TRANSKEI
Transkei, South Africa. 2011
At the end of the Congress at NMMU, the TIBÁ team spent four days in what is called "the Transkei Wild Coast".
The purpose of the trip was to obtain information and ideas from local constructions, since after two weeks in the country we only saw European/American type buildings.
When we arrived in Bulungula we knew we were in the right place and paradoxically it is the area known as the most primitive, which in our opinion is the most sustainable and environmentally friendly in the country, with all residents applying to the maximum the ideals of permaculture.
The
family is growing. Each compound of houses has a pen for cows, one for goats,
chicken coup and a vegetable garden. We had a sense of equality among all the
inhabitants. The square house is just starting to be fashionable.
There is always a wind; the hills are constantly being swept. The houses have the only door facing North and two windows, one to the East and the other to the West.

Only two
bricklayers to build a house. All leveled and super well finished, the guys are
always well equipped and in a good mood.

The Xhosa people who live in this area resolve almost all their daily needs. This woman uses the most abundant building material on Earth, earth itself to make adobes. This territory was for centuries the most abandoned part of the country.

Roof finish with a recycled tire and shells from the beach, two free materials.

The Grand Master. This is the construction part we most wanted to see, the thatched roof of mangroves hay. A technique completely unknown in the Americas.

Kitchen
with a beautiful view overlooking the Indian Ocean. The stove is wood burning
and the logs to keep the fire going is also the only wall to protect from the
wind. Some families build zinc roofs, but speak negatively of their
performance, they only sympathize with this product because it is faster to
build and last longer, thus little by little they surrender to capitalism.
Ecological delivery of rural products, there are no pesticides. It was amazing, everything is totally healthy and very tasty.



Another miracle, this place has no sewage! How do you like that? Everyone uses dry toilets, which are of simple to make and generate more human resources. Human beings can live well with a very low environmental impact; this place is a great example and an inspiration to continue our road to sustainability.
Other
technologies like solar ovens, solar panels, wind turbines, clean energy
generators.

The painted box on the southern part of the houses is only decorative; just change the color from one neighborhood to another. Much of the water for the houses comes from rain. We suggested putting some stones in the water tanks to improve the quality of the water.
