Please, click here to support free trainings in Nepal: www.youcaring.com/earthbagnepal
All of us were heartbroken over the recent earthquakes in Nepal. After the initial shock at what had happened, my first thought was what can I do to help rebuild Nepal in the safest, most effective way? I believe the best solution is to train Nepali builders and other construction professionals in earthbag building techniques, and provide paying jobs through NGO partners.
Update: 150 people have already signed up for these workshops! We’ve off to a very good start. Our goal is 450.
After the general public learned about the 50-60 earthbag structures that survived the earthquakes, there has been overwhelming interest in building this way in Nepal. In cooperation with several NGO partners, I’ll be training builders in earthbag construction methods at sites near Kathmandu for two months. The emphasis will be on hands-on learning – “learning by doing” — because that’s how people learn best. Training will also incorporate brief video clips, short white board presentations with a translator, question and answer sessions, and a 70-page training manual with complete step-by-step directions. There will also be an opportunity for attendees to practice their skills and gain confidence at a nearby construction site building actual earthbag structures under the guidance of a professional earthbag supervisor.
With this plan, twenty builders can be trained during each two day workshop. That would be 60 builders trained per week or 240 per month. Training the builders and trainers is in my opinion the most effective way to spread earthbag building in Nepal. They will take what they’ve learned and immediately apply it to projects with paying jobs in their villages that are already being planned by NGO partners.
This fundraising event will cover the expenses of the trainings to allow Nepali builders/participants to learn this great technology for free in Nepal during September and October, 2015. Please support this project and share with friends so we can spread safe, earthquake resistant sustainable building to those in need in Nepal.
Youcaring link: http://www.youcaring.com/earthbagnepal
Total fundraising goal: $10,000
Video credit: Special thanks to Good Earth Nepal who donated their time and effort to make the video.
And special thanks to Vava, the coordinator in Nepal who’s putting a massive amount of work into this project for free to make it possible.
More information about earthbag building at our Natural Building Blog and Earthbag Building.com. My Earthbag Natural Building YouTube channel shows every step of construction.
Hi Owen, I think what you are doing in Nepal later this year is amazing and I wish you all the success in the world. I am in the process of trying to help a village and especially the children in a place called Tenali in Andra pradesh, the initial idea was to build a regular building for the 40 children, but after some research an earthbag structure I think this may be the way forward. So can anyone attend the training in Nepal and is there any chance you can advise me on how to help these children by making an earthbag build for them, I am at present fundraising but need help on many levels to make this happen, Ghandi said, Be the change you want to see in the world.
Thank you for being an inspiration x
Yes, anyone can attend. Look up my Earthbag Rebuild Nepal facebook page and sign up soon to assure an opening. This training will provide the basics so you can do your own projects.
I believe in you, Owen and am happy to be able to donate. I wish it could have been more, but on a fixed income, it’s all I could do. Build on!
Thanks Paul. Every little bit helps. The money will be spent wisely. It won’t be like the Red Cross who wasted about $500 million building six little houses in Haiti. That’s just one example. I can’t even guess how much waste there is among big NGOs. And the thing that really gets me is nothing seems to change. You don’t hear about any big shakeups/firings/investigations/lawsuits when this happens.
Imagine how many houses could have been built with half a billion dollars…
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2015/06/04/red-cross-receives-half-a-billion-dollars-for-haiti-relief-thats-not-where-the-money-really-went/
Please repost this across social media. If this project is successful then it could turn into the largest earthbag success story in the world. Then the mass media will have to pay more attention. And then it could more easily spread to other countries. So this is a big deal.