Gaia: eco adventure villages & zevolution

SEMINAR Integral Leadership for Sustainable Evolution, 4-9 Aug NL

http://AnoukA.gaia.com — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 21:30:52 GMT

Dear collegues,
Please consider spreading the word about or attending this amazing seminar for emerging leaders and change makers. You're welcome!

Are you awake? 
Are you on a mission? 
Do you have a big ego and an even bigger heart?

This seminar serves the evolution of emerging leaders all over the globe. Everyone, entrepreneurs, artists, managers, teachers, trainers, technicians and consultants, are welcome to join us from August 4th to 9th, 2009 in the Netherlands!

Keywords: integral leadership, integral, Ken Wilber, sustainability, evolution, innovation, triple-p, cradle to cradle, C2C, green technology, integral theory, Ervin Laszlo, Herman Wijffels

Your trainers will be Clint Fuhs, Irini Rockwell, Barrett Brown, ...

http://www.experienceintegral.org
http://events.linkedin.com/Integral-Leadership-Sustainable/pub/77440

Our PURPOSE for this event is to assist emerging leaders and change agents worldwide (consultants, politicians, artists, bankers, students, entrepreneurs, etc) with taking the next step in their contribution to a sustainable evolution on our planet.

We do this by:
- facilitating the emergence of personal purpose and reflection on talents,
- by offering the tools and the latest applications of theory in the fields of leadership and sustainability and
- by creating a welcoming space that invites you to to let go and grow together.

We are really excited about the seminar and how it is coming together. It is going to be an amazing experience for all of us.

panels, inverters, efficient lighting, wind turbines, etc

http://roderick.gaia.com — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 08:33:43 GMT

Use what local resources you have. At our island, we get plenty of sun, and we often get wind. Haven't looked too deeply into tidal or current energy systems, but wind and solar will suffice.

For now, we generate about 8 kwhrs per day from the solar panels. enough to power some light bulbs a few fans and a fridge. we have a battery bank that can hold 36 kwhrs. so after several days of little usage, the battery bank fills up and we can use that for when we have a surge in guests. before we install the wind turbines, we've installed a weather station to help us monitor wind speed and direction so we can figure out which type of wind turbine to install and where to install them.

until then, as a back up we use a diesel generator that delivers around 4,000 watts. so if the batteries were empty and there was no sun, it would take 9 hours to charge the batteries to full capacity. this is much more efficient than turning on the generator when we need power - because we'd be generating 4,000 watts and using only perhaps 1,000.

another thing we are doing is using biodiesel. but... there's a more efficient technique, which is using discarded vegetable oil from our resort and other nearby resorts, which can be used for the generator with a few additives. we're working on that.

on top of everything, i'm getting a sweet deal - it makes infinite economic sense to do this, AND, makes marketing easier, AND, pulls in students and other folks because it offers us the opportunity to demonstrate clean energy and teach people about it.

the whole system, to power a resort with a capacity of 35 guests at any given time, and a family of 6 or 7 people looking after the island, will cost me around usd 30,000 when all is installed. including 10 130 watt peak solar panels from kyocera, 24 batteries, an inverter to change electricity from 24 volts to 220 volts, the wiring, a charger to charge the batteries from the generator, and two wind turbines that are 1,000 watt peak each. I should be paying around 700 bucks a month for five years to pay off the system. I was spending 400 bucks a month on the generators, maintenance, etc when we were only full for the weekends. after five years, the solar panels are good for another 20 years (guaranteed), and the batteries for another 5-10 years. So that's free energy.

