With more than a million species facing extinction, people around the world lacking safe drinking water, and glaciers melting at an alarming rate, the environment is nagging the minds of many, but not enough.

So the organisers, producers, and filmmakers hope to change that attitude here in Buenos Aires with this year’s Green Film Festival.

“Increasingly more people are taking [the environment] into account. People are interested in the topic, but they do not involve themselves in something concrete,” says Astrid Hoffman, the executive producer of the Green Film Fest.

The international film festival highlights movies from around the world that take a look at environmental issues.

“The films we select attract people who are already involved in the issue but also those who know nothing about it. We look for varied programming, documentaries, animation, fiction, and movies for kids. The most important thing is that there is equilibrium between the message of the film and its visual appeal,” says Hoffman.

The festival is taking place from 16th to 22nd August at Cinemark Palermo, Beruti 399. Each day movies will play from midday to midnight.

The movies look at varying environmental issues including deforestation, fuel, electricity, and meat consumption to name a few.

‘If a Tree Falls’, by director Marshall Curry, tells the captivating and yet haunting story of one of the members of the Earth Liberation Front (ELF). The documentary follows Daniel McGowan as he plots the burning of various public buildings including a horse slaughtering plant, an SUV dealership and a US$12m Vail, Colo., ski lodge. The film about the FBI named “domestic terrorists” won the Sundance Film Festival Documentary Editing Award and includes images that burn themselves into your memory.

On a lighter note, ‘The Clean Bin Project’ films the competition between Grant Baldwin, the director of the film, and Jen as they try to live for one year without producing any waste. The two don’t buy anything that would need to be thrown into a trashcan, so no packaging, boxes, bags, etc. While maintaining a lighter spirit the movie looks at the sobering underbelly of the garbage catastrophe all over the world: the Pacific Garbage Patch is an area of ocean the size of Texas where garbage outnumbers the plankton six to one. The hard-hitting facts create the perfect balance and although Jen and Grant sometimes wonder whether or not they can actually make a difference, they follow through with their plan and realise just how much one person can do.

‘Play Again’ promises to be one of the most interesting films at the festival. Director Tonje Hessen Schei puts the spotlight on children in his compelling documentary about their disassociation with nature. With almost 90% of a child’s time spent indoors one quote sums up the entire message of the film: “What they will not value they will not protect and what they will not protect they will lose.”

Finally, among the many must-see documentaries at the festival is ‘The Island President’. The film, directed by Jon Shenk, takes a look at former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed and his crusade to save his country from the dangerous effects of global warming. The tiny island nation in the middle of the Indian Ocean is under threat of sinking due to rising sea levels. The film goes with Nasheed as he plunges under water for local government meetings and raises his voice in international environment councils to grab the attention of the rest of the world.

Overall the festival is set to welcome even more guests than last year’s 5,000 with some fantastic and captivating movies.

The event kicks off today with a bicycle tour to the cinema where Hoffman and her team will introduce two of the contributing directors, Josh and Rebecca Tickell, who directed ‘Fuel, Freedom’ and ‘The Big Fix’.

“We are a city that still has many outstanding issues in terms of sustainability,” says Hoffman. “We hope that the festival leaves people thinking and encourages them to change their everyday actions in order to create a better world.”

Sustainable Fashion has become somewhat of an elusive concept in the past few years. Is it fair-trade? Is it organic? Recycled? Slow? Green? With such broad language, how do we know exactly what we’re buying? What we do know is the conversation has brought much attention to the not just the “what” of design materials but the “how” of design processes – buying, trading, making and selling.

Argentina, eager to join in the conversation, has suddenly found itself bursting at the seams with eco-conscious fashion designers expressing their talent through endless mediums. From sustainable knits to recycled fabrics, not to mention traditional artisans hand-crafting their goods which inherently fit the green profile, eco-minded shoppers have plenty to choose from without compromising values or quality. The following ten eco-designers in Argentina and their creations top the list.

1. Sustainable knits produced in Toba indigenous community

Agostina Bianchi Thames 1733, Palermo.

