Ecovillage Resort

Location:

The Eco-Village will be constructed between Bocaina De Minas and Itamonte, which lie in the region of Andrelândia and São Lourenço in the South-South-East of Minas Gerais.

Land Area:

A minimum of 40h.

Characteristics of the region:

The municipalities of Itamonte and Bocaina of Minas are located in the highest point of the Mantiqueira Serra and encompass the National Park of Itatiaia. They are also part of the municipalities of the Circuit of Waters- AMAB (Associação dos Municípios da Região do Circuito das Águas).The “Instituto de Geociências Aplicadas”, linked to the “Secretaria de Estado de Ciência e Tecnologia” – elaborated a detailed map of the waters and geo-environment research. Several diagnosis and identification of possibilities were made by this research indicating a land of rare beauty. In this region, 900m above sea level, crossed by rivers, waterfalls and rapids of unequaled beauty, there exists many similarities of the ecosystem of the “Mata Atlantica” (Atlantic Rain Forest). This characteristic assures a climate between 15 and 22 degrees centigrade. The scenery has unique mountain formations and many natural attractions such as the National Forest of Passa-Quatro, the Estação Ecológica do Papagaio and specially the hydromineral resorts of Cambuquira , Caxambu, Baependi, Passa-Quatro, Conceição do Rio Verde, Lambari and São Lourenço, besides the national Itatiaia Park.

Itamonte and Bocaina of Minas are also in a priviledged location. Itamonte is 360 km from Belo Horizonte, 295 km from São Paulo and 205 Km from Rio de Janeiro and Bocaina of Minas is 360 km from Belo Horizonte. These places can be reached through he state highways BR 381, BR 267 and BR 354, respectively. The economy of the region is based in agriculture, milk cows and metal, wood, and food industries. Itamonte hás a larger number of industries, amongst them construction and clothing industries (IBGE)

Data: (source:IBGE)

Municipality	Itamonte	Bocaina de Minas
Area	430.99 Km2	502,79 km2
IDH	Year 1980  -  0,74	Year 1991 – 0,66
Urban Inhabitants	6.683	2.205
Rural Inhabitants	5.512	2.779

Proponent:

Ely Amorim de Britto, Born in Viçosa- Minas Gerais in 1947. studied literature and languages in the United States- University of Miami and France, at the Sorbonne. During 38 years she dedicated herself to asian studies focusing in chinese culture. In 1993 published a book about I Ching– Book of Mutation- one of the pillars of the 5 chinese classics compiled during the Han Dynasty in 296 A.C., Editora Cultrix.

Completed her studies about ancient chinese civilization in Thailand with one of the few remaining masters in Internal Taoist Alchemy-a technology for longevity and health, originating in chinese pre-history from the oral traditon transmitted in taoist monasteries form father to son for more than 10.000 years. She was certified in Thailand by Mantak Chia in 1997, as full instructor of the Universal Tão Organization, created in 1995 by Mantak Chia in Chiang Mai, imperial city in the north of Thailand, at the foot of the Himalayas. Recently, Ely has been promoted to Senior instructor, the highest degree in the Universal Tao Organization.

She has been teaching this milenary technology in workshops throughout Brazil since 1997, travelling to give these courses in the following cities: Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, São Paulo, Belo Horizonte, Recife, Brasília, Vitória do Espírito Santo and Porto Alegre. With these trips she has created a national and international internet network that studies and researches Chinese traditons, having currently more than 700 memebers. She is also Founder and president of the Mantak Chia Association of Brazil, located in Rio de Janeiro, and of the “Intertao”. The Intertao is a cultural brand being registered in order to commercialize vídeos, Cds, DVDs, posters and written material about chinese culture and its application for the development of human inner values. Since 2004 she has produced international courses in Rio de Janeiro bringing the highest authorities or specialists in chinese practices of stress combat, health maintenance and longevity, and in chinese philosophy and culture. She has several articles published in international and national magazines related to the subject.

Ely Britto lives in Rio de Janeiro where she supervises, all over Brazil, the activities of the “Associação Mantak Chia do Brasil”.

Objectives:

The project of the Eco-Village Resort has the objective of uniting a group of people with common goals and ideologies. The main objective is to make possible a better integration and relation with nature, be it through self-sustainability or by learning and respecting through taoist techniques. Simultaneously we want to produce knowledge and disseminate it to society, searching for an active integration with the neighboring communities.

