Permaculture cross-pollination: Kufunda Village and the Uhuru Network

A very exciting day: the Permaculture Kollektive of the Uhuru Network visiting the Permaculture Team at Kufunda Village. We also enjoyed connecting with another group of urban youth who were exploring permaculture as a method of urban waste reduction.
The three groups spent a lively day together, in sharing circles and an "open space forum," where people split up by interest groups.
Here you can see Melanie (from Kufunda) teaching the group about the Herb Lab and how they are growing and processing a variety of herbs for traditional medicines and support for people with HIV/AIDS.

This group is discussing some of the basics of permaculture: sheet mulching and guilding. There were a lot of little tips and ideas that Kufunda is demonstrating well, and the urban groups were excited to consider how to apply them to the city.

We had a yummy lunch packed with veggies! This was one of the first times that men populated the Kufunda kitchen.

At the closing circle, people expressed their appreciation for the day spent together and asked if they could come back for more cross-pollination. The possibilities are endless!

Sometimes I forget the power of simply sitting in a circle and giving space to each person to share from their heart. This was a very wise group of motivated young people! It was quite exciting to hear people insights from the day.

This was also a really nice to end my time in Zimbabwe--connecting the two groups that I spent most of my time with. I hope that the relationship continues!

Learning Journey in Rusape

With the Boston Barr Fellows, we visited one of the rural communities that Kufunda works with. Over two days with the Rusape community in eastern Zimbabwe we witnessed the seeds of Kufunda’s work that was growing in this rural area!!

We were greeted with a big celebration, speeches and tour of some of the projects. We first met a very lively group of women and children singing “Mahuya!” (welcome) and dancing around us. In the center of the meeting area we found a group of school children playing marimba, and everyone started dancing – it was really fun.

The Rusape community went all out to welcome the Boston visitors… we lined up to shake hands with the local chiefs and headmen, and then watched an opening ceremony where three elder women brought water and homemade beers on their knees to the chiefs.

Then there were plenty of speeches (some political, some about the projects). Lou from Boston got up and thanked everyone for their warm welcome.

Here are some of the Kufunda-inspired projects:

The Preschool (ok, older kids are pictured here)

Arbor Loo composting toilets (once they are full, the toilet is moved and a tree is planted above-- here you can see the new tree)

Tree planting project

Rammed earth natural building (reviving a forgotten local building method)

It was great to see the myriad Kufunda-inspired projects, and the community energy and empowerment that was built through them!

I really enjoyed the bus ride to and from Rusape—a chance to learn more about the work of the Boston folks, and just hang out and sing together!!

Rusape community -- life in rural Zimbabwe

See June 15 for an introduction to Kufunda’s work with Rusape community. Here, I want to share with you my time with Anna, a sparky woman who co-founded “God’s Power,” a women’s knitting collective (pictured here wearing the clothes she knit out of old sacks). I spent the night at her house, with two other women visiting from two other Kufunda-connected rural communities. We quickly discovered that we all love to sing and knit, and we had a really really fun night together!!

We sat in Anna’s kitchen hut and roasted peanuts, sang and shared stories.

I love her creative decorations—newspapers cut into doilies.

In the morning, Anna showed me her super herb garden, packed with more than two dozen medicinal herbs, which she learned about through Kufunda’s herb program. Another creative item: an old bedspring is the garden door.

She also introduced me to her whole family, living in huts dotted around the little compound.

A view of the kitchen hut and maize storage area.

Her composting toilet--Kufunda inspired.

Here is her year’s supply of maize—staple food.

You can see how smokey the kitchen fire is—no ventilation in the hut. As you can imagine, a lot of rural African women and children have lung/breathing ailments.

We walked back to the road to meet everyone and had more fun singing and dancing in the street!

Kufunda Learning Journey: super cross-pollination!

One of Kufunda’s activities is to host Learning Journeys, week-long visits from international groups who immerse in the Kufunda community to exchange stories, knowledge, and tools and techniques for social change.

