DIY Fungi

and people, plants, microbes) through research, education and action. In this work I am really standing on the shoulders of inspiring teachers Peter McCoy and Willoughby Arevalo of Radical Mycology, Ja Schindler of Fungi for the People, and Leila Darwish of Earth Repair ; and drawing on the works of Paul Stamets, Tradd Cotter and others, as well as from my own experience of mistakes, failures, and things that have really worked. So hopefully you will have a starting point where you can avoid total failure, but I also hope you make mistakes and fail some because that’s where I know I learned the most. I’m engaging in this work on the traditional territories of the Cahuilla peoples in Southern California, currently, after living many years on unceded Coast Salish territories of the Lekwungen and WESANEC peoples. It is always important for me to hold in my awareness and act from a place of knowing I am a visitor here (well, an unwelcome guest). My family taught me that guests always bring gifts, respect the home and customs of the hosts (ask if you don’t know), and clean up after yourself. Instead, settler culture has brought destruction and pollution here. Fungi are a great model for how to be a good guest and host. In Radical Mycology’s words, “Fungi are adaptive, creative, and aware and interacts with its environment as though keeping the health of the greater system in mind. It is great model for co-existence and interconnectedness and interdependence based on mutual aid, decentralization, and living in a way that benefits all.”