This presentation was created in 2009. So many of the reasons why I created it are still valid. I still want to work with a group of people in the City of Cape Town, concerned Citizens for example, on building a place which can be a showcase for Environmentally Friendly, inexpensive, living. Oh, and the site is still available, mainly because it is in a flood plain, but we have dealt with this problem by building a Berm.

1. 1
Cape Town Centre of Green
Learning (CGL)
Presented by David Lipschitz
Free Life On Earth (FLOE)
8th September 2009

2. 2
How did we get to the (CGL)
idea?
• There is extensive information about “green”
or renewable or sustainable technologies &
ideas:
– Magazines, Newspapers, Brochures
– Internet; Radio, TV
– Presentations
– Wholistic Markets, Festivals and Farms
• But
– No central place in the City to see how one can become
“green”
– No where to easily turn this information into knowledge
– No where to show how to turn from “light green”
(greenwashing) to “dark green” (actually doing something)

3. 3
There is no demand
• This represents a key challenge
• Whoever creates the demand will be seen as
the champion of going green, ie using
renewable technologies and creating energy
• By no demand, we mean, little or no
mainstream public demand for renewable
products, and little or no commitment/support
by government and big business to create this
demand

4. 4
Why is there “no demand”
• The man in the street wants:
– Government to lead
– Big business to lead
– The rich to lead
– To see that it is something that one aspires to,
rather than expensive cars or fancy yachts
– To see conspicuous consumption go down
– A paradigm shift in thinking; something that a big
corporate can help the man in the street achieve

5. 5
If
• Wealthy people had:
– Water heaters on their roofs
– Electric cars
– Made their own electricity
– Has food gardens in their properties
• Then
– The rest of society would aspire to
have these things

6. 6
Paradigm Shift
• Successful people in cities live off grids
– Energy: Electricity, Heating, Cooling
– Energy: Cooking
– Water, Food, Transport
– Waste, Recycling
• Rather than:
– Successful people drive expensive cars

7. 7
Why is the CGL needed?
• To show the man in the street
– what's available
– that it's possible to reduce complexity and
costs
• To create demand for sustainability and
green products
• Visual Learning (services)
• A place to get started with a kit for as
little as R50 (products)

8. 8
What is the man in the street
scared of?
• Increasing costs
• Increasing complexity
• Lack of resources and knowledge
• Making mistakes
• Thinking that it’s “in the realm of
engineers”

9. 10
So what do we need to show?
• House or community scale:
– Food production (using permaculture principles):
Including: vegetables, sprouts, fruit, chickens, greenhouses,
tunnels (complete life cycle; no waste)
– Reusing, reducing, recycling and regeneration tips
– Solar cooking
– Solar heating and cooling
– Solar water heating
– Renewable & sustainable electricity generation
– Efficiency savings & conservation tips
– Biodigestors, Worm Farms, Composters
– Sustainable and eco-friendly building methods
– Sustainable fish farming

10. 11
What does this do?
• Creates jobs & reduces unemployment!
• Gives people something to live for and
reduces crime
• Gives our retailers a source of organic,
cheaper and locally grown produce
• Makes people and the planet healthy
• Creates energy. At the moment mankind
simply uses energy and hopes that he will
never run out of scarce resources
• Reduces our collective carbon footprint

11. 12
Who will come to the party?
• Suppliers (tenants)
– Restauranteur - “green” (organic and local) food
production
– NGO’s, eg Institute for Zero Waste in Africa
– Business: Electricity, Solar Geysers, Infrastructure,
Car Manufacturers
– Government: Eskom, Education, Social
Development; Infrastructure
• Customers
– People who wish to buy organic produce & other
“green” products
– Anyone who wants to reduce their costs
– Anyone who wants to “go green”
– Schools; Universities; Adult Education (green
academies)

12. 13
Suppliers: why will they be
involved?
• To showcase their products
• The place to be!
• A green community and showcase
• Putting their money where their mouth is
• They will need to find low cost ways of
getting customers started

13. 14
So where is it?
• Milnerton
– In the Centre of Cape Town!
– Next to three centres of learning
• A high school
• A playhouse
• A library
– On a new Rapid Transport Route
– Views of the mountain and close to the City centre
– Site cannot be used for anything else as under the
50 year flood line
– Municipal building next door might become a
training centre one day

14. 15
Milnerton's
Location in
Cape
Town

15. 17
The Milnerton Site - Detail

16. 18
View towards mountain

17. 19
View towards library

18. 20
View towards Playhouse

19. 21
Show the Diagrams
• Concept
• Detail
• Phase 1

20. 22
Concept Diagram

21. 23
Berm Design
• Keeps water out
• Keeps energy in; creates energy
• Is an energy magnet
• Is a unique draw-card, attracting people
• Can be used in low lying areas
• Will show a model for sustainable
development

22. 24
Site Flooded

23. 25
Full CGL Ground Floor

24. 26
Full CGL First Floor

25. 27
Phase 1: Permaculture Centre

26. 28
Keyhole Gardening

27. Biodigester Opportunity

28. 30
More than one?
• We have identified other sites for more
Centres of Green Learning in Cape Town
• Why might we need more than one?
– Sustainability calls for local food & other
production, lowering transport costs and getting
each community involved
– Growing the knowledge calls for people to be
involved regularly and to visit regularly
– These “permaculture” centres could grow food on
behalf of local people

29. 31
Next steps
• Find a sponsor who can help us make this
happen in months (using funding and
altruism) rather than years (using altruism
only); e.g.: Greenhouse Project in Joburg
• Conception; 1993; opened 2003
• Feasibility Study
• Kobus Coetzer & Tygerberg Municipality
– KC submission to all depts for comments
• Select operating & legal structure
• Milnerton Playhouse
• Neighbours
• Council / Government

30. 32
The Sponsor
• We would like the sponsor to become an
anchor tenant or possibly for the site to be
named after the sponsor or for the sponsor to
provide administrative support
• We would like the sponsor to help get the
project off the ground; to be able to tell people
that the sponsor is involved
• We would like the sponsor to be an institution
committed to the protection of the planet and
our collective future
• The sponsor will give credibility to the project

31. 33
Funding ideas
• The CGL is built using donations
• The CGL runs sustainably from:
– Ticket sales
– Presentations / Conferences / Training
– Rentals (monthly and percentages)
– Sales of kits
– Being a centre of learning that attracts large scale
project incentives, e.g. for building solar ovens or
solar water heaters
– Tenants buy into the project before it is built

32. David’s Roof

33. David’s Turbine

34. David’s Garage

35. 37
Participants/Contributers so far
• Architects: Francois Fehrsen, Graeme
Sher
• Architectual Draftsperson: Marc Turok
• Civil Engineer: Stephen Wigley
• Other people who have contributed time
and advice
• Total time: approximately 8 person
months

36. 40
Other ideas
• Is the time right?
– There is demand for locally grown organic
produce
• FIFA and The World Cup
– Sustainability
– Local Organising Committee (LOC)
– Leaving something behind
– Reducing their carbon footprint

37. Thank you
David: david@mypowerstation.biz
021 551 9935
074 119 3246
This presentation was created
using renewable energy