Eco-village Infrastructure

ECO-VILLAGE PROJECT

The Future Vision Eco-village in Sao Paulo State, Brazil (Parque Ecologico Visao Futuro) is the pilot project promoted and supported by CSV. Founded in 1992 by seed grants from the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) and the German aid organization Foundation for Alternative Technology (Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Technische Zusmammenarbeit--GTZ), this eco-village is today a model of sustainable community.

ECO-VILLAGE INFRASTRUCTURE

• Integrated alternative energy systems, including solar lighting, solar hot water heating, solar pumps, and windmill-powered irrigation pumps
• Organic gardens, orchards and agricultural fields producing all the eco-village's food needs, including grains, fruits, vegetables, etc. The farm is certified by, and a member of, the organic Agricultural Association of Brazil.
• Waste recycling, which includes waste separation, composting areas, and vermiculture.
• Medicinal plant gardens and laboratory for processing herbs, providing self-sufficiency in medicines.
• Biological water treatment system which recycles every drop of water used domestically.
• Lakes to harvest rain water, surrounded by contour-planted agro-forestry plantations.

ACTIVITIES
Numerous educational and cultural activities are regularly conducted at the eco-village, including:

• Regular visits by school children from surrounding schools
• Project Grow--the training of child and youth leaders in waste recycling in the nearby city of Tatui.
• Future Vision Project, a project in conjunction with World Future Studies Foundation of Australia, which trains University students in self-development and ecological living.
• Environmental teachers training for local school teachers
• Holistic weekend courses in ecology, neo-humanism, bio-psychology, health, yoga, etc.
• Kindergarten with 20 students.
• To date nearly 1000 adults have attended courses in human development, preventive health care, education, culture, self-reliant industries, ayurvedic medicine, and communication and are spreading these ideas through activities in 18 cities throughout Brazil.

EC0-VILLAGE STAFF
The eco-village was founded in 1992 by Dr. Susan Andrews (a.k.a. Didi Anandamitra) The village employs 22 social worker/managers, educators, and artists, while the many projects, such as farm, bakery, ayurvedic clinic, medical laboratory, etc. employs an additional 25 people from the local village Barrio.

THE LOCAL AREA AND ITS PROBLEMS
The eco-village is situated in an economically backward and environmentally degraded area with high unemployment and an average income per month around $75. Families of eight are often crowded into small rooms made of wood and mud, with no electricity, sewage or clean water.

This is a typical rural area in Brazil from which people flee the desolation only to end up as slum dwellers in cities like Sao Paulo, where half of the city's 12 million people live in poverty-stricken favelas.

PROPOSED PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS
We propose to establish an economically self-sufficient medical complex emphasizing preventive medicine and low-cost nutritional; therapies offered free to all the surrounding areas of more than 1000 families. The center will be staffed by health professionals, most of whom will volunteer their services:. The complex will include:

• Doctor's treatment room
• Dental clinic
• Small lecture hall
• Psychological counseling
• Natural therapies such as massage, nutrition, hydrotherapy, etc.
• Preventive medical care instruction imparted by the children of the area through plays teaching basic nutrition, sanitation, and dental care
• Mobile medical unit

COOPERATIVE AGRO-INDUSTRIES
The second part of the development project will be the establishment of small-scale, cooperatively run agro-industries providing employment to the local populace. These will include:

• Handicrafts center
• Sweets production center
• Dairy production center
• Toys and furniture center
• Boots and shoes center
• Weaving center
• Sewing center

This mini-industrial village will enable the poor, out-of-school youth to develop the skills needed to earn a decent living and lead a dignified life.

ECO-TOURS
CSV will organize a self-discovery and eco-tour to the Future Vision Eco-village in October/November (late spring in Brazil) of 2002. Detailed information about this tour will be forthcoming shortly.

RESEARCH
A select list of research papers on ecology, sustainability, eco-village development, rural development, etc. written by members or staff of CSV.