72h Permaculture Design Course: Permaculture for the Rural African Environment, Konso, Ethiopia
Courses/Workshops — by Alex McCausland April 16, 2012
This 13-day practical and demonstrative PDC will take place in Konso, south Ethiopia, from May 7th – 19th, 2012, at Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge. It will have a special focus on the application of permaculture to communities in the developing world. It will involve practical demonstrations both form Strawberry Fields’ own model permaculture site and from schools sites in the area which are participating in the Permaculture in Konso Schools Project. There will also be the chance to do field trips into other climate zones in the Ethiopian highlands.
Facilitators: Alex McCausland with local assistant trainer, Asmelash Dagne, and guest appearances from local elders and intellectuals.
Dates: May 7th to 19th, 2011
Location: Konso, South Ethiopia
Venue: Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge
Cost: US$850 ($500 for Ethiopians)
Includes: course fees, food and accommodation for the period of the course
Excludes: Transport, accommodation en-route, travel insurance etc.
The Course
Comments (0)Update on Progress on the Permaculture in Konso Schools Project and Our Last PDC at Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge, Konso, Ethiopia
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Village Development — by Alex McCausland March 22, 2012
An international student simultaneously gains permaculture knowledge and
experience, whilst supporting much-needed permaculture aid work
and project establishment — aka: The Permaculture Master Plan.
The latest PDC at Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge was a good step forward for us, as we managed to combine and integrate several objectives and deliver satisfactory results on all of them through the course of the program:
- Training a group of folks from various parts of the world to be permaculture designers
- Giving new impetus to, and gaining quality feedback on, our school’s permaculture outreach program
- Developing a plan for the next stage of that program.
72h Permaculture Design Course: Permaculture for the Rural African Environment, Konso, Ethiopia
Courses/Workshops — by Alex McCausland March 20, 2012
This 13-day practical and demonstrative PDC will take place in Konso, south Ethiopia, from 7th – 19th, 2012, at Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge. It will have a special focus on the application of permaculture to communities in the developing world. It will involve practical demonstrations both form Strawberry Fields’ own model permaculture site and from schools sites in the area which are participating in the Permaculture in Konso Schools Project. There will also be the chance to do field trips into other climate zones in the Ethiopian highlands.
Facilitators: Alex McCausland with local assistant trainer, Asmelash Dagne, and guest appearances from local elders and intellectuals.
Dates: May 7th to 19th, 2011
Location: Konso, South Ethiopia
Venue: Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge
Cost: US$850 ($500 for Ethiopians)
Includes: course fees, food and accommodation for the period of the course
Excludes: Transport, accommodation en-route, travel insurance etc.
The Course
Comments (0)72-hour Permaculture Design Course, Konso, Ethiopia (Feb 2012)
Courses/Workshops — by Alex McCausland January 11, 2012
This PDC will take place in Konso, south Ethiopia, from 13th – 25th February 2011, at Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge. It will have a special focus on the application of Permaculture to communities in the developing world and low tech solutions to food establishment in rural and urban schools and communities drawing inspiration from established projects in a range of locations and climate zones around the country.
Facilitators: Tichafa Makovere and Alex McCausland
Dates: February 13th – 25th, 2012
Location: Konso, South Ethiopia
Venue: Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge
Cost: US$650 ($500 for Ethiopians)
Includes: course fees, food and accommodation for the period of the course
Excludes: Transport, accommodation in Addis, travel insurance etc.
Documents You Will Need
- Info and Application Form (130kb PDF)
- Orientation (62kb PDF)
Update on Karat Primary School’s Permaculture Progress, Ethiopia
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Developments — by Alex McCausland November 19, 2011
The ‘after map’ design — does not resemble the actual implementation
This is an update on my recent post on new school projects here in Ethiopia. We visited Karat Primary School again as a group on Friday 28th October 2011. The group comprised Alex McCausland, Tichafa Makovere, Rhamis Kent (an international permaculture trainer accredited by the PRI Australia) and five permaculture students; two Ethiopians from Fiche, North Shoa, two Mexicans and one American, who were participating on an international Permaculture Design Certificate course at SFEL.
Comments (0)Ethiopia’s Strawberry Fields Eco-Lodge – A Call for Participation
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Project Positions — by Alex McCausland October 28, 2011
Permaculture in Ethiopia stands on the edge of a sea of possibilities. This is a virgin land. The mighty plains of Abyssinia rise out of the Eastern Sahara, to become rolling fertile uplands, worked by farmers in the primeval mode that the modern westerner can only dream about nowadays, caricatured by the Shire in Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings. It is a land where people live in little circular grass-roofed huts and make hay stacks with wooden pitch forks to feed their cattle through the dry season. They plough the deep fertile soils with oxen and sow a variety of crops, of which their most beloved is their own indigenous endemic grain t’eff, used to make the national staple food, injera.