On top of all that, I negotiated a sweet heart deal - we use the island as a showcase for the company that provided us with the solution. since we attract all sorts of NGO's who are in charge of development projects, they get great coverage to a potential market. it serves as a showcase for other islands in the region who may wish to adopt clean energy. and, it serves as a showcase where this guy can take his potential buyers to, entertain them, and show them a working model. so I pay less than the 700 bucks i should be paying, and only slightly more than the 400 bucks i was paying for weekend only, dirty generator energy.

and there you have it :~)

one final point. this kind of energy transformation is only possible with efficient electrical appliances. that means replacing incandescent light bulbs with flourescent ones, or ideally LED lights. It means replacing old fridges with new ones. it means no ACs, and instead efficient fans for cooling. it means using top-opening fridges that are much more energy efficient than standing ones.

best of all - no more generator noise. sexy solar panels. and a cute little system that displays all sorts of numbers.

want to visit you and share our visions:-)

http://skillsurfers.gaia.com — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 20:39:02 GMT

Hey all of you
we are a group of around 10 young people doin a project called "skillsurfers"
we will be travellin round in our 3 busses this winter and spring in france, spain and portugal
to exchange ideas and experiences and discuss with different people about a better world ;-)

our main topics will be
education networks, fairtrade and solidarity economy, lohas, open source and other... (see our profile)

we are also very much interested in visiting ecovillages and other sustainable living communities, learning e.g. about permaculture...

we thought using the internet and cool social networks would be a good chance to meet interesting people from these countries who might be interested in our tour and help us on our way
- so here we are on gaia :-)

if you are interested we would be happy to meet you on our way!

have a look at our profile and our website www.skillsurfers.eu
as well as www.couchsurfing.com/people/skillsurfers

thanks guys
love&peace :-)

Re: Here's a couple of super cool places for your next vacation..

http://roderick.gaia.com — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:24:06 GMT

Three places in my 'back yard' worth visiting:

Nihiwatu - one of the top 5 eco resorts of the world, and one of the world's best 100 hotels as voted by Tatler. Winner of numerous rewards and a personal favorite in terms of their astounding style, gorgeous location, and serious commitment towards improving regional quality of life. Wow. A true inspiration and a gorgeous website.

Bali Eco Lodge - also one of Indonesia's premier eco resorts, this place is much more affordable, and truly is committed to sustainability, conservation, and living in harmony with nature. Up in the mountainous regions of Bali, this is simply an incredible destination worth spending a few days or weeks at.

Tiger Islands Village & Eco Resort - this is my humble little resort, a seedling of the trees above and my own vision on how to make the world a better place. It was recently voted by Travel and Leisure as one of 12 best affordable private island resorts in the world - which is hard for me to imagine. Nonetheless, it's super laid back, features gorgeous coral reefs, has a range of eco technologies for sustainable living, and is in the process of a regional community development initiative focused on education and conservation.

Please, if you know of any amazing eco retreats or other eco villages that you feel are worth visiting, please share :~)

Re: United Adventures ~ on the move

http://roderick.gaia.com — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 22:56:22 GMT

May 1st, 2008

Featured on www.travelandleisure.com as one of 12 affordable island resorts around the world

launched www.pulaumacan.com

:~)

Re: United Adventures ~ on the move

http://telesterion.gaia.com — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 03:49:12 GMT

Sounds like a series of good moves, Rodrigo. I left a comment on your vid.

I'd like to see an actual video, when you get the chance to make one, in your "copious free time", ha ha ha.

You've been in business long enough now that you should be able to do an analysis of past profit making contracts, and see where your best advertising and client-closing efforts are coming from. Do you have a sense of what has made you the most profit?

Re: United Adventures ~ on the move

http://everyday.gaia.com — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 20:14:48 GMT

I enjoyed your You Tube video. The island looks very beautiful. I'm looking forward to learning more about your eco adventure and community projects.

Re: United Adventures ~ on the move

http://roderick.gaia.com — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 08:13:30 GMT

February 13, 2008

* downsized the business to increase focus. 85% focus is now on the islands and creating a real first model of an eco resort village.

* made my first youtube video :~) it's a slideshow with music, with some of the best pictures of the island. Watch it here. And leave a comment if you feel inspired to do so :~)

* sold 20% of the island business to a yoga entrepreneur. Decided to convert our deserted island to a peaceful sanctuary for yoga retreats, silence retreats, and aryuvedic treatments. Will be building our yoga shala in the next six weeks.

* got an agreement to convert all power systems to alternative sources, with a biodiesel generator for back up. All solar panels and a wind turbine! Wohoo!