2. Bracelet made from fabric scraps and paper beads made from discarded magazines

Lua Chea Borges 2029, Palermo

3. ‘Bolso Pescador’ Shoulder Bag made from aluminum can tops, $868

Aluminium

4. Unisex Scarf made from sustainable knits (100% Llama), $180

Cubreme, Godoy Cruz 1720, Palermo

5. Wallet made from Tyvek materials, $55

Confitte

6. Dress made from recycled neckties

Salve

7. SURI sweatshirt hand-printed with water-based inks onto unbleached canvas, $255

Bill et Bill

8. Laptop case made from recycled coffee sacks, from $140

Carro

9. Rococo necklace made from recycled textiles

Marina Callis

10. Unisex messenger bag made from recycled vinyl, $174

Baumm

Ecological. Logical. Sustainable. Healthy. Happy. Natural.

More than simply buzzwords, these are the principles that guide the CAS4 housing project.

Launched by the Arquitectura Sustenable team, CAS4 offers pre-fabricated houses that aim to “minimise contamination, save natural resources and achieve a design integrated with nature.”

Sound too good to be true? Maybe not…

CAS4 houses are prefabricated on a module system, and buyers can select how many modules they want in accordance with what size house they would like. Constructed 100% with certified Argentine materials, the modules take three months to construct and one week to assemble.

Now comes the interesting bit. The houses utilise a system of alternative energy, relying on both solar and wind energy sources. With CAS4, the goal is that you “have the option to be autonomous”. But you also have the option to stay connected – CAS4 houses can be plugged into the local grid.

With CAS4, however, utilising solar energy isn’t just a matter of strapping on solar panels. The modules are designed in such a way as to optimise the suns’ light. Each contracted project is uniquely designed to take into account the natural dynamics of the area where it will be constructed.

In the interest of conserving natural resources, the houses also have a water collector on the roof. The first CAS4 model has already been constructed in Villa Ruiz, about 20 – 30 minutes from Tigre.

Arquitectura Sustenable’s vision is holistic, taking into account the needs of both the natural environment and the residents of the house. For example, every CAS4 housing project includes a biodynamic garden. In addition to being organic, these gardens are cultivated in accordance with the lunar calendar, an effort to align the body with “natural cycles”.

The gardens also utilise water recycled through the collector and compost encouraged by natural decomposers.

What’s more, with CAS4CASA, a new showroom in Tigre, the group expands to “contemporary and sustainable” interior design.

As Gaby Abentín, designer, astrologer and member of the Arquitectura Sustenable team observes, the CAS4CASA gallery is inspired by the principle that, “with what I have – with the basics – I can make a very beautiful place”.

The gallery hosts exhibitions that rotate every six weeks, focusing on showcasing “contemporary, emerging or acclaimed artists”. The first artists to be featured in the showroom were Claudio Roncóli, Gaby Messina and Mariano Aja.

The gallery also features furniture and other interior decorating models that are constructed in accordance with the ideals of the project. At its opening, the gallery featured tables and chairs of Nordic design by Luciano E Ianulli and an enormous table by Yanko Kuraja, among other works.

Just as CAS4 seeks to integrate with its natural environment, CAS4CASA seeks to integrate with its neighborhood; the gallery is located on the Boulevard Saez Peña in Tigre, a street that the Arquitectura Sustenable group promotes an up-and-coming trendy neighborhood. Every six weeks, the street is closed down on Friday evening to allow galleries to remain open, and the evening typically features a movie showing.

The CAS4 team has a long-term dream for their project. As Mercedes Molino, the designer responsible for the biodynamic gardens, noted, “these things are contagious”; the team’s hope is that when people see CAS4 houses being constructed in their neighborhood, they will be curious enough to start asking questions – and the phenomenon can spread from there.

Green, ecological, environment, recycling. All words you hear more and more nowadays, and this ‘green flow’ is taking a foothold in Argentina. However, the words are there, but what about the actions? Yes, Palermo is full of ‘Eco-restaurants’, yes we have the ‘cartoneros’ who do a really good job and there are now bicycle lanes dotted around the city. But is that it?

