[Sdpg] Sustainable Village Development Training Centre in Aceh Indonesian by the Indonesian Development of Education and Permaculture

[Wesley Roe and Marjorie Lakin Erickson]

Yayasan, Indonesian Development of  Education and Permaculture Concept Paper
Sustainable Village Development Training Centre
www.idepfoundation.org/
The tsunami of December 2004 completely destroyed much of the west coast of 
Aceh. Towns, villages, roads and other infrastructure were swept away in 
minutes along with over 200,000 people in one of the world’s biggest 
natural disasters in living history.

The situation for the survivors is grim. The Indonesian government, NGOs, 
major donor agencies and private organizations have delivered a huge amount 
of emergency aid.  Despite this massive effort, many isolated communities 
have had little or no relief. Internally Displaced People (IDPs) are being 
urged to move into government-built barracks. Many survivors are building 
shanties from the tsunami debris  where their homes once stood. Water 
supplies are contaminated with seawater or decaying corpses. Many of the 
IDPs are becoming dependant on aid with no hope of returning to normal life.

As yet, the government has not made a firm decision on where the survivors 
should rebuild their communities.  There is still considerable seismic 
activity in the area and some survivors refuse to return to the coast, as 
they believe further tsunamis may occur.  Other farmers have no land to 
return to, as it is now under water.
Food Security
Food security is a priority issue.  The home gardens, rice paddies and 
fruit trees that once fed the villages have been destroyed and there is no 
way to earn money to buy food. Undamaged communities bordering the tsunami 
zone are also suffering. Many of these communities are cut off from their 
regular markets for their produce or have been inundated with refugees from 
the coast. These villages were generally poor before the disaster, and have 
now been stripped by the needs of the survivors.

The current levels of relief aid cannot be sustained indefinitely. To avert 
famine and poverty, communities must soon become self-sufficient and 
rebuild their lives using local resources. The affected communities need to 
begin replanting their home gardens and re-establishing agriculture 
systems. They need to strategize how they will produce their food on the 
new landscape. Methods must be found to restore damaged soils. The new 
communities need help in rebuilding their self-sufficiency and weaning 
themselves from relief supplies. Survivors will need to plan and implement 
new ways to use the tsunami zone land where they can no longer live. They 
require replacement animal and poultry stock. Livelihoods must be restored 
to rebuild local economies
Community Empowerment for Reconstruction & Recovery
Many of the survivors were living marginalized existences even prior to the 
tsunami, most being farmers and fishers.  This project will broaden the 
base of skills and provide training in a range of sustainable 
income-generating activities for both men and women.
In order to obtain the greatest benefit from reconstruction assistance, 
local communities will be fully involved in the identification of projects 
and activities and related decision-making.
Permaculture
Permaculture is an effective design system for self-sufficient communities 
using sustainable, environmentally sound principals.  It works at grass 
roots levels to train people to become self-reliant using local resources. 
Villages can attain food security within 4 months while learning to create 
and implement short term, medium term and long-term strategies to rebuild 
their infrastructures and economies.

Permaculture uses the best practices of existing local farming and 
gardening techniques combined with high-yield strategies from other 
tropical countries.  Trainees learn to move from mere survival to surplus 
production. Permaculture strategies build community confidence and assist 
in the healing process. In the long term, Permaculture communities prosper 
and hand a richer life on to the following generations.  These techniques 
have been extensively tested and enthusiastically accepted by the villagers 
in East Timor.

Trainees will learn:
·       Food production
·       Agro-forestry
·       Aquaculture
·       Animal husbandry
·       Waste management and recycling
·       Natural resource management
·       Environmental repair and restoration
·       Small enterprise development
·       Disaster mitigation

The Training Center
In conjunction with local NGOs, international agencies and donors, IDEP 
will facilitate the training of Permaculture trainers by building and 
maintaining a training centre in the village of Krueng Kolor. The Centre 
will be a living classroom with the nearby village, IDP camp and flooded 
rice fields serving as hands-on training areas.  Appropriate technology 
will be sourced and integrated at all levels of the project.