Pod restructuring for 2008

http://roderick.gaia.com — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 07:28:44 GMT

Hi folks,

Just a quick note to let you know that I've decided to restructure the pod.

Since I fully intend to use this pod as a tool for all of us who are committed to setting up sustainable communities, and for those of us who are seriously interested in doing the same, I'm wondering how to make it more useful for all of us.

My thoughts are to structure it in the same way a sustainable eco-resort village would be structured ~ housing, vegetable garden, fruit & herbs garden, healing center, restaurant, adventure center, repair workshop, library, village meeting center, performance & art centers, spiritual zones, research centers, water systems, electricity systems, enterprise center, experiential learning center, etc.

If you own a resort, are a part of an ecovillage, or intend to create a sustainable community, my wish is to create value for you. To create a reference and idea center where you can come and meet folks around the world with a similar vision & path.

Sending you best wishes for a healthy, peaceful, and prosperous 2008! And I look forward to your input on how this pod can best serve you, and for your involvement in thinking through this solution for transformational change around our planet. I sincerely believe this concept will play a major role in the coming transformations, and I'm glad you're here to share in facilitating this evolution!

*deep bow and best wishes for a concious start to the year,

~drigo

Re: Inspirational Discussions & Movies

http://roderick.gaia.com — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 16:46:37 GMT

One of my favorites based on the book Conversations with God: a very inspirational and insightful flash movie:

http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFView.cfm?PID=148

In fact, this site has a bunch of great inspirational flash movies and joining is easy. Check out their list of movies below

http://www.consciousone.com/wisdomflash/WFlist.cfm

trampolines

http://roderick.gaia.com — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 20:07:02 GMT

wow. i just rediscovered the joy of childhood :~)

today, I brought out the trampoline from the 'forest' and onto the jetty near the deep water. ever since i brought it out there, i wished to strap some floaters and put her in the sea so I could jump on the water. Next to the water off the jetty is the next best thing :~)

wow. i mean, wooohhoooooo! yeeeeehaaaww. what energy! what amazing views while jumping! what awesome photograph opportunities! what amazing thrills and adrenaline from jumping / diving / flipping off the trampoline!

highly recommended for eco adventure resorts!!! (be cautious though!!!) Jedi's and Jedi apprentices only ;~)

Re: Inspirational Discussions & Movies

http://roderick.gaia.com — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 14:30:15 GMT

Here's another awesome movie about FUN and about not wasting time. It's awesome, enjoyable, and inspirational...

check it out: http://www.eightprinciples.com/ !

Inspirational Discussions & Movies

http://roderick.gaia.com — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 19:39:33 GMT

These are two aspects of the eco resort villages that are key towards building community, enjoying each other, and fostering expanded awareness and skills needed for the Zevolution :~)

Sami Sunchild, a member of our pod, has created www.peacefulworldtravel.org. It's got links to some great destinations around the world and is headquartered in San Francisco at the Red Victorian. It's a charming place and if you visit SF please do stop by and visit her - she's inspiring and has a great Bed & Breakfast there with yummy treats, awesome posters, a good internet cafe, and friendly folks. Anyways, my point is that a cornerstone of the experience there is the peaceful world conversations ~ and these now occur in more than fifty spots around the world with lots of locations in the US, so be sure to check out and see if there's a spot near you. These conversations are an amazing way to connect people from various backgrounds.

Another good way to start conversations would be to show movies and have discussions afterwards. I'd like to build up a library of all time great movies, including a bunch of documentaries and informational type movies, at our island resort. These would be especially useful for the residents and guests for entertainment value.

I've posted a few links below for some inspiration on-line movies that you can download and watch directly from your computer - but these could also be shown onsite and be starting points for discussions.

From Simple Truths, here are 15 online 3-minute movies

From the Achieve E-zine here are another 15, some of them repeats.

What discussions do you host, if any?

Do you have a library at your resort or location? What kind of movies? When do you show movies?

