Duayee, LiberiaSustainable Village Project

Ecosa Summer 2010 

Overview     •A Look at DuayeeoHistoryoCultural info--Needs and wants

•Ecologyoclimate, rainfall, soil types

•EconomicsoFoodoMicro-financing oEcotourismoEnergy

•SocietyoBuilt environmentoEducationoPublic Health

• Conclusion

Charles Taylor

Gbehyi chiefdom•Mano/Gio ethnic•Mande Fu language•Christian/ indigenous religions•3,200 people in Duayee--

headquarters•weaving, basket-making, pottery,

historically did metalwork

UN Millenium Development Goals

1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger2. Achieve universal primary education3. Promote gender equality and empower women4. Reduce child mortality 5. Improve maternal health6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases7. Ensure environmental sustainability8. Develop a global partnership for development

Liberian Ecology

ClimateTropical--hot and humid (lies within the tropic of cancer)•In winter: dry with

hot days and cool to cold at night

•Harmattan winds: dust-laden winds from the Sahara blow from December to March

•In Summer: wet, cloudy with frequent heavy showers

 

Nimba County: avg temp 70-80 degrees F

Nimba County: avg precip 50-95 inches/yr

EcosystemThree main ecosystems in Liberia•The Coastal beltoMangrove swampsoshallow lagoonsoTidal creeks

•PlateausoBroadleaf evergreen

Forests oGrasslands

•Mountainous areaoBroadleaf evergreen

and deciduous forestsoGrasslands

Nimba County: Brush, grassland, cultivated crops and treecrops AND Broadleaf deciduous and evergreen forest

Topography and Watershed

The Yah River is  a tributary to St. John River

Food SystemsResearch and Precedents

Current Food Situation in Liberia:•high levels of food

insecurity and child malnutrition 

•Upland soils degraded•Subsistence farmers

 unable to produce enough rice - import 

•Staple crops: Rice and cassava 

•Small number of live stock

Current Agricultural Practices in Liberia:

•Subsistence farming•Deforestation – has

increased by 17% since the end of the 1990’s.

•Slash and Burn cultivation has increased

•Agribusiness

Crop Production and Exports

Main Staple Crops:

  • Cassava (313,000 tons)

•Rice (210,000 tons)

•Bananas (90,000 tons)

•Plantains (35,000 tons)

•Yam and sweet potatoes

• Cash crops:

•Cocoa 

•Sugar cane

•Coffee (3,000 tons)

•Rubber (35,000 tons)

•Palm Oil (42,000 tons)

Current Initiatives:• intercrop jatropha • introduce bee keeping,

goat nursery, sheep, and "can rat" nursery

•aquaponics •design landscape for

edible plants and trees •Co-op of farmers

contained within the SVI network

•construct dry grain storage and food drying systems

•Sustainable Village Service Center

Suggestions for Improvement of Food System

•Develop alternatives to slash and

burn such as Food Forest Gardening

and other organic methods that help

build soil.

• Implement Integrated Pest

Management

•Develop local economy where profits

are going to the growers, not foreign

corporations

• Incorporate goats and chickens into

food system 

•Train farmers in seed saving and provide

access to tools

Precedent: Growers' Cooperative  CONACADO:•Democratically run cooperative

organization in the Dominican Republic•Helps small-scale cocoa producers. •Founded in 1988•Links 10,001 small scale producers

through 8 regional departments - called Bloques (blocks)  that serve 182 base associations.

Mission:• Improve the income and living

conditions of cocoa producers and their families  

•Supporting a sustainable approach to property management 

•Strengthening business and organizational practices

•Strengthening community development.

Precedent: Nyumbani Village, Kenya

• Eco-village: 1000 orphans/100 elders • Half-acre family "shamba" gardens• 50-acre intercropping community farm• animal husbandry

 

From Green to EvergreenProblem: There is mass famine in 3rd world nations. How to produce enough food to feed the hungry?

1940s-1960s-- Green Revolution:  Increased productivity WITHOUT regard to ecological/social harm pesticides, irrigation, synthetic fertilizer, and MONOCULTURE of improved-performance seed 

1960s- Present day--Evergreen Revolution: Increased productivity WITH regard to ecological/social harm restoration of ecosystems through water harvesting, composting, sustainable land practices ie. agroforesty, and POLYCULTURE of genetically-modified seed

Is technology the answer to Liberia's food problem? If so, to what degree?

EconomicsPartnerships, Micro-finance, Tourism

and Energy Infrastructure

Global Partnerships

•Mittel and Firestone•Distributed over 40,000 tools and 20 metric tons of rice seed

to 333,000 farmers in 2006. •Employment increased. 

Microfinance

•Micro Loans

•Community Savings

Accounts

Village Earth: Consortium for

Sustainable-Village Based

Development•“Appropriate

Technology” Library

and Sourcebook

Las Gaviotas, Colombia

•30 year old

sustainable village

•Small scale

renewable technology

•Reforested area

despite acidic soils.

