation to become chronic.

Aromatherapy Expert
Goes Deep Into the Skin

A cursory look at popular fashion advertising suggests that beauty is created with an elaborate array of expensive cosmetic products. The dizzying selection of commercial cosmetics are mostly designed to alter or cover up a person's features with a layer of stuff. What's more, the industry is slow to adopt non-toxic ingredients. Since the skin absorbs whatever is applied to it, by using these cosmetics we are ingesting more toxins through the skin than through the digestive tract.

Somali Immigrant Revolutionizing Frankincense Industry with Fair Wages for Harvesters

Frankincense has been widely regarded as one of the world's most precious sacred scents.  Brokers purchase the resin in massive quantities and auction with large markups while the land-owners earn a fraction of the value of the substance, while the harvesters are paid only in food.  The trees must be scarified to express the resin, and as international demand rises, the trees are dramatically over harvested, threatening their fragile existence.

One of the Most Prolific and Important Teachers of Ayurveda In the World Returns To MedicineCrow In September!

Poor quality food, environmental toxins, and stress all contribute to imbalances in the body that can be treated through cleansing.  Cleansing is the proces of eating a specific diet supplemented with herbs to encourage the organs and tissues to release toxins to be eliminated by the body.  Many health concerns - both physical and mental - can be effectively addressed through cleansing and detoxification.  However most people don't know the process to effectively and safely detoxify.

Goldthread Medicinal Herb Farm Pioneering
Grassroots Healthcare Business Model

As a licensed Acupuncturist, Bill Siff was familiar with using herbs to treat his patients. However having exotic medicinal plants shipped from around the world didn’t sit with his idea of sustainable grassroots healthcare. He realized that for a resurgence of botanical medicine, herbs would need to be locally grown and cost-effective. Along with his wife Sarah, he started Goldthread Herb Farm in Conway Massachusetts, which supplies herbs for their associated apothecary in nearby Florence.

Farmers' Markets proliferate while stagnant agribusiness take $12bn in Federal subsidies to stay afloat.

Rodale reports on USDA statistics indicating a massive upsurge of Farmers' Markets across the United States.  The statistics suggest many jobs are created by the local food movement, which comes as a surprise as the U.S. economy continues its decline.  Meanwhile, rising food prices and mistrust of corporate intentions are sending more people looking to their communities for a human connection with their food. (photo)

Raw milk from quality sources is advocated by proponents of traditional whole foods diets such as the Weston A. Price Foundation, and in the last few years has gained popularity in natural foods markets, CSAs, and food buying clubs.  In spite of what appears to be a lack of evidence that raw milk is dangerous, the FDA and CDC, along with local law enforcement made a military-style raid on Rawesome Foods in Venice California on Wednesday August 3rd, 2011. The founder James Stewart was arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit a crime, and the store’s inventory of unpasturized milk was destroyed. (via Natural News) Below, a close associate of Mr. Stewart describes the raid:

The action has generated a rallying cry from the whole foods communities with demonstrations staged at the courthouse where Mr. Stewart is being arraigned on felony charges.