No, although it is still in its infancy, there is more, for sure! Where? In the Argentine fashion and product design industry, that’s where. A brief dive into this world will lead you quickly to DQB Studio. So we went along to meet with Dominique Besanson, the studio’s art director.

Since her childhood Besanson has been interested in design, leaving Buenos Aires for Milan after high school to study fashion design. Although she maintains it was a very rich and valuable experience, it turned out that fashion design was not to be ‘it’ for her. “I liked it a lot but I didn’t really think like a fashion designer,” she explains. So, a new course of studies and a new city it was to be, and Besanson started studying art and photography, swapping the city of fashion for the city of infinite possibilities: New York.

Her studies and experiences in New York lead to the idea of mixing design with photography, and upon returning to Buenos Aires, Besanson found the last piece of the puzzle: sustainability. Thus in 2002 those three ingredients lead to the recipe with the name: DQB-Studio.

DQB links art and photography, specializing in crafting sustainable handmade goods. The studio consists of five people from all different professional backgrounds but with one goal in common: working in a sustainable way.

Besanson sees starting her studio in Buenos Aires, a city where the concept of sustainability is still in its infancy, as an extra challenge. “It gives me an extra drive to spread the word and emphasize the message of sustainability. I want to make it clear that products which are made from recycled fabrics are not ‘dirty’ or ‘dusty’. Although my products of course have to look nice, the message that comes with the product, remains the most important thing.”

But Besanson admits that whilst Buenos Aires is a city that follows trends and changing fashion, people still tend to stick to their old habits. “In Europe for example, recycling is already a more basic thing, people are already used to it, here in Argentina it is still quite new and uncommon.”

Having completed several aesthetics projects, in 2006 Besanson started her own line with the philosophy of making her products easy and practical. None of them contain parts that are useless. Even washing instructions and other such labels are considered to be superfluous and are not on any DQB product. A balance has been struck – no fussy bits, but not boring either. “Cosy” is the way the designer describes them, “but not too cosy!”

But what about these ‘cosy’ products? Well, they are all made of recycled fabrics that have been discarded by designers or by fashion labels. These materials are later modified to make them more suitable for the chosen design.

Walking around in the studio you will find a lot of bags, jewellery, purses and scarves, which are certainly not ‘just’ accessories. A lot of creativity and originality is involved. From little wallets made of off cuts of denim to a bedspread made of plastic bags. From a skirt made of the leftover sleeves of a shirt to a bag that is made of street banners.

Besanson works under a golden rule; everything that she designs is sewn, knitted or embroidered in approximately one hour, a production schedule she follows methodically: “One day I draw an outline, the next I sew and the following day I ship.

“The way I work is that I see a certain material or fabric, then think, what can I do with that and then a product is born. Not the other way around; I never have an idea in mind and tyr to work out how to make it with the materials to hand…”

Currently the DQB line consists of approximately 30 products. All of them have been made under the device of simple, functional and interesting. The finished goods are sold in a variety of stores throughout Europe, the US and Latin America, with Besanson’s wholesale strategy based on e-commerce, a tool that enables her to work on a global basis.

Since all of the DQB products are handmade the designer is a big fan of the concept of ‘Do It Yourself’ (DIY), making things with your own hands. And to pass her knowledge and love for DIY on, Besanson gives workshops and she has her ‘DIY Chapters’ in several Argentine magazines.

So trend watchers among us, pay attention: whilst DQB’s products are still rare in Argentina’s fashion world, the concept of sustainability is heating up here, so you might want to bag yourself one of their products quick smart.

After volunteering in a Belgrano soup kitchen for two years, Patricia Frankel came to realize that while those she served each night left with full stomachs, their difficult lives remained fundamentally unaltered.

“We realized that food is important, but it doesn’t generate a change in the person’s life,” she said. “It continues the person’s dependency.”

