Bring Jaye to teach Sustainable Bamboo Skills in Kenya 2025!
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Bring Bamboo Clump Management, Affordable Treatment, Processing and Building Construction skills to Africa!
Kenya is home to abundant bamboo resources, yet the lack of accessible effective and affordable treatment technologies and skills has limited its potential. Through this Bamboo 4 Africa Bamboo Skills Training initiative, we aim to change that!
In Kenya, bamboo can play a pivotal role in redefining community livelihoods and furthering sustainability goals. However, the potential of present bamboo resources remain underutilized due to a lack of knowledge and skills in management and maintenance of bamboo clumps and in effective treatment and application of skills in building construction with bamboo: Many farmers are unaware of how to cultivate bamboo effectively, leading to poorly maintained clumps that compete for space with other crops and land uses. Some farmers have even considered removing bamboo from their properties due to these challenges. Kenya has in fact lost 1/3 of the bamboo plantings put down originally through government initiatives 8-10 years ago due to these challenges.
Training programs are crucial to teach effective bamboo management and treatment methods, enabling communities to build sustainably and reduce pressure on forests while enhancing rural economies through job creation in the bamboo industry. Proper management will not only improve the growth rate and quality of the bamboo but also ensure that it becomes a valuable resource that farmers and the community can collaborate together towards building a sustainable bamboo industry .
Good News!!!
In January 2025, Jaye Irving, expert bamboo architect and skills trainer, is heading to Meru, Kenya, to lead the Phase 2 Bamboo 4 Africa Training Program. This 22-day, 2 Module program (starting January 21st, 2025) will provide practical skills and knowledge in:
○ Bamboo Clump Management, Maintenance & Biochar Production
○ Innovative Low-Cost Bamboo Treatment Techniques
○ Post-processing and materials preparation
○ Small Building Construction Skills
Our goal extends beyond Kenya... By training "mini-experts" in bamboo clump management, biochar production, and sustainable building practices in Meru and Embu, we’re laying the groundwork for a pan-African network of climate-resilient, regenerative villages, social enterprise and community resource management (CRM) with monitoring and community workforce empowerment model organisation and development alongside ICOSEED, Kenya. These communities will serve as hubs of ecological innovation, cultural preservation, and economic empowerment, aligned with Sustainable Development Goals 5, 8, 13, & 15.
TRAINING OUTLINE:
MODULE 1
(January 21 - February 01, 2025)
In MODULE 1 of the Phase 2 training program, bamboo expert Jaye Irving will cover essential techniques for managing bamboo clumps. This includes thinning out overgrown stands to promote healthier growth and utilizing the thinnings to create biochar, which enhances soil quality and provides an alternative cooking fuel to wood. Proper management will not only improve the growth rate and quality of the bamboo but also ensure that it becomes a valuable resource for the community.
Participants will learn an innovative hyperboloid treatment set-up technique developed by Jaye Irving which makes the Vertical Soak Diffusion (VSD) method an affordable and accessible technique for Bamboo Treatment; enabling communities to treat bamboo locally without large capital set-up demands. This will make value-adding bamboo a realisable reality.
MODULE 2
(February 4 - 15, 2025)
MODULE 2 focuses on incorporating bamboo into local architectural and eco-tourism design applications, promoting alternative livelihoods centered around bamboo building and craftsmanship to stimulate local economies. This not only empowers individuals with new skills but also creates employment opportunities within the growing bamboo industry.
- ===== MEET JAYE IRVING! =======
Hi, I’m Jaye Irving, founder of Barefoot Sustainable Design. For the past 25 years, I’ve been working in bamboo groves around the world, studying the unique properties of this extraordinary material. As an architect, I’ve designed and built bamboo structures in many countries, and now, I’m about to take this work to the next level.
I’ve partnered with Bamboo Creative Bali, Anabas Resorts Kenya, and several community organizations across Africa to create a Landmark Educational Training Center in Kenya. This project will empower local communities with the skills they need to maintain, harvest, treat, and build with bamboo—creating sustainable businesses and transforming lives.
Our goal is simple but powerful: to teach the fundamentals of bamboo design and construction, helping people launch small-scale industries affordably. This is a hands-on, grassroots effort to build a better, more resilient future, and we’re doing it with bamboo—one of the world’s most sustainable resources.
But we can't do this without YOU. We need your support to turn this vision into reality. By contributing, you’re not just funding a project—you’re investing in building ecological alternative livelihoods and lasting change for communities in Kenya and beyond.
This is your chance to be part of something big. Help us create an educational center that will spark a new industry and change lives. Click the link below to support us now—every donation, no matter how small, gets us closer to our goal.
Together, we can build a better future.
Thank you for your support.
