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UID:9477-1729468800-1729900799@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Rammed Earth\, Cob\, and Straw Workshop - East Tennessee
DESCRIPTION:Dates: October 21– October 25\, 2024 (YES. We are still having the workshop as scheduled.)\n \nLocation: Greeneville\, Tennessee\n \nCome and join us in beautiful eastern Tennessee for our Rammed Earth\, Cob and Straw Workshop! We will be working hands-on with rammed earth\, cob building\, and straw-clay building. This workshop is very unique because you will get hands-on experience with three different building techniques in one class. This workshop is perfect for beginners and experts alike! You will get the expert knowledge to build with rammed earth\, cob and straw! Either for small-scale structures or large-scale projects like homes and buildings. \n \nThis workshop is a great experience to learn how to build with rammed earth\, cob and straw\, and to get a broad learning overview of natural building techniques. You will get a solid foundation in natural building fundamentals. You will learn the advantages of high thermal mass rammed earth and cob versus high insulation straw materials. We will be constructing demonstration projects with each material so you get hands-on experience and a feel for each method. We will also be mixing and applying lime plaster on an existing cob building\, and studying Natural Building together each day. After this workshop\, you will have the basic experience and confidence to design and build your own rammed earth\, cob and straw constructions or buildings. \n \nHands-On Work Topics: \n– How to build and set up rammed earth forms for walls and structures. \n– How to properly mix and compact rammed earth material into forms. \n– How to choose the right materials for rammed earth\, and how to add color to your layers. \n– How to make cob (learn how to make cob with the tarp method and with machinery) \n– How to build cob walls using traditional hand-sculpting and using innovative slipforms (learn all the great advantages of building cob walls with forms) \n– How to make straw-clay (also known as light-straw-clay) \n– How to build highly insulating straw-clay walls (learn how to frame and pack the walls) \n– Selecting and testing soils for cob\, rammed earth\, and straw-clay (learn several ways to test your soil composition) \n– Lime Plaster Finishing (learn how to mix and apply lime plaster finishes to your walls) \n– Creating window and door frames in cob walls (learn how to install frames into cob walls) \n  \nClassroom and Discussion Topics: \n– Site selection and design (includes Passive Solar design principles) \n– Materials and tools (covers traditional and modern cob building toolset and materials) \n– Building Solid Foundations (learn all about constructing proper building foundations) \n– Building codes and how to successfully get building permits for rammed earth homes\, cob homes and straw homes. \n– Best practices for building a healthy\, non-toxic home. \n– Basic Electrical and Plumbing integration for rammed earth homes\, cob homes and straw homes \n– Installing windows and doors \n– Roofing and Bond Beams. Proper roof ventilation practices! \n– Natural plasters and finishes (Vapor Permeable / “Breathable” finishes) \n– Overview of all Natural Building materials\, and how to hybridize them! \n \nThis workshop is a unique experience for people to learn about building rammed earth homes\, cob homes and light-straw-clay homes\, and to get an overview of Natural Building. Not only are there plenty of hands-on lessons to learn from\, but we will also have ample discussion and informal classroom time. Most rammed earth workshops\, cob workshops and strawbale workshops don’t cover this many topics. But here\, you will learn all the core lessons needed to start building from this one workshop! \nPlus – there will be many hours of discussions about building homes and natural building throughout the workshop. Its a great way to get your questions answered and brainstorm your building ideas! \n \nThe workshop will be held at a private property in Greeneville\, Tennessee. \nEach day will begin at 9:00 AM\, and the days will include hands-on building\, classroom sessions\, discussions\, and learning activities related to cob\, straw\, and natural building topics. We will break for lunch between 12:00 to 1:00 PM\, and we will complete each day at around 4:00 PM. They will be full-packed days! Worth your every penny! \n \nThe workshop will be taught by Alex Sumerall\, an east coast Earth Building Mason who has a focus on creating earthen structures that are healthy\, aesthetically pleasing\, and functional for modern life. He is the owner of This Cob House\, which is dedicated to teaching people about cob and earthen building techniques. Alex has been practicing earthen building since 2011. He graduated from the Aprovecho School of Natural Building