Frankel saw so many of her fellow porteños trapped in a vicious cycle of homelessness, hunger, violence and poverty, and she wanted to find a way to help them break out by enabling them to support themselves. In Frankel’s eyes, this move to self-sufficiency would require a transition into the working world.

Thus Frankel and her husband Alfredo Schwarcz decided to start Ecobolsas last year, a project that helps a group of street kids earn a small income while promoting environmentalist ideals.

Every week, a group of homeless youth meets at the Coghlan train station to design and decorate canvas shopping bags. They then sell their creations as an alternative to the ubiquitous plastic bags that are distributed at every grocery store, fruit stand, and pharmacy in Buenos Aires.

In the beginning, Ecobolsas only had two participants. Now, a group of eight or nine show up regularly, learning design techniques from volunteers, mixing paints, and creating their bags.

Frankel, who lives in Coghlan and works as a kinesiologist, said that she sees Ecobolsas as an opportunity for “resocialization” for those who show up every week. The participants, who are mostly male, range in age from late teens to mid twenties, and often sleep in train stations or under viaducts. The majority of them have suffered turbulent, dysfunctional home lives.

“There’s a lot of violence, a lot of alcoholism, rapes, abuse,” Frankel said. “Living in the streets is terrible, so usually there’s a terrible situation at home.”

The young participants are often quite closed off when they begin working at Ecobolsas, distrusting of physical contact and reticent about their situational and emotional difficulties.

At first, many of them had trouble adjusting to the relatively structured atmosphere of Ecobolsas, as they live in what Frankel called an “anarchic manner”. But over time, they adjusted to the schedule of weekly meetings and orderly work environment.

Indeed, on the last Thursday in June, a group of regular participants sat around a picnic table chatting casually in the bright winter sun while painting their bags, occasionally walking around to talk to one of the volunteers on the scene or inquire about a particular colour of paint.

Walter Ramon, 19, first joined the group in 2009 because he was enticed by the opportunity to learn a new skill. He has since returned to school, and hopes to have a career in the army.

“She [Frankel] said we could learn to make the bags and paint and design and do something for the environment to eliminate plastic bags,” he said. “What I like is preparing the paint and painting. Before I didn’t know how to, but I learned. To me it doesn’t matter how many bags I produce or sell. What interests me is making the bags neat and presentable.”

Ramon said that the friendships that he has developed with other participants is one of his favourite parts of working at Ecobolsas.

“When I need something, they can help,” he said. “When they need a hand, I can give it to them.”

Frankel sees this growing sense of camaraderie as a positive development, as well.

“The presence of the people is not constant,” she said. “They are very reserved with their problems. But they’re forming a bit of a group now, and this is something that gives order to their lives.”

In addition to socialization, making sure the participants sell their work is important. The first objective of the group is to generate work for the down-and-out, and when the bags do not sell, Ecobolsas is not attractive to them, Frankel said.

Ecobolsas offers bags in different sizes ranging from $10 to $20, which they sell as they work at the Coghlan train station from 10am to 2pm every Thursday. They also occasionally sell the bags at political events, or in the medicine faculty at the UBA. Special purchases boost sales as well. Late last year, a Buenos Aires company bought 350 bags to distribute to their employees as Christmas presents.

The design supplies have all been donated by various community groups. Ecobolsas workers generally buy the blank bags at half price, and then keep the profits from the sale, although due to significant donations, they are often able to buy the bags for less than half.

In addition to helping the homeless youth get on their feet, Frankel said she is happy to promote environmental consciousness in Buenos Aires, an awareness that porteños are sorely lacking.

“The cartoneros are the only recyclers,” Frankel said of her city. “There is no consciousness of recycling, no separation of trash. There are many economic interests [that block environmentalist policies in Argentina]. There is a lot of impunity.”

But now the young participants are developing an interest in the environment, talking amongst themselves about local issues like river pollution.

“All of the kids have more consciousness,” Frankel said. “It’s going from the bottom up.”

