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Matt Stone, hailing from Western Australia, is a chef at the vanguard of the sustainability movement. His early work at Greenhouse Perth, with restaurateur and sustainability champion Joost Bakker influenced his philosophy, which centres on minimising waste while creating delicious, nutritious food from local, seasonal ingredients.
His experiences with Greenhouse led him to open Australia’s first zero-waste cafe, Silo. He worked in Silo with Douglas McMaster, who left after a year to open his own Silo café in Brighton, now moved to London UK.
After a spell at Oakridge Wines, a winery restaurant in the Yarra Valley, Victoria. Stone has embarked on his latest project, the new Greenhouse concept.
It’s a six-month pop-up house, where he and his partner Jo will live. Built from shipping containers, at a cost of just A$250 thousand.
Located in the heart of Melbourne constructed using an open-source design, the project aims for 100% self-sustainability. It will sustain its own residents, generate its own power and manage its own waste. The plan is to live in the house for six months pop-up.
The Greenhouse is designed to create an ecosystem relying on its inhabitants to survive, just like in nature. A key part of the ecosystem is a bio-digester, a piece of technology developed in Israel. The machine is located under the toilet and turns human waste into gas for cooking and heating.
Each one of us generates enough organic waste in a day to provide enough gas for an hour of cooking. Solar panel will harvest energy from the sun and it will be stored within battery walls of the house. The water will be collected and recycled through a system that ensures safety and rooftop and indoor gardens will be used to grow food. Beehives will pollinate and produce honey for sweets. Aquaponics and a cricket farm will produce protein.
The main goal of the project is to eliminate waste and recreate the nutrient density of the diet of Australia’s Aboriginal peoples. On three trips to Australia between 1918 and 1928 Dr.Weston Price attributed to Aboriginal Australians as having the best diets in the world. They had virtually no disease, strong bones and teeth and were extremely fit and healthy due to their diet.
Stone’s project becomes more and more relevant as each day passes. Food waste elimination and self-sustaining eco-systems for modern living have never been more important.