For those of you who don't have a place yet, pretend you do :~)

Freely downloadable courses you could use

http://roderick.gaia.com — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 17:05:38 GMT

Check out these awesome mini-courses from Avatar:

http://www.avatarepc.com/html/mini-eng.html

Re: Internships

http://roderick.gaia.com — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 19:28:35 GMT

Walt!

That sounds like an AMAZING internship. I'd love to apply!

12 weeks is longer than I can take away from my enterprise here though...it's busy times for us with expanding our little team, securing a long term contract to manage and develop two islands, build a human resource development consulting and implementation practice, and create an eco-adventure tourism company! :~)

But what you're teaching there is so central to our vision. I'd love to make time to get there. But I may only be able to come for a few weeks, perhaps 3 at most.

Do you offer any such 'combined' internship programs with some remote learning and contributions thrown in?

Anyways, a big *thank you* for posting this internship, and am looking forward to your response :~)

~drigo

Creating Affordable Travel Opportunities

http://riversearain.gaia.com — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 06:37:14 GMT

Hi there,

Many people I know, including myself are ushering in the vision of ecotourism, eco-retreats etc. I recently became a Leisure Travel Consultant with a company that buys bulk travel packages and have been wanting to have them include more eco-retreats as an offering to members.
I also have the ability to create a custom group excursion at wholesale prices. I am an advocate of green standards and would love to coordinate packages with those of you that own or have relations with eco-retreats. Maybe we can design some things together.

In Peace,
Raymond Powers
http://www.raymondpowers.worldventuresdreamtrips.com
http://www.simplebrilliance.com

Re: activities for high school students

http://believechat.gaia.com — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 23:31:31 GMT

hi drigo.. =)

me and my friend are strarting our travel and tours business. we are trying to promote beautiful small islands here in the Philippines. We are based in Manila, and right now most of our clients are schools, we are facilitating educational fieldtrips.

we're still on the trial and error stage.. can i ask a copy of the template for proposals? definitely, it will be a very big help to our business.. thank u sooo much.. =)
chatty

Re: neva's retreats

http://roderick.gaia.com — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 16:08:27 GMT

Neva Said:

"I think this type of event faciliatates rapid transformation and heals the imbalances created by our current cultural atmosphere."

Eco resort villages, or simply eco-adventure resorts, have a lot to offer when teaming up with teachers or practicioners such as yourself :~)

There's a symbiotic relationship here... with coaches and destinations. The coach can come to teach at the destination with marketing / invitations administered by the resort. Otherwise, the coach can bring her own clientele to the resort. Either way, it's a win win sitaution.

Neva, are there any particular retreats that you have loved working with? What makes for an ideal retreat?

Re: activities for high school students

http://roderick.gaia.com — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 16:04:10 GMT

The CAS program! Good stuff... I participated in that in Jakarta for highschool and it was a real learning experience.

Anyhow, although I don't have any contacts in Costa Rica for such programs, I'm sure you could find plenty of eco resorts that will cater for such activities.

Here at united adventures, we are working with a number of the international schools (national plus schools next) to design International Award Program walks, Boyscout trips, and field trips. The schools are hungry for such learning! I imagine you are a teacher or administrator at one such school?

That's really one of the other economic drivers of the ecoresort village concept - catering to schools and their field trips and facilitating the discovery of nature, themselves, farming, art, meditation, and living in an amazing physical space for a few days.

We've found this to be profitable, and very enjoyable. For any eco resort operators out there, let me know if you need a template for proposals and I'd be happy to share.

Thanks for the question Lisa, and do let us know if you've found something already, or your thoughts on what eco-resort operators could do to cater to school programs like the CAS one.

Cheers, and warm regards from the archipelago,

~drigo

neva's retreats

http://nevafusion.gaia.com — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 18:45:37 GMT

Greetings fellow travelers! I love taking folks into beautiful natural environments to delve into spirituality through yoga, meditation, nature hikes, journaling and sharing. You can check out my web site www.innerdomain.org to see the types of places I go and the work that I do. I think this type of event faciliatates rapid transformation and heals the imbalances created by our current cultural atmosphere. Namaste