I opened up my Squidoo lens without realizing I would have to start writing right away and suddenly it was pushing me - what's your topic? What's this lens about? What will people ask to find you? I felt panic as my topic is so broad.

Watching birds build their nests. Gardening with effective micro-organisms. Building a nature sanctuary. Running an eco-resort. Being part of the new zeitgeist. Then the idea came to me. This lens is about being a green entrepreneur - a GREENtrapreneur.
It is a hybrid English-French word which sounds harsh and even ugly to the ear. But I love it because it has the power of a seed with everything contained within it. And if it has an ugly aspect, so be it. There is an ugly side to all this green business as I shall certainly explore.

I shall begin with the meaning of the word "entrepreneur." It was first coined by an Irish economist Richard Cantillon.

"Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to the type of personality who is willing to take on herself or himself a new venture and accepts full responsibility for the outcome." This is from Wikipedia and I have a slight quibble with it - full responsibility ? No entrepreneur ever works alone%u2026 but for now I must hurry on.

"They are successful because their passion for an outcome leads them to organize available resources in new and more valuable ways. In doing so, they are said to efficiently and effectively use the factors of production. Those factors are now deemed to include at least the following elements: land (natural resources), labour (human input into production using available resources), capital (any type of machinery), intelligence and creativity."

My heart leaps with joy when I read these words because it expresses so succinctly the connection between the environment and business success; the wise and efficient use of resources. Furthermore it also has a transcendent element "intelligence and creativity" plus "passion" - these are the qualities that distinguish us as human beings.

It is our very brilliance that has brought us to the brink of extinction as a species.

"The biofuel boom is dramatically accelerating global warming; imperiling the planet in the name of saving it." Time magazine April 7, 2008. "Some scientists believe fires are now altering the local microclimate and could eventually reduce the Amazon to a savanna or even a desert. It's approaching a tipping point."

Painful as it is to read of the destruction of any habitat, what is especially startling about this is the symbolic importance of the Amazon, which is perhaps the most magnificent and important ecosystem on the planet. When brings me to the meaning of the other half of greentrepeneur, the word green. Although this word has come to represent almost anything to do with the environment, I would like to dwell for a moment on its deeper meaning, in particular, emerald green as this is the colour of green in my imagination.

"Although Emerald is a stone of prosperity and riches, it is not just a materialistic stone. It also encourages spiritual growth, clear vision, memory, faith, intelligence and communication, inspiration, joy, intuition, clairvoyance, sensuality, love, romance, beauty, harmony, tranquility, serenity, clarity, cleansing, justice, friendship and unity. It seems that more kinds, friendship and unity. It seems that more kinds of physical healing have been ascribed to the emerald than to almost any other stone."

So, as you can see, there are many layers of meaning and significance in this new word "greentrepreneur" and I will explore them over time.

To find out more about my project please see www.faasai.com

The starting point for most entrepreneurs is a dream: a light that calls us. It is this that fuels our passion and enables us to work enthusiastically, long after most others would have given up.

Some people admire our zeal, others pity us, others give us well-meaning but patronizing advice.

Just this week I was told by a banker that the economics are hopeless for small resorts (I have a small one on the Southeast coast of Thailand). "More than 90 percent of them fail," he said. But I am used to this.

Michaelangelo, when describing his work, said the images were there already in the stone, he just had to release them. To illustrate this point he left chunks of uncut stone intact in many of his sculptures, which gave them a strange beauty as human forms emerged from the rough stones. This reminds me of entrepreneurs who usually see something long before anyone else does.

Of course we are entrepreneurs for practical reasons, not merely artistic ones. In my case, I wanted a joint enterprise with my husband Surin and a lifestyle that would support my writing - ideally a beautiful place where I could enjoy nature and meet interesting people.

