Conversations with Nick and Penny: Why "Everything Herbal" and Why Now?
Question: Why "Everything Herbal" And Why Now?
A Conversation with Nick and Penny
Our Primary Objective
Our primary objective is to give back to the herbal community for all that it has given to us. We aim to support and help uplift herbalists in Canada and abroad, and promote the vital work that plant people have tirelessly dedicated their lives to.
It is really important to us that we help and support herbal enthusiasts and practitioners of herbal medicine and their patients. We want to help students and those with a general interest in plant medicine to find premium quality, sustainably and ethically produced medicines and supplies. Those who are looking to learn about herbal medicine need to be able to find accurate and reliable educational resources. How best to grow herbs. How to source plants and seeds. How to spread awareness of endangered plants and help restore and bring vitality back to our increasingly threatened ecosystems.
A Reliable Source for Information
Sadly, there are too many places online where disinformation runs riot, and this only serves to demean the work of the herbal community at large. We are here to uplift and support our community, not just to be critical and point fingers. Now is the time for us to join together and help spread the news of herbal medicine to everyone. Herbal medicine is, and always will be, the medicine by and for the people.
The Everything Herbal team has decades of combined experience in all aspects of herbal medicine, from the field to the consulting room. Some of the members of our team are getting older, and would like to pass on the experience that they have acquired. Herbal medicine has always been a generational practice. Both teachers and students benefit when knowledge is transmitted in this way. In a field so vast and complex, it is easy to make mistakes, but when the younger generation works with its elders the integrity of the work that is carried out can be maintained at a higher level. Learn from those that came before you and avoid repeating their mistakes. Then create something even better!
Having spent a lifetime working in the herbal medicine world and dealing with the forces of industry, we have seen more than our fair share of deceit, manipulation, lies and untruths. It is unethical and cruel to sell products based on lies, hype, and inflated marketing claims. Rather, we believe in working from a rooted foundation, with solid science, detailed study and rigorous experience backing what it is that we do. With the over regulation of herbal products in Canada and the EU, for example, much of the skill, science and art of herbalism has been taken away from many herbalists and ensconced in the bureaucratic establishment, doled out and monetized, to those willing to play the game.
Back to Herbal roots
Yes, we want Everything Herbal to be subversive - but in a positive way. Just because you are told not to do things by those who don’t know any better, does not mean you cannot or should not. Many important herbs have been restricted by the medical establishment, and become out of the reach of real herbal practitioners. Much herbal tradition has been forgotten, including a great deal of insight from the folkloric, mystical and magical traditions of the past, which have been victimized and denigrated through prejudice and fear.
We care deeply about bringing herbal medicine back into everyday use. In the industrialized world, much of the common household knowledge that was held by our ancestors and used to help maintain the health of the community, has been forgotten, and even disparaged. Reviving this forgotten knowledge will help sustain our society, and play a major role in creating a healthier, happier and more equitable and compassionate world.
It is not our intention to cast ourselves as the authority on anything. Quite the contrary. Our aim is to bring us all together and to help create a brighter future under the banner of humility, mutual cooperation and respect. When we work together as a community our shared knowledge and experience will be taken more seriously and will be shown the respect that it deserves. Genuineness and truthfulness are at the core of this endeavor.
Many of us in the herbal community have been isolated from each other for far too long. We are looking forward to creating a brighter, greener future, together.
If you have any questions or topics you would like us to talk about and discuss, please send us a message or email!