in 2013 in Cottage Grove\, Oregon\, and continues to teach\, present\, consult\, and construct. \nFree Bonus! \nEveryone who signs up for the workshop will receive a printed copy of Alex’s book\, “Build a Cob House: A Step-By-Step Guide”\, and the downloadable PDF version\, FREE! We only make printed copies for workshop students\, so this is your chance to get one. We will be using the book as a lesson guide throughout the workshop too so you can follow along with your book in hand. \n \n  \nAlpaca Farm and Fiber Mill Tour! \nAs another added bonus to the workshop\, we also offer a free alpaca farm and fiber mill tour at our neighbor’s Two Roots Farm. They have over 50 friendly alpacas\, a fiber mill\, and a gift shop! We usually go on this tour Wednesday after class. \n \nListen to the great things that our workshop participants are saying! \n  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n“The cob workshop was a life-changing experience. I learned a lot about natural building\, not only from Alex’s instruction\, experience and demonstrations\, but from interacting with people from different backgrounds who were a great source of collective knowledge. The hands-on experience was priceless!”\n\nTony Romo\, Texas \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n“The Cob Building Workshop was a great investment of my time! It was well organized\, extremely inspiring\, and FUN! Alex was able to explain construction basics to neophytes like me\, yet he could also answer the complex questions asked by the more experienced workshop attendees. I can’t wait until the next workshop!”\n\nMarybeth Babos\, Tennessee \n\n\n\n\nLodging \nThere are two options for lodging: free camping on site\, or making reservations at one of the local hotels or AirBnBs. Hotels are available in the neighboring towns of Greeneville\, Newport\, Parrottsville\, and Hot Springs. \nNearby is the Briggs Brothers Ranch in Parrottsville\, TN\, and the Hot Springs Resort in Hot Springs\, North Caolina. \nCampers will have access to a private portable toilet and a private outdoor shower. \nThe workshop location has running water available\, but no electricity yet. Please bring your own solar generator if needed. \n \nFood \nMeals will not be included in this workshop so participants will need to provide their own food and drinks. There are several local restaurants and grocery stores nearby the workshop site. We even have an amazing corner-store within a walkable distance from the workshop site! \nEach student is responsible for their own meal preparation. An hour for lunch is provided\, allowing adequate time for food\, a quick nap\, or trip into town. There is no official kitchen on site yet. Coolers are welcome and encouraged! \nRecreation & Surroundings \nGreeneville is located near the edge of the Appalachian Mountains in eastern Tennessee. It is a beautiful area\, and there are many scenic places to visit nearby. You can also travel to places like Gatlinburg\, TN or Asheville\, NC within a one hour driving time from the workshop site. \nFamily & Group 10% Discounts \nAsk about the 10% discount. We encourage group & family activities because it enhances learning among your support group. Email me at alex@thiscobhouse.com for custom group/family invoice. \nChildren/young people of any age are welcome to join in and learn. Please be aware that some areas are under construction\, as is the purpose of this workshop\, but it is generally child-safe. \nPrices \nPrice: $499\n \n\n \nAdditional Discounts: 10% for family and friends participating together.  \nTeens accompanying a parent/guardian are half price. Children under 13 accompanying a parent/guardian are free.\n \nPlease email me to register with the group/family discount. For normal registration\, please click the “Sign Up Now” button above.\n \nIf you have any other questions about the workshop\, please feel free to email me at alex@thiscobhouse.com \nIf you have a large party of people registering\, they can all register separately\, or contact me for a custom invoice.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/rammed-earth-cob-and-straw-workshop-3/
LOCATION:This Cob House\, Greeneville\, TN\, 37743\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/rammed-earth-cob-and-straw-workshop-2024-2.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Alex%20Sumerall":MAILTO:alex@thiscobhouse.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241117
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241202
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241031T165837Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241031T170111Z
UID:9517-1731801600-1733097599@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Bioconstruction & Natural Building Techniques