In order to reach this objective an ecovillage will be developed in a location with privileged nature, with waterfalls, Atlantic Forest, in a mountanous region, with a cool climate, as already mentioned. Also predominantly rural, where there is a lack of cultural and technological initiative. In this environment there will be a common area: meditation room, for courses of taoist phylosophy, ecology and arts; therapeutic rooms for treatments based on natural techniques; a technological center, dedicated to the research and dissemination of knowledge and a village of accommodations for the individuals involved in research. The private area will be composed of lots, for the construction of family housing, which will be administered by the system of joint ownership. Following these enterprises will be explained in detail.

1.Use and occupation of the land

A prospective study will be made to identify the most adequate forms of occupying the land, verifying the variety of types of soil, vegetation data, hydrographic data and other characteristics that will permit the occupation with minimum environmental impact.

2. The area

The area destined to the Eco-village will be of virgin “Mata Atlântica” (Atlantic Forest), waterfalls and ascents, in a mountainous area. In this way, the best conditions for the construction of the common area that can accomodate all of the constructions mentioned above and the lots destined to the private areas. will be identified.

These private areas will have a maximum of 10 lots with at least 5,000 square meters. The owners of these private lots will have to obey the rules established by the shared ownership, based on ecosystem respect and the study mentioned, which will determine the “style” of life and posture of the group towards the ecosystem with specific attention on the area to be used for building, the building materials and processes, the architectural “style”, and structural and sanitary characteristics.

3. About the architectural "style"

The architectural project adds to the other premises, the use of local community helpers for the constructions and their knowledge. For this a prospective study that will be made to identify the materials available in the region and the local building techniques used.

The architectural project will be common to all, permitting adaptations that will be studied case by case to obtain authorization, in order to guarantee the aesthetic uniformity and accordance with the environment.

4. About the common area

The common area will be destined for the use of the private owners and visitors, according to the previous limitations. Considering, that among the ecovillage objectives are technological research, dissemination of knowledge and integration with the comunity, these areas will be given priority to courses, workshops and to the development and support to research previously established.

4.1 Meditation Room

The Meditaion Room is a large space, predominantly open, which will permit classes and courses in Taoism, environmet, as well as artistic activities and teachings such as theatre, music, painting, dance and others. It is desirable that the shared owners be involved with these activities of dissemination of knowledge, considering personal skills and interests, in order to share with the local community.

4.2 Therapeutic Rooms – Natural Intensive Care

The Therapeutic Rooms will be two units close to the meditation room. The purpose of these rooms is to make possible research and application of techniques that come from tradtional knowledge of the popular Brazilian culture as well as eastern culture. As an example we can mention fito-therapy acupuncture, use of herbs and others.

4.3 Mini Technological Center

The Mini Technological Center´s purpose is to develop studies and research related to social technology and to promote the exchange between the neghboring communities, universities and researchers. It will have a small structure that permits a computer laboratory, for data storage and the possibility to have video-conferences, experimental labs and a library. The details of this item will be later worked out, in a specific project with the purpose of obtaining funds for science and technology research.

4.4 Researchers Village

The Researchers´ Village is a construction of three bedrooms and a restaurant with the purpose of offering a minimum structure to the courses that will be administered and to house researchers and visitors at a low cost.

5. The Shared ownership system.

A specialized company will be hired to determine the items necessary to administer the group, where rules will be established, previously agreed upon by the founder group of this enterprise.

6. About Sustainability

The common area of the Ecovillage will be used from 4 to 5 times a year for national and international Taoist courses. These courses will be chargeable and part of the resulting income will be reverted to the improvement of the common areas of the ecovillage. Proposals will be made to the shared owners about constructions of housing units in their private lots in order to generate income for their sustainability.

7.About the Integration with the Local community

Prospective studies will be undertaken in the region as well as socio-economic mapping. The purpose is to obtain knowledge concerning the potential and deficiency, or what is lacking in the neighboring community, focusing on the family structure, social technology and in the educational system. >From the result of these studies, courses and workshops can be developed by the Mini Technological Center, which will enable the develpoment and transmission of knowledge. Courses will also be developed to help with the identified deficiencies in education.

We will also offer, through the volunteer work of the shared owners, courses and workshops in arts, music, theater and other activities, totally free, thus permitting the participation of the community.