The training centre will be constructed mostly of natural materials found 
in the tsunami zone as an example of recycling and resource recovery. 
Buildings will be designed to be cool and comfortable, demonstrating solar 
passive design. The 2-hectare site will contain the following features:

·       5 student accommodation houses with home gardens surrounding them
·       3 staff accommodation houses with home gardens
·       An office and warehouse facility
·       A training centre with a kitchen facility
·       An alternative technology workshop
·       A village enterprise training centre with kitchen facilities
·       Waterless composting toilet facilities
·       Water efficient laundry facility
·       Waste water treatment gardens
·       Community vegetable seed bank garden
·       Community agro-forestry nursery
·       Animal and poultry production systems
Location of the Training Center
Suitable land with a permanent water source has been found in the village 
of Krueng Kolor, 40 kilometers southwest of Banda Aceh. The village leaders 
and surviving villagers have agreed to host the construction of a training 
centre for Permaculture trainers. The village suffered from the tsunami, 
losing over a third of its population. Part of the village is elevated and 
was protected from the devastation that wiped out the rest of the village. 
The village leaders have put aside 2 hectares for the training centre and 
have agreed to become the experimental model for sustainable village 
development.
Training Methodology
Permaculture training will be conducted on 2 levels.
Level 1 : Village Development Course (VDC)

The first level of training will be an intensive two-week Village 
Development Course (VDC) for local people and NGO field staff. In this 
course, students will learn Permaculture strategies and techniques through 
building food production systems hands-on. Students will balance theory 
with practice by applying the training directly to the village and training 
centre models. Students will learn how to map out their communities into 5 
development zones. These zones radiate out, each with priorities for 
development.

Zone 1:         Home gardens
Zone 2:         The village area
Zone 3:         Small family farms of 1-5 hectares surrounding the village area
Zone 4:         Community agro-forestry area grows resources such as 
timber, bamboo, orchards, etc
Zone 5:         Conservation zone

This simple system of understanding village development helps students 
learn how to start designing sustainable communities with the resources 
they have.

A minimum of 32 VDC trainees will be trained each month for a total of at 
least 1152 trained.
Level 2 : ‘Green Hand’ Trainers (Tangan Hijau)

The second type of training will be a 3-month trainer course.  The trainer 
students will start with the two-week village development course and then 
move on to advanced strategies. A graduate of this hands-on trainers course 
will be able to train a community in all the aspects of Permaculture 
self-sufficiency as well as building working models. The graduates will be 
called ‘Green Hands’. Student trainers will be selected from the best 
students on the two-week village development course, local and 
international NGO staff as well as community members and farmer 
leaders.  During this trainer course, student trainers will learn how to 
teach the two-week village development course and to up-date their own 
training manuals. In three years, at least 180 Green Hand trainers will be 
trained.

Each Green Hand will also specialize in two of the twelve Village 
Enterprise modules, enabling him/her to teach these concepts to others.
Sustainable Livelihoods Training
Village Enterprise Modules

In addition to an extended Permaculture course, Green Hand trainees will 
also receive livelihoods training. Specialized trainers will be brought in 
to conduct intensive two-month training courses in 12 different subjects 
designed to help students establish sustainable livelihoods.  Although 
every Green Hand trainer will learn all modules, each will select two 
modules for intensive study in order to be able to transfer the technology 
to students later.  The modules include:

1. Blacksmithing
An expert iron worker will teach trainees how to recycle metal recycled 
from the tsunami zone and forge it into farming tools and kitchen equipment.

2. Carpentry
A carpenter will teach trainees about the different kinds of wood available 
and their best applications, and how to forage for wood in the tsunami zone 
to make tools, furniture, etc.