Ecobolsas is always looking for more volunteers, and those who are interested can contact Frankel through the group’s Facebook page.

“The best way to collaborate is to buy the bolsas, if not for Ecobolsas itself but then for the planet,” Frankel said.

Contact Ecobolsas at ecobolsas@msn.com, or check out their Facebook page.

By now you’ve become well aware that your lifestyle could use a bit of greening up, but you’re reluctant to make the changes. So many of the changes demanded of living in a more environmentally friendly manner require renouncing elements of our daily lives that we have grown utterly accustomed to: driving less, flying less, eating less meat, using less electricity, using less gas.

But there are other changes we can make that actually augment our lives: they save us money, encourage us to eat healthier, spend more time outside, reconnect with nature, give us a sense of agency. One of the most beneficial changes we can make, for both our own and the environment’s well being, is to start our own organic gardens.

This proposition, however, can be daunting, especially for those of us with poor track records in the green thumb department. But that’s where Alejo Mendez Guerín comes in. Alejo offers two day, intensive workshops that cover the basic theories and practices of organic cultivation. The workshops are very reasonably priced and Alejo speaks perfect English and will be able to clear up any questions you may have along the way. He says of his intentions for the workshops, “I try to demystify what organic cultivation is really all about so that people will fell as though it is something that they are very capable of doing.”

Alejo, a tall, spindly young man of 25, mature well beyond his years, is a wealth of knowledge on sustainable agriculture. His eyes brighten as he hurtles through information ranging from explanations of soil varieties to strategies for chemical-free pest prevention. No question goes unanswered, no theory explained without the inclusion of a practical use.

Alejo has been teaching these workshops for over a year. He also offers private consulting to individuals and groups who are interested in growing organically, but don’t know where to begin. He recently completed his degree from the School of Agricultural Economics and Management at the University of Buenos Aires. While working on the degree, he spent a couple of summers at the Centre for Research and Education of Sustainable Agriculture (CIESA) in the Chubut province of Patagonia studying “biointensive” agriculture methods.

Biointensive agriculture is an method of growing crops organically in a small area, such as a vegetable garden in one’s backyard, or on one’s terrace as is more common here in Buenos Aires. The efficiency of space is the central theme, and most techniques were created to be used in a 10m2 plot of land. The method focuses on producing healthy, high-quality soil by using compost rather than fertilizer, companion planting (growing plants that complement each other) and best utilizing the unique attributes of the given ecosystem. CIESA says that the biointensive method is able to produce, from one 10m2 plot, 40-60% of an annual vegetarian diet for a family of four, and will allow the family to save approximately $1000 a year on groceries.

Enticing statistics like these bring many different types of people to Alejo’s workshops, some with gardening experience, others with strong commitments to a sustainable lifestyle, and still others who are just beginning to dip their toes into the stream of information on how to live in more environmentally friendly ways.

Alejo divides the workshop into two days: the first dedicated to theory, the second devoted to putting the theories into practice and getting dirty in the garden. The theory session begins with a discussion of the true and unnerving nature of modern industrial farming: the effects of genetically modified seeds, the exhaustion of soil by monoculture farming and the dangers of chemical pesticides. After this unsettling presentation Alejo offers a taste of the fruits of choosing a different path: quiches of organic pumpkin and spinach from his own garden. Refreshed and inspired, the participants are now ready to hear about the alternatives.

The second half of the day introduces the participants to the basics of biointensive agriculture. The method’s primary theme is the most efficient utilization of soil. Thus, the different properties and varieties of soil are explained, as well as what crops are best grown in each. The biointensive method teaches a technique called “double-digging”, in which plant beds are raised to allow for a total depth of just over 60 centimetres. This allows the vegetables to send their roots deeper into the soil and access a wealth of nutrients as well as permitting the crops to be planted more closely together. Thus, one is able to produce more food in a smaller area.

Alejo also expounds on such topics as compost varieties, natural methods of pest prevention and “companion planting”, which involves choosing plants that complement each other’s growth. For example, some plants will produce odours that deter certain insects, while others will change soil composition in manners beneficial to their neighbours.