Justification

The creation of the Eco-village has a premise, the need to create an environment coherent with the teachings learned by Ely Britto in her professional path, which idicate nature´s degradation and distortions in our current life style, mainly due to the capitalist system. She perceived the need of creating an environment that has as focus on natural awareness, development and application of “rational” techniques and use of the Internal Taoist Alchemy of knowledge for longevity, health, activities and life phylosophies that should act according to local population and surroundings.

Keeping always in sight, the creation of the Eco Village, Ely, together with her staff, started eight years ago to work successfully with the Internal Taoist Alchemy, as its basis, and are currently beginning the research for the physical implementation of the Ecovillage. This project is the first step in that direction. The contacts established along these years of activity, exchanging ideas with international specialists, who are, today, creating the future of knowledge, and the assets that will permit the establishment of partnerships with universities for the intellectual and scientific growth of the Brazilian university students.

Therefore seminars that will be given inside the Ecovillage, will bring material and intelectual resources, very important for the progress and development of the residents of the Ecovillage and its neighbors. Several search trips in the location confirm the constant concern with socio-cultural aspects of the project. We found in one of our searches, while talking to the local rural milk producers, that when the milk factory, Parmalat, shut down, the small producers started to have a very difficult time due to the low price of milk, which obliged them to negotiate their possessions with the São Paulo and Rio speculative market. This has resulted in their loss of land and status. The new comers are only speculating and don’t use the land productively, all they are interested is in waiting for the rise of land prices in order to profit in the future.

We also verified that in order to maintain the local bio-diversity, it will be necessary to provide the small land owners, that still remain, with alternative means of subsistence in order to be albe to keep their land. The objective of the Ecovillage in this sense is to use the artistic, technical and scientific knowledge of the shared owners and develop specific studies to colaborate with these communities to conserve their culture, wisdom, their techniques, “know how”, and the habits of these traditional societies.

Plan/Estrategy of actions and resources

Phase 1

To establish the Ecovillage the land will be bought and research wil be undertaken in order to form the group of lot owners to begin the formal condominium system. Following, prospective studies will be started with the objective of planning the occupation of the land by the future owners. Furthermore, if decided pertinent, we will request to the IBAMA the transformation of the land in preserved and protected enviroment by federal legislation, –APA or RPPN - through a project submitted for

Once the first phase and occupation of the land is concluded, we have the intention of establishing a partnership with the “Laboratório Oficina de Treinamento e Desenvolvimento de Protótipos” (LOTDP), a Training and Development organisation, to develop the architectural and landscape project of the Ecovillage. LOTDP is an organisation where more than 20 design professors, engineers, architects and students have been working for the development of bamboo usage. Coordinated by professor Jose luis Mendes Rigger. They study taxonomy, the most adequate planting and treatment of bamboo, constructive techniques, design, and landscapes projects. According to this professor, bamboo is a great product of ecological value due to its renewable nature, once it is planted it doesn’t need to be re-planted. It is the vegetation that grows most rapidly on the planet and needs to be cut in order to grow. Its growth is directly proportional to the light of the sun.

This Laboratory has the same policy of activities as those of the Ecovillage, that is, the respect and the adaptation of building techniques including the local resident knowledge and materials regularly used in the specific region.

The partnership will permit the application of the studies and techniques developed by the laboratory and the implementation of a coherent architectural and landscape project of low cost for the Ecovillage, adjusting the interests of both sides.

The Ecovillage would be responsible for the costs of the physical implementation of the project and the laboratory would be responsible for the idealization and follow-up of the project. The sanitary system project and basic infra-structure is being researched. The resources for the implementation of this phase will come from the owners of the lots in the Ecovillage.

Phase 2

The second phase will be the creation of the common area for the shared owners, participants and researchers. The methods of implementation, architectural projects and basic infra-structure will be similar to the previous phase, being different only with respect to the origin of resources.

For the building of the Meditation room and Therapeutic rooms the resource will come from the income obtained through the international courses of the Internal Taoist Alchemy that will be administered three times a year.

Phase 3

For the construction and initiation of the Mini-Center of Technology and village for the researchers, a specific project will be elaborated, to be submitted to official organizations such as the ones that offer Incentive Funds such as FINEP/MCT/CNPq.

Drawing of the architectural project of one of the residences of the Ecovillage.