•Consistent Peace

Costa Rica – Sustainable

Tourism•Certification for

Sustainable Tourism

•Ecotourism oRainforest Alliance

oRainforest tours

•Volunteerism oAttracting hands that

can help and boost

economy while there.

Tropical Sustainable BuildingsConcepts, Materials, and Precedents

Current Housing

“There is a need to develop housing estates” - Nimba County Development Agenda

The 1998–2000 National Reconstuction Program placed housing issues as a priority for

government consideration. 

"This is a library we were supposed to build, but didn't"

Current Housing Infrastructure Issues as Defined by the Nimba

County Development Agenda for 2008-2010

Tropical Sustainable Building Design Concepts

Ventilation

Shading

Orientation

Insulation:

•Lightweight and low heat-

storing materials (i.e. wood,

bamboo, grass, palm

•Keep attic heat out – using

vents

Roofs:

•Currently have a lot of

metal roofs – good for

rain catchment.

•Thatched roofs –

readily available

material, breathes,

good for humid

climates.

Natural Lighting

Vegetation

Precedent: The Soe Ker Tie House in Thailand•Non-Profit group

TYIN focuses on

developing

humanitarian

architecture

•Buildings for an

Orphanage

•Worked closely with

locals

•Used local bamboo

•Used traditional Thai

building techniques

•Each hut collects

rainwater, has

natural ventilation,

and safely handles

sewage.

Precedent: Rainwater Harvesting in the Philippines•Rainwater harvesting initiated in 1989 

•About 500 rainwater storage tanks were constructed in the Capiz Province 

•Locals trained during process

"Rainwater harvesting could end much of Africa’s water shortage" - UN Report

Dwellings

Building

Materials

The area is rich with

building materials, but

the village is depleted.

The rain forest is the

closest and best

source for traditional

building materials.

Using locally grown,

sustainable building

materials will help to

prevent rain forest

loss.

Bamboo•Bamboo is a sustainable

building product.

•In the time it takes to grow and harvest commonly farmed

timber, bamboo can be harvested seventeen times.

•Bamboo has twice the compressive strength of

concrete and the same tension strength as steel

•Bamboo planting included in a larger integrated system could act as a living machine in water purification and also serve as an

effective wind break

Clay 

•Clay is abundant in the

region.

  •Clay has been

used for

centuries as a

building

material

•Clay

construction is

easy

•Clay can have

many uses and

aplications

 

Earth Bags•Earth Bag

construction

uses on site

materials.

•Earth bag

building is easy.

•Earth bag

constructions is

extremely strong

and durable.

Constraints

•Educated

workers

•Skilled workers.

•Funding for small

business.

Education

Current Educational SystemsTufeia FoundationTeach Self Defense, provide scholarships, afterschool programs, community college, internet service, community peace clubs, trauma interventions and young women specific advancement programsDuayee SchoolYouth Development Committee built schoolVery little support, no books or official curriculum

Culture Around Education•Challenges facing education

oK-12 costs about $75 USD per year

oTeachers poorly paid and trained

oSex for Grades

oWest African Examination Board criteria rarely met for

graduation

oLack of Materials

Reviving Curiosity

•Liberian based books through community

publishing

•African Books Collective

•Oral Traditions 

•Not basing education on tests and grades

•Reintegrating Nature into curriculum

•Getting the community involved in the

education process

Rainforest as a Classroom

•Field Labs maintain an

area for researchers to

study the rainforest and

learn from its ecology.

•Students get opportunity

to learn from Rainforest. 

Center for Appropriate Rural Technology (CART)

Community-driven project that functions as a life skills center in the heart of Sicambeni Village, South Africa

SKILLS TAUGHT:•Raised aerated

beds•Brick machine•Dams

•Biodigester•Thatching•Indoor gardens•Sustainable

Houses

Opportunities to Build Capital

•Training the Natural Resource

Management Team

•Teacher Training

•Medical Training

Public Health

Current Personal Hygene

Health Care

•Existing ClinicoServes surrounding

villages as well

Improving Sanitation

Solar Water Distiller

Grey Water Systems

Waste

The magority of the waste in the area consists of human and animal waste, bio mass, and houshold rubbish.

Bio mass and human and animal waste contain methane that can be harvested as a form of natural gass.

Methane digesters are an efficient and effective method of harvesting methane from waste and bio mass. After methane has been harvested, the remaining material can be composted and used to ammend soil.

With apropriate facilities, bio mass can also be burned to create electricity and can be processed into bio fuels.

Other types of waste can be recycled or reused in alternative building products and crafts.

  Giving consideration to the delicate history of conflict in the region, sustainable practices in all areas of the community have great potential to create a resilience that will expand the pride of village members and the peace and stability between surrounding villages.