The manifestation of these theories is exhibited to participants when they join Alejo at his personal vegetable garden on the outskirts of La Plata, in Buenos Aires province, for the practical day of the workshop. But they don’t just marvel at Alejo’s work, they mix compost, dig their pitchforks into the soil and sow seeds.

After completing the workshop, participants have a strong foundational understanding of organic agriculture and are ready, and usually highly motivated, to start their own organic vegetable gardens. Alejo says of his teaching method, “it’s important not to assign people specific formulas to follow, but rather to give them the tools to understand and work with what they already have.”

To find out when Alejo will be offering the next workshop and to register to participate visit: http://alejomendez.com/. The two day workshop costs $150.

By now we are pretty much all in agreement that climate change is happening and we should all be making an effort to lead greener lives, especially as the recent summit in Copenhagen has proven that we cannot trust politicians to lead the way on this one. But sometimes it can be difficult to pick through a minefield of different information and get into the habit of more environmentally friendly practices. Ambientate, an Argentine non-profit organisation aimed at improving simple daily habits, has come up with 25 tips for a greener life this year, proving the smallest thing can make a big difference if put into practise by everybody.

1. Stop using plastic bags

Ninety percent of all plastic bags end in landfills where they take decades to decompose. New laws are coming in to slowly filter out the use of plastic bags, but they will not come fully into effect for another couple of years. In the meantime we can all improve our habits by taking our shopping bags out with us and telling cashiers ‘no hace falta una bolsa, gracias’.

2. Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth

Leaving a tap running loses nine litres of water per minute, the equivalent of what three adults drink in a day. Simply turning the tap off whilst brushing your teeth makes a huge difference to water consumption.

Argentina’s Agency of Environmental Protection (APRA) is almost finished testing the city’s first Ecobus—just in time for the new year. The Ecobus, a prototype using hybrid technology, is a promising source for less noise and less pollution.

The bus will run off thermal and electric energy and use two motors. An electric battery and diesel power will eliminate the emission of poisonous gases and reduce hydrocarbons that the current bus system employs. Forty-five batteries along the ceiling will store energy produced by the electric power of the brakes.

“When security tests have concluded in January, Buenos Aires will be at the standard of other large cities not only in its concern for citizen health but also of the planet, with global warming”, president of APRA, Graciela Gerola said.

Argentine scientists are hoping the model is successful and may become a source of income as an export. The new design allows the bus to shut off while waiting for lights or in traffic and start again with little noise and no loss of power. The buses are also estimated to be 30 to 40% more fuel efficient.

The Ecobus is also assumed to reduce 75% of the black smoke emissions of the current model as well as noise pollution which plagues all parts of the capital city.

“In the microcentro and surrounding area (where the traffic congestion is greater), these units are going to function only with electricity, with which the levels of noise pollution will decline notably”, said mayor Mauricio Macri.

The number 62 bus line will be the first to include the “green”—actually black and white—buses. Other routes are scheduled to make the switch in the coming year. During 2010, 20 hybrid buses will come into circulation among the some 9,500 others.

I sat in the passenger seat of Juan Carlos’ Fiat Palio, filled with trepidation. We were on our way to Ecovilla Gaia, a community founded on permaculture principles in the pueblito of Navarro, around 120km outside of Buenos Aires.

I had signed up for a sustainable life course and, while considering the environment a vital issue, felt anxious that my green credentials would not quite be up to scratch. Betraying my ignorance, I turned to two other course participants: “What exactly is permaculture?” It would not be long till I became well acquainted with the term and hurtled into a way of life that is dramatically different from any I had previously known!

Sweet, fresh air filled my lungs. Born and bred in London, and a Buenos Aires resident for three months, I am without doubt a ‘city rat’, as the Argentines coin it. The vast, flat, green pastures of the Pampas were foreign to me.

