ABC Carbon's Ken Hickson went bush in Bali and discovered the Green School

When one goes to Bali, you normally expect it to be for sun, sea and surf. But for someone as interested in arts and the environment as I am, there are much more fascinating diversions.

You expect Bali to be green. The tropical growth. The rice terraces. But it is also turning green in other ways. It is committing to more sustainable practices. Hotels and businesses are committing to reducing their carbon footprint. A regional company specialising in helping businesses go green is The Green Asia Group, based in Bali and started by Bradley Gardiner. He developed a resort known as Begawan Giri, close to Ubud, and it is now called Como Shambala.

Bradley also started the Begawan Foundation, primarily to save one of the world's most threatened species, the Bali Starling. So with the help of The Green Asia Group and its dedicated Bali organiser Carolyn Kenwrick, we uncovered the Green School, described as "one of the most amazing schools on earth" giving its students a relevant holistic and green education. Not only that, but the School buildings are made entirely of bamboo. Green School founder John Hardy says this:

"School chose bamboo in the spirit of plenty. With rapidly escalating world cement prices, not to mention the sheer amount of fossil fuel that cement consumes, we must look to alternative building materials. Frankly, it is hard to talk to students about sustainability while they are using the last piece of rainforest for their chair and their table."

Green School is also becoming the home of the Bali Starling Project, Carolyn pointed out, when we visited the special structures and cages being assembled on campus.

What's the Green School in Bali all about?

Delivering a generation of global citizens who are knowledgeable about and inspired to take responsibility for the sustainability of the world
Green School Bali, one of the most amazing schools on earth, is giving its students a relevant holistic and green education. The students come from all corners of the world, many relocating with their parents just for the experience of attending. Amongst them, fully 20% are local Balinese kids funded by scholarships from generous donors, allowing them to benefit from an international education and facilitating the magic of Balinese culture to fully permeate the education. The curriculum for younger children is influenced by the work of Rudolf Steiner, who pioneered the idea of holistic education. Older students have the opportunity to study for Cambridge IGCSE's and a planned IB diploma/certificate course will take them to graduation. Green Studies, which focus on sustainability, and a quality Creative Arts program complement the academic curriculum.

The campus is remarkable. Green School is striving to have the lowest carbon footprint of any international school anywhere, through use of bamboo and rammed earth for its buildings, growing its own food in its gardens, and plans to generate its own power from the river. The central building, "Heart of School", is one of the largest bamboo structures in the world and has an architectural beauty usually witnessed only in cathedrals and opera houses.

Recent studies revealed that the most important component in student education is the quality of teachers. With this in mind Green School has on staff 21 teachers, including a certified Steiner teacher and a PHD. Seven hold Masters Degrees, one an MBA, four have postgraduate teaching qualifications and 17 Bachelor Degrees. All 21 are qualified educators who are also engineers, psychologists, environmentalists, scientists, film, arts and media people, who choose Green School because they are passionate about equipping children with the skills needed to face the challenges of the future.

Green School invites families from Bali and all other corners of the world to consider giving their children the gift of a Green School education. Young people are welcome for just a term or their entire education.

Why Green School: Why Bamboo? Contributed by John Hardy, one of the schools co-founders.

Where it is?

Green School is located in Sibang Kaja, a village that has been largely passed over by Bali's tourist development. In developing a "green" school, we wanted the ability to work directly from and with the land - tourist-fuelled development would stand in the way of this relationship. Moreover, the relative scarcity of tourists allows for a fresh conversation between our school community and the local villagers, enabling a more conscious interaction. We are also lucky to have great support from the village leader, A.A. Watusila. Finally, the site is more or less equidistant between Ubud, Sanur, Denpasar, Canggu and Seminyak, all major Balinese urban centres.

Why is everything made out of bamboo?

Green School chose bamboo in the spirit of plenty. With rapidly escalating world cement prices, not to mention the sheer amount of fossil fuel that cement consumes, we must look to alternative building materials. Frankly, it is hard to talk to students about sustainability while they are using the last piece of rainforest for their chair and their table. It is the painful truth that they are going to have to stretch to get enough rain forest timber to build their homes.