3. Bamboo Treatment and Earthquake Resistant Construction
An expert from Bali will teach how to select and harvest bamboo, treat it 
to prevent insect infestation and build earthquake-resistant structures

4. Neem Cultivation & bi-products Production
An expert from Bali will teach the many beneficial properties of neem, its 
cultivation and preparation and marketing of by-products

5. Animal Husbandry
This course teaches the finer points of animal care, housing, selective 
breeding, disease control, organic feeding and composting of animal waste.

6. Bee Keeping
Pt Pramuka Muda Pryek of the Jakarta Boy Scouts will train in the keeping 
of bees, making and sitin ghives, honey production and harvesting
7. Cold Oil Pressing
An expert will train in the principles of cold oil production, making a 
simple cold press and extraction and storage of oils from coconuts and 
other nuts and seeds

8. Essential Oil Distillation
An expert will improve the existing facilities in the village and train in 
the distillation and storage of high-quality oils

9. Soap Making
A professional soap-maker from Bali will train in the manufacture of pure 
soaps using as many locally produced materials as possible (coconut and 
palm oil).

10. Biodiesel
Trainees will learn to grow the plants from which biodiesel can be 
extracted (jatropha, castor, pangamia pinnata), extraction techniques, 
storage and use

11. Small Enterprise Development
Trainees will learn how to plan, start and maintain a small business

12. Communications and Marketing
An expert will teach techniques through which trainees can best communicate 
with potential buyers and market their organic produce and products

Sustainability of the Program

Initially the training centre and the village of Krueng Kolor will 
facilitate the development of working models of Permaculture, and as the 
trainers begin their own projects across the tsunami zone these models will 
spread, encouraging more and more communities to adopt the successful ones. 
Sustainability will be generated at three levels:

The Centre
By the end of the third year, management of the Centre will pass into 
Acehnese hands.  With management, administration, curriculum and trainers 
in place, the Centre will be able to continue providing training to Acehnese.

The Concepts
As understanding and use of Permaculture principals spreads exponentially 
through the constant training of trainers and dissemination into 
communities, the concept of sustainable food production will continue to 
spread through Aceh.

Other Centres
The Sustainable Village Development Training Centre was designed to be a 
pilot project.  It is hoped that it will be replicated in Bali and Sumba.

Training Manuals

Each trainee trainer will use a ‘Forever Manual’. This manual contains all 
the techniques and strategies for each of the 5 zones used in village 
development.  Each trainee must update his manual as s/he physically 
applies the strategies to the field. The manual becomes a record of her/his 
actual work on the ground; this eliminates trainers who aren’t able to lead 
by example. The manuals serve as a vehicle for technology transfer both to 
students and to share information among other trainers.  As trainers 
develop their Forever Manual, they are encouraged to meet with other 
trainers in their region and share their manuals to learn from and include 
each other’s best practices. This method provides a constantly growing 
resource base for all communities and trainers for the current crisis and 
future developments. Trainers are encouraged to innovate their techniques 
and strategies in the field and record their successes to share with the 
growing network of Permaculture trainers and project villages. A 
downloadable web-based version will be made available for those students 
with Internet access. Each Forever Manual will also act as a CV for future 
employment for the professional development of this pool of trainers.

Employment for Green Hands Graduates

Once a Green Hand has graduated, s/he has several options for employment. 
Firstly, many Green Hands will come from existing organizations like the 
UN, the government, international NGOs, local NGOs and community-based 
groups like farmers’ or women’s groups. These Green Hands will return to 
these organizations and train their staff and assist their organizations in 
planning and managing their projects. IDEP will run a web site listing 
these people, their abilities and how to contact them. Organizations 
needing trainers can use this system to find the right trainers for their 
projects. Private donors for their own projects will sponsor some Green 
Hands for a year at a time or to teach livelihoods modules. This will be 
made possible through IDEP’s website. This system will enable village-based 
Green Hands to work in their own communities.
Gender Involvement & Empowerment
Both levels of training will have equal numbers of women and men.  One male 
and one female Indonesian will also be trained to manage the Centre.