Comments (5)A Practical Example of How Attitudes Can Be Leverage or Obstacles in Critical Project Development Work
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres — by Alex McCausland August 30, 2011
Editor’s Note: It’s a trend we’re increasingly seeing with permaculture unfortunately — that of the rise of permaculture perfectionists. Many readers have noticed this in comments on this and other permaculture sites, where people are quick to judge and criticise, feeling superior in their own problem-discovering skills, instead of taking pride in helping fledgling projects move forward, by way of encouragement and nurturing. I applaud Alex here for his dogged determination through blood, sweat and tears to keep building his much-needed permaculture demonstration site in one of the most needy parts of the world. I think we can all learn some lessons in humility here, and how to be appropriately constructive. For those who want to support Alex’s project in a more tangible way, consider attending Strawberry Field’s next PDC, starting October 17, 2011.
We ran a Training of Trainers course with Steve Cran at Strawberry Fields here in Ethiopia [editor's note - read much more about Strawberry Fields via Alex's author profile] in July, 2011. The course was not a great hit with many members of the group because they were unhappy with the living conditions at the lodge. Others felt it was over-priced. There was an outbreak of Typhoid amongst the group during the course and that put a big downer on things. Although, all agreed the training was top quality and we all learned a huge amount from the course.
It is true that it didn’t run perfectly for various reasons which I am going to give a detailed account of, from our perspective, over the next couple of weeks, along with more background on the history of the project, how we have got to where we are today, what we are doing now, and perhaps most importantly what we are planning to do in the future.
Comments (11)You Don’t Have to Dream It, You Can Do it! Take a Certified 72-hour Permaculture Design Course in Konso, Ethiopia
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres — by Alex McCausland July 22, 2011
The ‘master plan’ concept is alive and well in Ethiopia – allowing low-income
locals to have their permaculture training subsidised through the tuition fees
of western students, who in turn benefit from indigenous wisdom
and exciting cultural immersion
This PDC will take place in Konso, south Ethiopia, from October 17 – 30th, 2011, at Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge. It will have a special focus on the application of Permaculture to rural African communities where the successful application of PC is a way to develop long term food security and community empowerment.
Facilitators: Rhamis Kent, Tichafa Makovere, Alex McCausland
Dates: October 17th to 30th
Location: Konso, South Ethiopia
Venue: Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge
Cost: US$1000
Includes: Course fees, food and accommodation for the period of the course
Excludes: Transport, accommodation in Addis, travel insurance etc.
Download Course Info and Application Form: Word doc (400kb) or PDF (130kb), and read on below for more….
Comments (3)Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge – Update: Cob Oven
Aid Projects, Building, Community Projects, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Energy Systems — by Alex McCausland April 4, 2011
Editor’s Note: As many of you will have noticed, Alex has been making some great practical updates on the work going on at the Strawberry Fields Eco-Lodge. Below is yet another little update on the practical application of permaculture in southern Ethiopia. In addition to the Steve Cran Training of Trainers course, the PRI’s Rhamis Kent will be making a May 30 – June 11, 2011 Permaculture Design Certificate course at Strawberry Fields in Ethiopia. Both of these courses are worth some serious consideration.
Another structure we built in the last couple of weeks was a small cob-oven. This is a great thing for our project to save on fuel wood consumption and allow us to make more kinds of food, like pizzas as well as baking loaf-bread rather than only flat bread which we currently make.
Comments (4)Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge Update: Solar Powered Fridge
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Energy Systems, Land, Processing & Food Preservation, Waste Systems & Recycling, Waste Water — by Alex McCausland April 1, 2011
Editor’s Note: As many of you will have noticed, Alex has been making some great practical updates on the work going on at the Strawberry Fields Eco-Lodge. The following article is another good example. I thought I’d mention that if you want to soak in some excellent experience at this site, Steve Cran will be leading a great course beginning July 1, 2011 that you might want to attend if you can.
The heat chimney for the solar fridge
The solar fridge is a new system which we have now managed to get set up after months of pondering, trying, adjusting, tweaking and trying again. We think we have finally got it kicking and pretty well integrated into the other functions of the kitchen area, so we can demonstrate permaculture principals with it pretty nicely.
The system is based on an old design for desert/dry-land cool storages which makes use of a heat chimney to create an up-draft which then sucks cool air in to the storage chamber from below. This air may pass through a long tunnel in its way to the storage chamber and hence be cooled by the ground on the way to the chamber. In order to enhance the cooling of the air on the way to the chamber, if possible, water, by evaporating will take in thermal energy, causing the temperature of the air to fall further. The main logistical issue to deal with, as usual, in building the system, was getting the theory to work in practice using available materials. Most of the construction work on this project was done by one of our long term volunteers, Duncan Colquin from Herefordshire, England, so a big thanks to him.