Bamboo is available and plenty, and when it is treated with borax salt, it is rendered immune to the bugs that like to eat it, so it becomes a permanent material. Every student at Green School will have an opportunity to plant his or her own bamboo and, eventually, four to five years down the line, will have a chance to harvest, treat and build something with that bamboo.
If you need a lot of timber in the future, don't look for wood, look for bamboo. It fixes a huge amount of carbon in the soil and this is a good solution in the world of ever escalating problems. It is a rapid solution to some of the problems that are facing us. Plant bamboo.

Why not build out of concrete?

Cement/concrete uses about 1/3 of the world's oil, between digging it out of the ground, heating it, moving it, and destroying it when it's no longer appropriate. This uses a huge amount of the world's fossil fuel and creates huge amounts of carbon for the world.
Green School does use some cement, but the cement is primarily underground. A small percentage of the classroom floors is made from cement, but in general we want Green School to be really green - which means less cement. Representing cement as modern or high class or the future is really not very green. Cement has a very limited place and we need to keep it in its place.

Why are the fences made out of sticks?

The fences are an old Balinese system called "tiang hidup" which means living post. The Balinese discovered long, long ago that if they post a stick, the termites will eat it - unless the post is living, in which case it's immune from termites. Moreover, the leaves that grow on the post are brought to the cows and goats, providing food with much-needed nutrients for these animals. The post also fixes nitrogen in the soil, which helps the garden flourish.

Why are the blackboards made from bamboo?

Our blackboards are made from bamboo slats, sanded down beautifully, coated in black propane and set in a bamboo frame. This stands in contrast to the "standard" classroom blackboard, generally made from large pieces of slate framed in rainforest plywood - not a very "green" material. Moreover, to acquire those kinds of pieces of slate would require transport across huge distances, forcing a large ecological footprint. When we looked at having a "green" school, we needed to have a "green" blackboard, so we committed ourselves to using local materials - including, of course, bamboo, the life source of the School. One little circle on each blackboard is left unpainted, reminding everyone who uses the board that this is a board unlike others: a truly "green" blackboard.

Why are the paths made of stones?

The walking paths at Green School are made from sandstone blocks carved out of the local river valley and gravel developed from encrusted stone. The advantage of such paths is twofold: first, these natural elements have much less impact on the planet than cement or asphalt road. And second, it lets Green School operate on a principle of adaptability: as people decide to walk when they feel most comfortable, we can easily move rocks and put them where people walk. Thus, the garden can easily become a path and the path can easily become a garden.

How long does a bamboo classroom last?

The classrooms are made from bamboo because it is a sustainable material - as long as it is sheltered from the elements, bamboo lasts forever. The classrooms will last as long as the grass roof is maintained.

My classroom does not have any walls, what's going to happen when it rains?

The classrooms don't have walls because it is important in a tropical place like Bali to catch every breeze that comes through - the breeze, combined with fans, is our air conditioning system. Our classrooms are designed to be like ships sailing across the earth, equipped with a "rig" and sails to keep the rain out and the wind in. This creates a further connection between students and the earth.
Is it dangerous having coconut trees on the campus?

When building Green School, we wanted to preserve the local terrain as much as possible - including the coconut trees. If you look closely at the coconuts hanging from Green School trees, you will see that they are in netted bags. This means that the tree can experience its natural cycle of producing coconuts - valuable in the world as a source of both coconut oil and nutrients - while the people below are protected from any mishaps from falling coconut or branches. This is a solution that preserves the environment, maintains safety in the classroom, and also helps in the kitchen.

The bathroom is made out of earth, isn't that dirty?

Mud was chosen for the walls of the bathroom because it is a local and easily workable material. Although it does create a little dust, its impact on the world is very, very small. Tile, concrete and bricks all take a huge amount of energy to produce.

For more information go to: www.greenschool.org, www.begawanfoundation.org, www.thegreenasiagroup.com & www.abccarbon.com