Trainees
Female trainees will be fully involved with all aspects and 
responsibilities of training.  They will be empowered by their ability to 
create sustainable food supplies for themselves and their families and by 
improved understanding of nutrition. The Green Hand trainees will become 
trainers themselves.

Women From the Adjoining village will be taught how to cater for the Centre 
and thereafter receive the meal allowance budget.  They will also be 
trained in sewing and embroidery and will produce the clothing needed at 
the Centre including uniforms and beekeeping gear.

Implementation for Development of the Training Center

The construction and development of the trainer centre will be conducted in 
3 stages as follows:
Phase 1: Base Camp Phase
During this phase the staff and villagers will clear the training centre 
area of unwanted under-story growth on a work-for-cash scheme. The clearing 
will be done in such a way as to ensure minimum disturbance of the 
vegetation. Sites will be prepared for all the buildings and facilities; 
tents and temporary structures will be erected in their place. Compost pit 
latrines will be constructed and basic shower facilities will be installed. 
A camp kitchen and eating area will be built to service the staff and 
students. This phase will take 4 weeks and on its completion training 
courses can begin.
Phase 2: Construction Phase
The village loggers that currently log the forest illegally will be 
employed to cut debris wood from the tsunami zone. Loggers will be only 
paid to use the dead trees lying across the zone. The staff will support 
this activity with a vehicle and tools to take the workers to the zone. 
These workers will also be employed to collect thatching and other 
materials needed from the zone. Local carpenters will be employed to work 
with the loggers to build each of the required buildings one by one, 
replacing the temporary structures. The first building will be the 
warehouse and office facility. Next will be the kitchen and training 
building. After that, the student accommodation and ablution blocks will be 
completed. Finally the staff accommodation and ablutions will be completed. 
This construction project will employ several teams of local people and 
assist in re-starting the local economy.
Phase 3: Final Construction Phase
The final construction phase will concentrate on the Community Enterprise 
Training Centre for the village. This facility will consist of a round 
training hut with a kitchen, wood-fired bakery oven, composting waterless 
toilets and a laundry house with Wastewater Gardens®. The design and 
construction will be done in consultation with the village members to 
ensure a culturally appropriate design. A community food resource garden 
will be built close to this facility to provide food for the village 
facility and act as a seed-bank.
Staffing
The training centre will be staffed with a mixture of rotating foreign and 
local trainers for three years. The international training team will 
capacity-build the local staff in administration and training practices to 
a high level to ensure sustainability in the future.  Each foreign staff 
member will be paired with a local counterpart to assist in communication 
and the transfer of skills.    After the third year of capacity-building, 
the local staff will be handed full control of the facility.
Conclusion
This Training Centre will greatly assist the survivors across the tsunami 
zone as well as help the poor villages outside the zone develop sustainable 
communities. The Green Hand graduates will help organizations with funds 
and resources to plan their projects wisely and create sustainable 
communities and enterprises. With the help of the trainer network, the 
Acehnese people can develop a new culture of sustainability and become 
self-sufficient and prosperous. They can preserve their environment as well 
as repairing the ecological damage from the tsunami in a way that will 
develop new resources and enterprises. This training will establish many 
new options for sustainable development that will speed up the recovery 
time, ensure permanent food security, generate business opportunities and 
set an example for the rest of Indonesia.
Proposed Schedule & Budget
This project will run for a period of three years. The value of the project 
over three years will be approximately 1.5 million dollars US.
For more information
Project Contact Person          : Catherine Wheeler, Yayasan IDEP Public 
Relations
Hand Phone                      : + 62 81 734 18 68
Email                           : cat at idepfoundation.org

Project Director                        : Steve Cran
Land Line (in Australia)                : + 61 754 944 761
Hand Phone (in Bali)            : + 62 81 558 034 502
Email                           : steve_cran at hotmail.com

IDEP Executive Director : Petra Schneider
Hand Phone (in Bali)            :+ 62 81 747 45042
Email                           : petra at idepfoundation.org

Resume of Steve Cran available upon request