[Scpg] Workshop announcement Field-Testing Builders Without Borders Straw-Bale Construction Guides , March 19-26, 2004.

[Santa Barbara Permaculture Network]

Field-Testing Builders Without Borders Straw-Bale Construction Guides

A special workshop is planned for field-testing the new Builders Without
Borders
(BWB) Straw-Bale Construction Guides, March 19-26, 2004. Kutunza Institute
will
offer a unique opportunity for workshop participants to test and develop the
final version of the Guides, while learning how to build a strawbale
structure.

This workshop is ideal for natural builders, designers, architects, educators
and anyone interested in building affordable housing projects in developing
regions. Workshop participants will get to build a strawbale structure under
the guidance of experienced instructors.

The workshop will be held at Kutunza Institute (www.Kutunza.org),
approximately
20 miles north of Las Cruces, New Mexico. (Detailed directions to the
Institute
are on the Kutunza ‘Contact’ web page.) Kutunza is located on a beautiful
piece
of river-bottom land along the Rio Grande River, and has a relatively mild
climate.

Topics include:
• Design for Basic Human Needs
• Site Considerations
• Low-cost Foundations
• Bale Wall Construction 
• Pinning Options
• Roofs
• Earthen Plaster
• Art and Decoration

This workshop will go well beyond learning strawbale basics, because the goal
is to finalize the BWB Guides and prepare builders for work on affordable,
low-tech strawbale housing projects. Insights and recommendations from
participants will be highly valued, and all participants will be acknowledged
on the credits page in the Guides.

This workshop, along with all the workshops and training programs at Kutunza,
can be applied towards a degree in Natural Building Technology at Arbor
University (http://arboruniversity.us/).  More details on this are on the
Kutunza website.

The instructors for the workshop are the authors of the BWB Straw-Bale
Construction Guides -- Dr. Owen Geiger, Director of Builders Without Borders,
and Katia LeMone, a facilitator and project manager for Upper Mohawk, Inc.

The cost of the workshop is $500 and includes catered lunches. Breakfasts are
available for $3/meal and catered dinners are available for $10/day.
Camping is
free.

For more workshop information, visit the Kutunza Institute website:
www.Kutunza.org

More about the Builders Without Borders (BWB) Straw-Bale Construction Guides

Two new construction guides are being finalized -- one for workshop
participants, and one for facilitators:

1. The Builders Without Borders (BWB) Straw-Bale Construction Guide was
created
to meet the growing demand for easy-to-understand instructions on building
strawbale homes. It is designed for workshop participants, the communities
that
work with BWB and anyone who wants to build a comfortable, affordable home.
This book is a pictorial how-to guide on straw-bale construction basics that
emphasizes low-cost methods to help those in the greatest need for affordable
housing.

2. The BWB Facilitators Guide is the curriculum that accompanies the BWB
Straw-Bale Construction Guide. The Facilitators Guide enables the
instructor to
teach at a deeper level. It outlines the purpose of each section, and
identifies activities, discussion topics, technical considerations, time
frames
and exercises to accomplish the desired goals. Lesson plans on each topic help
the instructor convey the concepts in the Straw-Bale Construction Guide.

To learn more about these construction guides, please go to the BWB ‘About Us’
web page: www.BuildersWithoutBorders.org/aboutus.htm



Santa Barbara Permaculture Network
(805) 962-2571
sbpcnet at silcom.com
www.sbpermaculture.org

"We are like trees, we must create new leaves, in new directions, in order to
grow." - Anonymous