Once we found our dream site the next step was to create a business with a unique point of difference - as the English entrepreneur Paul Smith says, "the important thing for any business is to have a point of view." I certainly felt that our site was unique - like Michaelangelo I just wanted to express it. Before building anything I walked around and around like an animal in an enclosure, noting the earth, the slope of the land and the currents of the air - which changed at different places. The land told me what to do and I made a design which we followed.

I also wrote a little communications plan in a notebook:

"Objectives: to create a recognised brand which reflects values of warm, welcoming, in touch with nature, authentic (part of local community), caring."

"A place of beauty, grace and harmony."

"The challenge: to attract visitors who are sensitive to the environment and want an authentic experience; to persuade locals this is the best course of action."

That was my lodestone for a long time and recently I expanded this to become a mission statement as follows:

"Our values are: caring (in keeping with Thai Buddhist culture, compassion for all sentient beings including those in the natural and spirit world) beauty (creating a beautiful environment in harmony with nature) and learning (giving guests a memorable experience that helps them to transform their lives in a positive way)."

The name we chose was Faasai, two words in Thai which have many layers of meaning. Translated simply into English it means clear skies or pure heavens. It also resonates with our location in Kung Wiman which means a place in heaven. Our logo is based on the leaf of the Bhopal tree which is growing in our garden and a symbol of enlightenment (the Buddha sat under a Bhopal tree when he reached enlightment). Our name cards have a green palm leaf, reflecting the freshness of nature. These are some examples of how the values have been used in our brand.

As a consultant I work with businesses to develop communications and marketing strategies. As with Faasai Resort and Spa, we start by identifying core values. It is a technique much discussed by authors such as Jim Collins and Arthur Rubinfield and I have found that it works. Your communications with your customers are much more powerful because they are authentic. You will be totally consistent in all the messages that you send. And it will help you too with your staff as they will have a very clear understanding of what your business is about which they will convey this in their work and with your customers.

Further reading:

Built for Growth by Arthur Rubinfield and Collins Hemingway

Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies by Jim Collins

www.paulsmith.co.uk

www.faasai.com

By Bronwen Evans

To harness the abundance of the tropics, the soil needs humus, lots of it. I was thrilled, therefore, when I discovered piles of palm flower heads for sale at a nearby mushroom farm and took home a truckload.

My sister-in-law Sula, who manages the place, wasn't impressed. "Look at these snails!" She held out one, which almost filled her palm.

And look here!" She lifted up a palm head to reveal a muddy scab of dust and scampering lice. "Termites! Don't buy those palms any more," she huffed. As for cow manure, the other option I proposed - "too smelly! The guests won't like it."

So I had a problem. Fortunately a New Zealander, Trish Allen of Rainbow Valley Farm, gave me a solution - Effective Micro-organisms or EM. She had come to Thailand to attend a workshop about this system which is a natural way of increasing the fertility of the soil while managing pests and diseases.

EM is a mixed culture of micro organisms, in three categories: photosynthetic bacteria, lactobbacilus and yeasts. In layman's terms photosynthetic bacteria fix the sun's energy into useful acids, sugars and metabolites, lactobbacilus helps suppress some disease inducing microorganisms and pest populations and yeasts promote cell and root division.

The principles of EM were laid down by Mokichi Okada, the founder of Nature Farming or Kyushei in Japanese, which means "save the world." In addition to helping individual farmers, it would enhance human health and well-being, create sufficient production to feed an increasing population in a sustainable way and help to conserve the environment. Mokichi Okada died in 1955 but his mantle was assumed by Professor Tereo Higa of the Agricultural University of Okinawa. Professor Higa developed and trademarked Effective Microorganisms, or EM, and in 1989 the Asia Pacific Natural Agricultural Network (APNAN) was born in Thailand.

Thanks to APNAN, local Thai farmers began using EM on their crops, in animal husbandry and aquaculture. The government used it for waste management, water and soil pollution control and even to reduce the smells of corpses after the 2004 Tsunami.

My EM experiment began with a truckload of rice straw, piles of leaves, bags of cow manure, EM and molasses that I bought from APNAN, a 100 litre drum and Pon, my husband's 20-something nephew who had learnt about making EM in school.