Jaye
Basic Budget Outline
- Flights for Jaye Return to Kenya & Travel Insurances AU$1,700
- Trainer Fee for Jaye - 22 days x AU$240/day - AU$5,280
- Other travel costs (Jaye) AU$400
- Initial Tools Kit Budget for Participants (Knives [20], Rounded Chisels [20], Splitting Knives [5], Saws [5], Sharpening Stones [5], Wood Hammers [5]) = AUD$1020
- Additional Equipment/Tools to bring from Australia AU$700
Sub-Total AU$9100
Additional Items:
- Transport Subsidies for Local Kenyan Participant: AUD$80ea
- Transport Subsidy for Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopian, Ghanan, Cameroon Participant: AUD$294ea
- Local Placement (Participant from Africa) for (one module - 11 days): AUD$90 (Training Only)
- Food/Accomodation Subsidy/Stipend for Local African Participant (one module - 11 days): AUD$248
- Food/Meals only for Local African Participant (one module - 11 days training): AUD$36
We are aiming to support 20 Local/African Participants to Attend the Training
Cost: (Avg. AUD$277 x 20) = AUD$5,540
You can add a note next to your donation to state what you wish/intend for it to be used for :-)
Bamboo 4 Africa: Empowering Communities, Building Resilience, and Advancing Sustainability... PHASE 2 Module 1 & 2 Training - (January 21 - February 15 2025).
Visit the Bamboo 4 Africa Website for more information
PROGRAM DETAILS
Module 1:
Module 2:
(Further Reading: Project Background)
Team Bamboo!
Our Team is a group of passionate individuals from different walks of life, with most of us working in the bamboo industry and others in humanitarian work, communications, hospitality and architectural design. Each of us has several years’ experience in our respective fields, and our bamboo experts have a passion for teaching and sharing their knowledge in planting, harvesting, treatment, design and construction with bamboo. We are convinced that transmitting our knowledge can have a positive impact on the local economies of poor areas with few resources. Providing a solid foundation in working with bamboo has the potential to kick-start new sources of income, regenerating degraded soils and contributing to creating a more just and sustainable planet.
(See Full Project Proposal - email registration required)
This initiative is more than just a training—it’s part of a broader vision to create a Community hub for integrating Bamboo Skills with Traditional Building Techniques to revitalise local livelihoods and seed a sister-village network of regenerative communities across Africa and beyond. Be part of the exciting conversations which are taking place already - and find out ways you can become involved and contribute!
Right now, we need your financial support to help cover the costs of Trainer flights and fees to get to Kenya, as well as to offer transportation cost assistance for local participants to attend the training.
Your contributions will help us to get this initiative started.... and to launch this training program in Kenya!
Special Sponsorship Opportunities:
Donate: AUD$4000/ USD$2600 and get a Super Sponsor Gold Pass to Module 1 AND 2 of the full 22 day Training package in Kenya (Jan 21-Feb15 2025). + BRING A FRIEND FOR FREE - If you pay BEFORE 22 DECEMBER! - Includes Airport Transfers, Meals and Twin-share Accommodation at The Anabas Resort in Meru where the training is being held. You will also receive a Sponsor T-shirt for this Event!
(Only 10 Gold Passes Available)
Donate: AUD$2000/ USD$1300 and be a Super Silver Sponsor! You will receive access to Module 1 OR 2 of the Training program package - on-site in Meru - Includes resort twin-share accommodation, meals, airport transfers and also a Sponsor T-shirt! (2 for 1 ticket if paid before 22 December).
(15 Silver Sponsor Tickets available)
All Contributions of AUD$75 (USD$50) and above will receive access to our Facebook and Youtube Live Training Videos in January-February and also be eligible for a special 50% discount on the Bamboo 4 Africa Documentary Film being made through the Phase 2 training program.
(Only available until 10 January 2025 or for the first 100 donors who contribute AUD$75/USD50+)
Join the Online Training here: https://bamboocreative.myecomshop.com/product/online-live-training-on-site-phase-2-kenya/?hash=689c91fc
Thank You for your Support!
Pre-purchase the Training Video we will be making through the Phase 2 Program: https://bamboocreative.myecomshop.com/product/bamboo-4-africa-content-documentary/
Bamboo can become a valuable resource and building material! Let's build the best bamboo future for humanity!
Learn more or get involved: https://bamboo4africa.org
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Subscribe to our Youtube for Live Events: https://youtube.com/@bamboocreativebali7474
Subscribe to our Youtube for Live Events: https://youtube.com/@bamboocreativebali7474?si=XH1dMB2DfdeuAxUn
You can pay your program fee straight into the Crowdfunding after filling out THIS REGISTRATION FORM: https://forms.gle/MUF4oGJkz6caScKs8
Just put a note next to your donation that it is for your fees and which module.
Organizer and beneficiary
Natalie Davenport
Organizer
New South, Wales
Jeff Irving
Beneficiary