I was lucky enough to join a Learning Journey from the Barr Foundation in Boston. A group of 12 Barr Fellows, non-profit leaders from across Boston, came to Kufunda to learn about Kufunda’s model, meet with Kufunda’s community friends (namely, the Uhuru Network!), visit one of Kufunda’s rural communities, and connect with many layers of current Zimbabwe life.

Introductions

It was very exciting to sit in a circle with a dozen Bostonians who had just arrived in Zimbabwe and listen as they asked questions about the political and cultural aspects of Zimbabwe… let the cross-pollinating begin!

Exploring Kufunda

The next day, the Bostonians and Kufundees spent the morning swapping life stories, first as pairs and then in small groups. In the larger circle, people reported back with their feelings, surprise

Later that day the Bostonians got active with a few projects around Kufunda, making herbal remedies, permaculture garden beds and a new “arbor loo” composting toilet!

One of the evenings we enjoyed dinner at Mrs. Knuth’s house (the mother of Marianne, who founded Kufunda). I shared some Portland stories with the Bostonians… here they are watching the City Repair video.

Later, a few of us had an energetic political conversation with Mrs. Knuth, who works for the government.

Berkana Exchange

The connection between the Bostonians and Kufunda was actually facilitated by another organization called the Berkana Institute. Berkana is a really neat program based on weaving connections between local projects across the world. The Berkana Exchange connects 13 learning centers, including Kufunda Village. This Learning Journey was coordinated with the Barr Foundation as part of a leadership fellowship program. Keep your eyes out for more on Berkana because I am quite excited by their ideas and programs.

More cross pollination: Kufunda, Uhuru and 12 leaders from Boston!

A dozen leaders from non-profits in Boston, an urban network of social change collectives, and a permaculture education center spending the afternoon together... and me! What fun!

After weeks of spending time at the Uhuru Center in Highfields Township, I suddenly found myself packed into a room with many members of both Kufunda and Uhuru, as well as the non-profit leaders from Boston (see previous post for explanation).

Here's a clip from the introductions:


It was pretty excited to anticipate the flow of information and ideas that was about to happen.

Here is a little clip of Warrior's Truth explaining what "Toyi Toyi" is:

After introductions, we split up into more of an open space forum, with activities and conversations with each Uhuru Collective.

Here is the Permaculture Collective showing off their diagrams and plans. The Bostonians were intrigued with some of the deeply creative means of popular education (stories to be shared in person).

Outside looking at the backyard garden…

In the next room over was a demonstration of the Media Collective’s work, as well as a deep conversation about freedom of speech and journalism.

This video is a little narrated tour of the action:

Open Space forum with Kufunda communities

Kufunda's work is focused on five rural communities, and a few times a year Kufunda hosts workshops for a few of the communities at a time so that they can learn together and cross-pollinate stories. This workshop was for the Zvimba and Mhondoro communities as an introduction to many of Kufunda's offerings, including the use of "the circle" to facilitate democratic participation, visioning sessions and discussions about interpersonal dynamics among village leadership.

These are photos from the end of the week where they participated in an "open space forum" and focused on issues of their own choosing.


These workshops reveal Kufunda's magic. They not only pass along useful tools that the villagers can use to facilitate their own community empowerment and project management, but they also build connections between two villages so that they know they are not alone with their struggles. It's very powerful to know that you have allies. And the skills that they gain--especially the women who are not always used to being listened to--are critical for the many complex issues that the villages face.

In this workshop, one of the village headmen visited Kufunda for the first time, and he was surprised at how effective a "circle" discussion--where each person checks in and shares their feelings and ideas-- could be in bringing light to current issues. Before this he had never formally listened to the village women's opinions.

Open Day at Kufunda

Kufunda hosted an Open Day to invite potential funders and collaborators to visit and get to Kufunda's unique programs. Most visitors were from embassies and foundations.

It was fun to see Kufunda exhibit each of their program areas! The visitors enjoyed a tour, a yummy Kufunda-style homemade healthy lunch and wonderful mbira music and poetry. It was definitely a feel good day and the visitors really appreciated the experience!

On the left you can see Admire showing off Kufunda's energy efficient stoves. On the right is the Herb Team, proudly displaying their products.



Below is Silas explaining the basics of permaculture gardening, and James playing mbira and singing with the preschool kids!