Comments (4)Permaculture Training of Trainers: Interactive Training for Permaculture in Aid Work in the Developing World (30 Day Program US$2000; 8-week follow-up internship program US$1000)
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Courses/Workshops, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres — by Alex McCausland
Steve Cran brings his infamous Green Warriors (Permaculture-Aid Workers’) Program to Ethiopia. This course is a full-on intensive, interactive action learning Training of Trainers Course, inducting the participants on the practicalities of applying Permaculture to the development of food security in rural third world communities. This induction will be done through action learning: The participants themselves will run a “Community Sustainability Course” for two local Ethiopian School Communities in the local Konso area of South Ethiopia. Participants will thus be capable of leading community trainings in Permaculture for themselves by the end of the course. Another outcome of the course will be development of plans for Permaculture implementation in the two local communities. Those opting to take the follow-up internship will participate in the implementation of the plans developed by the school communities during the training, facilitated by you. This course will not only qualify you to lead Community Sustainability trainings in the future, it will actually result in the initiation two Permaculture schools in Southern Ethiopia.
Facilitators: Steve Cran, Tichafa Makovere, Alex McCausland
Dates: July 1st to July 30th (optional internship to follow, August 1st to September 30th, 2011)
Location: Konso, South Ethiopia
Venue: Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge
Requirements: A passion to help with food security in the developing world; strength of will and dedication; a previous PDC or experience practicing PC is not necessary though may come as an advantage.
Visiting Konso Schools Project Sites, Ethiopia
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres — by Alex McCausland January 22, 2011
Editor’s Note: Alex gives us another update on the excellent work he and his team are doing in Ethiopia. You can see his previous reports via his author’s profile. If you want a first hand look at their work, and an exciting trip-of-a-lifetime as well, now’s a good time to book for their upcoming March 2011 PDC. Check out details on the course and book.
We were recently visited at Strawberry Fields Eco Lodge (SFEL) by Ali, the vibrant and energetic manager of World Challenge’s Africa section. World Challenge is an organisation which organises trips for school children from the UK to destinations around the world where they undertake challenging and productive activities involving nature, adventure and local communities. Ali’s visit proved to be very fruitful in tying together several aspects of our work in Konso, in line with our project’s objectives of promoting community well being through permaculture and eco-tourism.
Comments (4)Konso, Ethiopia – Agriculture and Culture
Aid Projects, Community Projects, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Food Forests, Food Plants - Annual, Food Plants - Perennial, Plant Systems, Trees, Village Development — by Alex McCausland December 22, 2010
Following my recent trip to Siltie country I wrote a report on the Enset based agriculture of the area. Following that trip we brought some Enset plants back to Konso and we have planted them, 5 of them, on the Strawberry Fields Eco-Lodge (SFEL) site in Konso. We put them on places where our “pit-composting” toilets had previously been. Enset is a hungry plant and likes a lot of manure. We will see how they do over the next few months.
In the meantime I thought I would give a brief overview of Konso’s own agricultural system, which is equally fascinating and completely different to that in Siltie.
Comments (5)Compost Power Hot Shower Report, Ethiopia
Aid Projects, Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Compost, Conservation, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Energy Systems, Rehabilitation, Waste Systems & Recycling, Waste Water, Water Harvesting — by Alex McCausland December 18, 2010
We recently submitted a short report on our hot-fast-composting system, which gave some detail on the theory and practice of producing compost in as short a time as 21 days. But Permaculture principals tell us that we should always be looking to yield as many useful products and functions from any process or element as possible and it is obvious that one bi-product of hot-composting is heat. If you get it really right, a heap should reach 80°C, which is literally too hot to touch. Feeling is believing. Once we were getting to that stage with our compost competency I began pondering how we could effectively catch and store some of that heat so that it can be used for a hot shower.
I finally realised that lots of mucking about with coils and heat exchange loops, lagging and insulation etc. could be avoided if we simply have the hot water tank inside the compost heap. Jean Pain, the old French Roi de Compost did something like this in his place, but took it a lot further, even to the point of having a biogas digester inside a cooling jacket inside a giant compost heap. He was able to heat his house and get compost and biogas all out of the one system. Ours is simpler, but the good thing about that is that you don’t have to be a practical genius to do it.
Comments (0)Fast Hot Composting System
Aid Projects, Commercial Farm Projects, Community Projects, Compost, Demonstration Sites, Education Centres, Fungi, Rehabilitation, Soil Biology, Soil Composition, Soil Conservation, Structure, Waste Systems & Recycling — by Alex McCausland November 8, 2010
At Strawberry Fields Eco-Lodge (SFEL) we use a fast hot composting system that can deliver well decomposed compost within 3 weeks. It was developed based on the technique we we’re taught by Dan Palmer when he co-facilitated two PDCs with us in 2008 along with Rosemary Morrow.
Hot composting is an aerobic process of fast oxidation which breaks raw organic materials into humus at temperatures of up to 80°C within three weeks. It is performed by a particular type of bacteria, that you can recognise as a white crust which starts to appear on the materials within the steaming interior heap once you really have the process working. I am not really up on the exact biological details of the bacteria, whether it is just one species or there are a range of species which can do the job, but once you have it working you have to maintain it, a bit like a culture of yoghurt, to get the best results. Like any living organism the bacteria has an ecological niche, that is to say a specific range of conditions in which it can live and within which it can thrive, so we have to maintain those as best we can if we want the organism to do this job of producing compost for us as best it can.
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