Off-Grid Resorts & Housing

Sally Kneidel highlights the off-grid Tshulu Camp whose aim "...is to stimulate the local economy by creating employment and micro-enterprise opportunities in tourism, agriculture and through small business development..."

Much of the food prepared in the camp’s kitchen comes from their organic vegetable garden. The garden not only supplies food for the camp kitchen, but also provides employment for villagers living nearby. The vegetable garden is irrigated from underground, which is a plus, as water shortage is a big issue in Africa. The camp uses their waste sustainably too – composting all the vegetable and garden waste to enrich the soil for the organic farm.

Meanwhile engineering news profiles an energy-independent house design:

All electrical devices in the house are powered by electricity from the photovoltaic system, and hot water is supplied by a solar water heater and geyser...The concept of the sustainable-energy house design is based on the use of renewable-energy resources in place of fossil fuels. This entails the use of climatic conditions to design a climate-sensitive building, which discourages energy use processes that cause greenhouse-gas emissions.