A Very Big House in the Country

On arrival, we were shown to our rooms. We had been advised that accommodation at Gaia is “simple” but I had not expected to confront a huge mud heater – resembling an alien from ‘Dr. Who’ that I can’t remember the name of – directly in the middle of the dorm. I soon became quite fond of it however! Every room has lockers and plugs and there is always a dry-compost toilet nearby, but you have to walk a short distance to get to the solar powered showers.

The thatched roof, bamboo shutters and mud walls ornamented with mosaics and glass bottles, make the Gaia community centre striking to behold. Inside, as we sat down to our first naturalist dinner, I still felt a little nervous. However, the tension dissipated after we watched a film about two ‘highly consuming’ US citizens’ experiences at an eco villa. Surely I couldn’t be as hopeless as them!

The sustainable life workshop began the next morning. After some bread and amazingly addictive home-made jam (if you have a sweet tooth I defy you to come away without buying some), our seven-strong group gave brief introductions. Course organisers and Gaia inhabitants, Gustavo – a man with a serious aspect and a beard longer than Santa’s – and his wife Silvia, introduced themselves and the course.

We learned that Ecovilla Gaia covers 20 acres, is 12 years old and 100% sustainable, apart from some cheese and milk obtained from a neighbour, and – the essential – mate!

The general daily routine for the sustainable life workshop was a 7am breakfast, in order to start practical work outside by eight. Lunch at one was followed by a theory class in the afternoon and a group task at six. This was either collecting firewood, cooking or cleaning. At eight the whole community dines together and there was often an activity afterwards.

I confess that such packed days can be draining, both mentally and physically. One group member, Sanra, commented that she had been “overwhelmed during the first few days”. We all learnt so much, however, that this compensated for being tired out.

Course organiser Silvia has very good English and she is happy to help those who are not overly confident in their castellano. She translated for Canadian participant, Naila, who felt that her Spanish was not strong enough to understand everything. Naila commented that this did not put her at a disadvantage, particularly because she was already familiar with permaculture principles.

One tip for English-speakers is to learn nature-related vocabulary before going. Particularly tools: wheelbarrow (carretilla) is an essential!

Guided Tour

On Saturday we tagged along on the Gaia guided tour, which I recommend to anyone with an interest in sustainable living or the natural world. It takes place every weekend and on national holidays, but it’s worth arriving before the tour itself starts and paying slightly more to have lunch, particularly because it will probably be very tasty pizza.

Gustavo gave a thorough explanation of how Gaia works. He showed us the ingenious plants that clean the community’s dirty shower water and we marvelled at the carefully thought out construction of the buildings on site and their naturalistic air conditioning and heating systems.

Participants were also invited – positively encouraged, in fact – to make an unconventional contribution to the project: in the dry compost toilets! All waste is made use of, either as tree compost or fertiliser. Hesitancy to use these loos will vanish, when you learn that every year an adult flushes out (no pun intended) an average of; 365g of phosphorous; 730g of potassium and over 4kg of nitrogen. All of these are important fertiliser components, which are often expensive or scarce.

The Politics

After the guided tour there is a question session, at which point the strong political ideals (or cynicisms) that underlie the eco villa are revealed. An unashamed anti-capitalist, Gustavo never missed an opportunity to condemn “the system”, which he believes is based on pride, possession and competition, and managed by “secret societies”. We were not allowed to forget that the impending implosion of such societies will mean that we have no choice but to leave the cities and live sustainably in the future.

Permaculture is an alternative life structure that encourages “observation and interaction” with the land and the “least possible intervention” into nature. It promotes the regeneration of ecosystems, planting trees to restore the earth and produce oxygen. Growing your own food is also essential. It is not only healthier, but cuts out the 12,000km that 1kg of food travels, on average, to consumers dining tables.

I asked Gustavo if there was enough cultivable land to support the whole of the Earth’s population, living according to the Gaia model. He replied: “Seventy million people could live on 20% of the land that makes up the ‘damp Pampas’, following Ecovilla Gaia’s example.”