We made bokashi, a special EM compost that doesn't generate as much heat as regular compost and is ready for the garden within days. This was for my new vegetable garden. My beans, which I had soaked in EM before planting in the bokashi, shot up like triffids waving their tendrils in the sky. Before long the housemaids were asking me for bean seeds to plant in their own gardens.

I also began making EM tea following the same recipe of EM, molasses and water. It needs to be left for 7-10 days to ferment and then it can be diluted with water and sprinkled on the garden. The water by the way must be pure, not chlorinated.

The first point to remember when making EM tea, otherwise know as secondary EM, is to use your nose. Primary EM from APNAN has a sweet-sour smell, somewhat like fermented kikoman sauce. This is what you are aiming for with your secondary EM.

Everything must be kept clean - so scrub out the drum each time. Left too long and the brew smells like an over-ripe Chardonnay. If there are bacterial residues in the drum, it pongs like a grubby Bordeaux. Since the effectiveness of EM is reliant on the balance of the micro organisms, APNAN advises you to throw it away if it doesn't have the correct sweet-sour smell.

EM for pest control

To tackle pests such as termites, snails and ants I make a natural pesticide, which is a brew of bitter or insect-repelling herbs such as neem, citronella, chiretta and marigolds mixed with EM tea. This has a dual benefit, as the more fertile the garden becomes, the more it will attract natural predators such as birds, fish, frogs and lizards. The wildlife also helps to keep down the mosquitoes which pleases us and our guests.

Since I began using EM the garden has became more lush, the flowers more prolific. Little sunbirds dart in and out of the bushes to make nests while butterflies sip the nectar. Encouraged by such success, I have expanded the initial weekly drum of EM to two, then three, the EM trail around the garden marked out by piles of worm casings.

We tip EM down the drains to keep them clean and disinfect our grey water tank and flush it in the toilets for our septic tanks. The hibiscus flowers, which are watered from the grey water tank, have never looked better. I clean out the cage of my pet lorikeet with EM and regularly add a splash to his bath water - his exuberant health and glossy feathers, a sign of its goodness.

The EM message is spreading around the world. It is a boon for poorer countries such as Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos as farmers can produce more with less. It is also gaining a following in wealthier countries such as Australia, the United States and New Zealand. A New Zealand Nature Farming Society has been set up in Christchurch, Lincoln University is conducting EM trials and there are many distributors of EM and bokashi kits around the country, with Neville Burt of Bokashi NZ and Trish Allen of Rainbow Valley Farm keen advocates for the system.

For me, EM has become an addiction. It is not just that it produces quick and dramatic results, as it did with the beans. But even more deeply satisfying is seeing the steady transformation of the soil and the abundance of life that flows from the invigorated earth.

Websites:
www.emnz.com
www.apnan.org
www.rainbowvalleyfarm.co.nz
www.bokashi.co.nz
www.faasai.com
www.wildasia.net

Our bokashi recipe

Mix up a tea of 500 mililitres of EM, 500 mililitres of molasses and 50 litres of water. Sprinkle this over the other materials such as straw, manure and leaves, which you have also mixed up until they are nicely damp, leave it in a pile and within a few days or weeks you will have black and friable bokashi, ready for the garden.

Benefits of EM

EM promotes germination, growth, flowering, fruiting and ripening of crops
EM enhances the photosynthetic capacity of plants
EM enhances the efficacy of organic matter or fertilizer
EM develops resistance of plants to pests and diseases
EM improves the efficacy of organic matter as fertilizer
EM improves the physical, chemical and biological environment of the soil
EM suppresses soil borne pathogens and pests

About the author

New Zealander Bronwen Evans, with her Thai husband Surin Laopha, is the owner of Faasai Resort and Spa, an eco-resort in Chanthaburi, Thailand. The resort has three and a half acres of gardens and is a finalist in Wild Asia's 2008 Responsible Tourism Awards.