PRESS RELEASE
Straw Bale Construction for Pakistan
by Darcey Donovan
Darcey Donovan leads the 6 Friends effort within our Appropriate Technology Area for straw bale construction. She recently led a team of volunteer traveling builders, including Troy Daniels and Graham Richmond, on a four week volunteer effort in the earthquake affected area of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province. While there, they helped to build a straw bale women's vocational training center and introduce straw bale construction to Pakistan. The following is the initial dispatch that Darcey emailed during her visit:
Greetings from Mansehra, Pakistan! For those of you who don't already know, I am here volunteering for four weeks, along with my friends Graham Richmond and Troy Daniels, teaching straw bale construction in the earthquake affected area of northern Pakistan, at the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains.
Greg Zaller, a builder from Nevada City, California, went to Pakistan for five weeks last fall, shortly after the October 8th devastating 7.6 magnitude earthquake. The official earthquake death toll is 83,000 people, 23,000 of whom were school age children, however those actively working in earthquake relief believe the death toll to be much higher. During his visit, Greg came up with a design for and built temporary shelters out of wood and corrugated iron though Relief International. Upon his return to California, he deeply wanted to do more for the Pakistani people, including providing permanent earthquake resistant homes. Wood is a scarce resource in Pakistan, and Greg had the idea that straw bale construction could be an ideal solution. He sent out an email though the California Straw Building Association (CASBA) email list, asking for straw bale design and construction assistance. His plea for help for the Pakistani people struck a chord in my heart. I volunteered to help Greg with the design and drawings for a straw bale women's vocational training center (VTC), and he returned to Pakistan in March of 2006 to work with the Dosti Welfare Organization, the Pakistani affiliation of the US Dosti Foundation. During this second trip he designed and fabricated a straw bale compression machine and built what we believe is the first straw bale building in Pakistan. Recognizing the need to keep the momentum going, I enlisted Graham and Troy to join me for a follow-up trip in May.
We arrived in Islamabad on Monday, May 8th, 2006. Zamurad, our driver (as well as assistant, translator, and soon-to-become good friend) while we're here, picked us up at the airport in Islamabad and we drove two hours north to Dosti's office and guest quarters in Abbottabad. They were in the middle of a move, and after two nights we transferred to their guest house in Mansehra within walking distance to their new office.
During our time here, Graham, Troy and I are assisting in the construction of a second straw bale women's VTC in a town called Jabori, a one and a half hour drive north of Mansehra. The town is located in a gorgeous mountain valley with incredible views and a rushing river. Salahudin, who assisted Greg during his visits, is also assisting us in our straw bale construction project. The Pakistanis are very excited about this type of construction. It is such a viable and empowering solution for them. There are just so many challenges. I truly hope we can make this happen on a large scale!
The Pakistanis welcome foreigners, including Americans, and are especially fond and appreciative of those who have come to offer earthquake relief. They are a generous and caring people, appearing initially reserved, especially in rural areas, but warm to us quickly. People stare at me a lot, which was extremely uncomfortable early on, but I realize now that I just stand out and catch them off guard.
Highlights and observations from our first week:
The driving is incredibly insane here and heavy on the horn. Most people have drivers, for good reason, and most rental cars come with a driver.
In many ways life is much slower here, but there is a lot of hustle and bustle, most likely a result of the large population (7th largest in the world). They seem to be busy living their lives.
People, people everywhere. Practically all are wearing the shalwar kameez, with the women also wearing the dupatta (head scarf). To them it's an expression of their culture, values and beliefs, and not indicative of any kind of suppression.
The cities and towns are quite chaotic and dirty. People litter routinely. The goats, chickens and stray dogs sort through the garbage for bits of food; the remainder is either burned or blown around by the wind.
Yesterday the jack made at the Mansehra CTTC failed after only a few straw bales were made. I have the Hi-Lift farm jack I brought along, and we'll proceed with it in order to get the construction rolling. The Pakistanis desperately need an industrial grade baling machine in the Punjab area, the rice and wheat growing region of Pakistan, for this construction technique a make a big impact. Farm jacks or similar for local empowerment are also a must. But how and with what money?
Our hand-made straw bales that initially appear to be of good quality and compression seem to relax over time and become inferior bales. The local straw is very long, and physically rolling it into a ball-like shape before inserting it into the compression machine appears to help.
I'm amazed at how well I can communicate with Zamurad and others, even when there is a significant language barrier. The Pakistanis are very observant, conscientious and appreciative, and we are able to successfully augment the spoken word with body language.
Above all, the Pakistanis value the family unit. Most marriages are arranged, and they often marry their cousins. Although Islam allows for divorce, the divorce rate is quite low.
Although our first week has been tough in many ways, it really feels good to be here helping out. I truly feel safe, appreciated and loved.