By the end of the week, I felt uncomfortable and could not shake off the idea that I ought to relinquish my journalistic pretensions, banish myself to a remote field and start growing my own potatoes as soon as possible.

We watched several documenataries as a part of the workshop. All of them are educational or political, relating to genetically modified soya amongst other issues. One of the films we watched, ‘Zeitgeist’, a cult film rapidly gaining popularity, sums up much of Gaia’s political stance. All can be obtained at Gaia for a small (monetary) contribution.

Sustainable Life Activities

Aside from the politics, we studied natural construction and cooking, which were both highlights for me. We helped construct the walls of the new auditorium, which plans to accommodate around 300 people for meetings and classes.

Silvia encouraged us to put plastic bags in between helpings of mud, whilst building up the walls. When there is no further use for these bags, for the Gaia inhabitants it is sensible to incorporate them into buildings where they can’t do any harm, as they take hundreds of years to disintegrate.

The hard physical work of mixing mud, water and straw with our feet, then shovelling it into buckets to take over to the construction site was a killer! I felt it in my shoulders and back during the week and was consistently ravenous after natural construction sessions.

One participant saw this in a positive light, revealing that she had often procrastinated physical work outdoors for fear of not being able to cope with it. The week at Gaia showed her that she is physically capable of more than she had realised and inspired her to put practical plans into action when she got home.

Each member of the group left their mark on Gaia, sculpting an array of objects such as flowers and animals on the outer wall of the auditorium, and decorating them with mosaics. Creativity is apparently also an integral part of the permaculture approach!

In the natural cooking class we made, amongst other things, a roasted aubergine dip, a ricotta pie, an apple crumble and quinoa. Quinoa is a multi-purpose food that is popular with indigenous communities, who also used the soapy liquid it produces when rinsed prior to consumption for washing things.

Uruguyan group member Susan admitted that she “had not expected naturalist food to be so tasty”. The only thing she had missed during the week was chocolate. I must also confess to the occasional strong dairy craving, though the fault here is probably my own.

Seeds and seed saving comprise another fundamental aspect of permaculture. Gustavo showed us Ecovilla Gaia’s seed bank, a fascinating room filled with jars of seeds of different shapes and colours. He emphasised the importance of keeping them dry, for which Gaia has developed its own special method.

Though you might not immediately realise it, these seeds are an important part of the political revolution. Farmers can keep those that perform best and swap varieties of seed with other cultivators. We learn how soya farmers’ ability to do this has been threatened in some parts of the world by genetically modified seeds, patented by large corporations, which contaminate their plantations.

“Cookies”

On our last morning at Gaia we threw the seed “cookies” that we had made at the beginning of the week. These “cookies” are inspired by Masanobu Fukoka, a permaculture guru, and form part of his plan to reclaim and rejuvenate the earth.

Made out of mud with various seeds and a little fertiliser added to them, they give the organisms the best chance of germinating and can be used to cover vast areas of land. Essentially, they work like cow dung.

It was uplifting to walk side by side throwing the “cookies”, in the knowledge that we were helping to revive the earth. Strengthening your bond with nature is one of the main reasons I would recommend a week at Gaia to everybody. One participant was so moved by the view of a sunset across the Pampas that she hugged a large nearby tree.

As a group, we returned to a small plot where we had cast some bolletitas – like “cookies” but smaller and rounder – exactly a week ago. Tiny shoots were beginning to force their way out of these little balls.

Reflecting on what I had learnt, I wished that the permaculture principles promoted at Gaia might start to sprout in the minds of all those who visit the project, be it only for one afternoon. My only fear is that political radicalism and ‘local discounts’ for Argentines may put off some visitors, particularly foreigners.

All in all, I had a genuinely life altering experience at Gaia and was introduced to a vast number of new ideas. Alicia, a student from Rosario, commented how much she had learnt. “Things that I didn’t even expect to learn. And not just from the course, but also from all members of the group. I feel sad, that I have to go back and continue living in the city.”

To find out more about visitng Ecovilla Gaia, including the details of upcoming courses, visit the website: www.gaia.org.ar