I am so thrilled to have found a way to bring my enthusiasm
for urban self sufficiency to the audience of hungry consumers. The passion to
explore and apply gardening innovations hit me in early 2008, when I discovered
the world of thinking persons who were loading up countless videos, onto YouTube, of brilliant
remedies to solve the world’s problems. I found enough information to save the
Earth at least ten times over.
It didn’t dawn on me until building my first aquaponics
system in that summer, that my thoughts would be lifted from a place of
uncertainty to a reality of deep belief.
Earth Solutions goal, as an aromatherapy company, has been to find and share natural remedies and affirmations that give people
confidence and empowerment to do good for themselves.
Earth Solutions the aquaponics and education company will be
one that teaches how to overcome at least half of all hidden stress, by simply
creating solutions to our at-risk food supply. I believe that any mass media
exposure or concern of food and water shortages creates stress at such a level
we have no idea that it affects our subconscious thoughts on a regular basis.
As a nation, we are very tied into the grid. When something goes wrong we are
all vulnerable.
The very action of building and running an aquaponic system
was so profound that I have felt as if I was swept by a force of willfulness
so powerful, that it could create energy from the sun and grow vegetables
from waste, while the world cheered as if the force came from within us all.
What happened next was something of a divine intervention. I
built a barrelponic system after seeing one online with an instructional
download. This was my first aquaponic garden and it brought to life my front
porch, with lush growing herbs and the sounds of gurgling water that drew
songbirds, dragon flies, honeybees and all sorts of life.
Neighbors took their turns visiting and asking questions, a
city park group invited me to make a proposal for developing this at a
community center under grant and then a series of state and national news
broadcasters began to write and film their stories. First there was NPR for an
audio clip and after, came Atlanta’s
Fox 5, followed by Clark Howard the Wall Street Journal and Good Morning America.
To set up an aquaponic system in Central Park on the 4th
of July weekend for Good Morning America, has to be one of the greatest thrills
of my life. The small system I named the ‘Farm in a Box’ was broadcast across
the entire United States!
All of this because people share a passionate thrill from learning that one can actually grow fish and plants in a closed loop system with
minimal effort.It is efficient with
water, nutrients, energy and labor. It is an intensive permaculture gardening
method that is fun and educational. Aquaponics supports rainwater reserves and
creates an abundance of food to be eaten, canned or shared. It helps build
cohesiveness within a community, and is a resource that we all look towards for
inspiration and confidence.
I enjoyed the press attention given to this idea and built a
new Earth Solutions this year; it is one that addresses our food and water
fears by providing practical solutions. Our soon to be deployed new website
will dive deeper into the sustainability and off-the-grid movement through
forums, news and video feeds. I also hope to build a portal that will introduce
a world of ideas to a world of seekers, so that we may get on with the job of
applying our 21st century wisdom, to give us security and genuinely improve the quality of
our lives.
Aromatherapy and gift items will continue to be offered here
as they arouse thoughts, benefit emotions and improve wellbeing.
Your feedback is welcomed. We will be looking forward to
crowdsourcing your ideas, teaching curriculums and innovations so that this
information, your designs and everyones products may be shared and traded for
the better of us all.
David Epstein, D.O.
Manager, Earth Solutions LLC
Summer, 2009
A native of Dallas, Texas, David Epstein, D.O., began his career after completing his osteopathic training at
the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1986 and General Practice
Internship in Flint, Michigan. Undergraduate training was completed at the University
of Texas and University of California at Berkeley with a major in
Psychology and minor in Art.
After moving to Atlanta, GA, Dr Dave
opened the Little 5 Points Medical Clinic in 1990, a neighborhood
health clinic. A member of the American College for Advancement in
Medicine, he trained among such greats as Jonathan Wright M.D., Alan
Gaby M.D., Robert Atkins, MD, James Frackleton, D.O., Julian Whitaker
M.D., Arthur Koch D.O. and many others in the areas of Orthomolecular
Medicine, Complementary Medicine, Chelation Therapy, IV Hydrogen
Peroxide and Vitamin Therapies, Homeopathy and Herbal Medicine.
In addition to providing alternative remedies for common ailments in
family medicine, his osteopathic practice treated many conditions related to
his holistic knowledge in cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer,
candida, sciatica, obesity, chronic fatigue syndrome, PMS, stress,
depression and mood disorders. Despite the many great alternative
remedies he came across, his greatest revelation was that most medical conditions arise from over-medication, unhealthy lifestyles, inadequate nutrition and poor eating
habits.
"In 1992, I started Earth Solutions™, an
environmental company focused on marketing a deuterium sulfate
oxygen/mineral/enzyme solution that was introduced to me by a friend.
The solution had wide applications, from animal
nourishment, to composting, to soil conditioning. It was a type of
nourishment that was beneficial to the cells of plants and animals.
Plants grew larger, roots more deeply penetrated
the soil, produce was more bountiful; animals benefited from the Solution thru aiding the digestion of their foods which led to improved nourishment, fewer ailments and healthier offspring."
It as something that anyone would
appreciate; for Dr. Epstein, an avid organic gardener and natural
ingredients advocate, it was another opportunity to help bring forward solutions to our troubled earth.
"Two years later, a patient named Ginger, sought
treatment from for a case of cystic acne. It was the
first time I had experimented with the oxygen Cellfood solution for any non-animal medical
condition. In this case for treating acne, it made great sense; the high concentration of oxygen would help
kill harmful bacteria, naturally occurring lipase enzymes would
help break down sebaceous oils and clean pores, and minerals and amino acids could contribute to the healing of
the skin.
"After mixing into an aloe vera gel, Ginger
was asked to return for a follow up visit in 10 days. The first thing she said when came into her room was "The acne had
completed cleared up!” And indeed it had.
The rest is history, the oxygen solution developed into a line of
therapeutic skin care gels. Aromatherapy was introduced a few years later and
then in an unexpected turn, an aromatherapy and new age jewelry line was built. Before it was all told, there were line extensions, new packaging and the concept of Affirmatherapy was borne. Earth Solutions
became widely distributed for years to the health and gift markets.
Fast forward to 2009 and the story begins, again, with aquaponics.
