The EcoBrick industry is taking shape in Grahamstown. Dr Trevor Davies, Paul Marriner, Robyn Cooper and I had another Wednesday strategy and planning session.
There was further excitement on Friday when Dr Davies and Suviyile’s EcoBrick home featured on SABC news. Well done to Paul and Suviyile on their TV debuts!
We’ve been following and responding to the commentary on our two recent EcoBrick posts. There are many challenging issues and some deep philosophical questions to consider. Don’t forget this is a relatively new industry and there are all sorts of unknowns. Thanks to many for the advice on correct building techniques, reducing fire risks, and various legal issues.
A question we’ve considered is whether Grahamstown should import plastic waste (in the form of Ecobricks) from other centres. There’s a suggestion that only acceptable if the Ecobricks are accompanied by sponsorship funds to build a home. What’s your view?
It seems preferable for each littered community to use their EcoBricks in local home-build etc projects. Furthermore, Grahamstown has more than its fair share of plastic waste and a thriving Ecobrick industry with significant growth potential.
Have a look at The Folly Chapel. Yellowwood Forest. Morgan Bay for a wealth of information. Interesting titbit. Guatemala has built 297 schools using EcoBricks.
If you’d like to sponsor an EcoBrick house-build in Grahamstown – or know of someone that deserves one – please email paul@thegrahamstownproject.com
GRAEME HOLMES
Before moving back to Grahamstown in Oct 2017, Graeme was a bank executive based in the big smoke and craziness of Joburg. He has 20 years’ experience in the Payments Industry. He is a Chartered Accountant, has a Masters in Management by Research (MMR) from Wits Business School, and attended an Advanced Management Programme (AMP) offered by INSEAD (The Business School for the World!) in France.
Graeme is the founder of The Grahamstown Project. It’s simple. He says, “Grahamstown is a microcosm of South Africa. If we can’t get this place to function properly then the whole country is stuffed. Many of the troubles we experience as a country today have their roots here in Grahamstown. it is here where black and white people first engaged in conflict on the African continent. It is here where 9 wars of dispossession over 100 years took place and virtually destroyed the amaXhosa nation. But we are where we are. I don’t have a British passport and the boat-trip back to where my ancestors came from is exorbitantly expensive. Furthermore, this is my home. I am a son of Africa. We must work together to redress the injustices of the past and move as one into a brighter future.”
Graeme is an avid historian, writer, vlogger and public speaker. Like and follow the Facebook page. Join him on a tour. Contact him. He would love that.