DESCRIPTION:Bioconstruction is a sustainable building method that uses natural materials & techniques to minimize a building’s environmental impact. \nJoin us for a very special two weeks as we come together to learn & honor Indigenous natural building techniques on a 24-acre 68 animal Farm & Nature Sanctuary in Southwestern Louisiana. \nThis workshop is priced on a sliding scale in daily increments: come for a weekend\, or the whole two weeks. Two meals a day and a campsite provided with reservation. Optional upgraded accommodations are available\, as well. For more information\, check out our form at bit.ly/HRPHOMB
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/bioconstruction-natural-building-techniques/
LOCATION:Snow White Sanctuary\, 1636 Arledge Road\, Vinton\, LA\, 70668\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/HOMB-3.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Habitat%20Recovery%20Project":MAILTO:misha@habitatrecovery.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20241117T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20241124T080000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20240601T173406Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240601T173406Z
UID:9428-1731855600-1732435200@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:A Complete Introduction to Earthen Building Techniques (Cob\, Wattle and Daub\, and Timber Framing) in the Cloud Forests of El Salvador
DESCRIPTION:Come and experience our natural building oasis\, agroecology farm\, and ecotourism project in the cloud forests of El Salvador´s highest mountain range! \nThis workshop is being hosted by the Nubes del Pital (Clouds of El Pital) agroecology farm and ecotourism project. Over the past ten years\, we have collectively built 14 different cob houses\, restaurants\, and cabins to host tourists in the beautiful El Trifinio Biosphere on the slopes of El Salvador´s highest mountain. The nearby cloud forest offers a beautiful site to learn about natural building techniques\, permaculture\, agroecology\, and sustainable living. Besides participating in the actual building workshop\, you will also be staying on a beautiful permaculture farm presenting the opportunity to learn about regenerative homesteading\, organic farming\, and different ways to integrate earthen structures into the landscape. \nDuring this workshop\, we will be building a new earthen cabin on a small coffee farm and food forest surrounded by three beautiful rivers\, waterfalls\, and pristine natural forest. Participants will have the opportunity to experience and learn about all aspects of the building process\, from rubble trenches and rock foundations\, building cob\, wattle and daub\, and cordwood walls\, timber framing\, installing doors and windows\, incorporating recycled materials/bottles into the structure\, plastering\, natural clay-based paints\, and more. \nThis workshop offers you the opportunity to see\, experience\, and live in several different naturally-built structures on our farm. Besides staying in beautifully furnished cob and timber-framed cabins with fantastic views of El Salvador´s highest mountain\, you will also have plenty of hands-on experience to learn a wide variety of natural building techniques. \nThe six full-day workshop costs $600 USD per person\, and includes: \n\n7 nights of lodging in private cob/wood cabins (check out the AirBnb links below to see where you´ll be staying)\n3 locally-harvested meals a day\nAll the coffee\, tea\, and water you can drink\nLocal transportation from the cabins where you will be staying to the build site on the coffee farm.\nThe workshop learning experience\nSeveral free e-books on cob and natural building\nA half-day hiking trip to visit the mystical cloud forest of El Pital\nWe will also be visiting different cob and wood homes that have been built in our community to learn how natural building positively impacts local communities.\n\nFor more information or to sign up and secure your place (we have a maximum of 15 participants for our workshops) you can send us an email at: tobiasroberts20@hotmail.com\, or contact us via Whatsapp at +503 7024 6928 \nAgain\, we have a maximum of 15 spots available for this workshop\, so contact us today with any questions you might have! \nAirBnb links for cabins where you will be lodged during the workshop: \nEl Trigal: https://es.airbnb.com/rooms/21275949?source_impression_id=p3_1619801916_%2BfUb85GeymVwYS2%2F \nRosa de Montaña: https://es.airbnb.com/rooms/21276181?source_impression_id=p3_1619801948_yxNkVtnQ2belaboO \nEl Colibrí: https://es.airbnb.com/rooms/21239316?source_impression_id=p3_1619801993_zTZq4GvUXh5%2F75pZ \nLa Libélula: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/857860869520040145?guests=1&adults=1&s=67&unique_share_id=3c389b44-9f00-48b6-8c3c-3b3dc3b43bb5 \nEl Roble: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/682837356124333465?guests=1&adults=1&s=67&unique_share_id=d47301bf-7538-4cb0-939d-fd24477ff274 \nEl Abeto: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/683176565394719587?guests=1&adults=1&s=67&unique_share_id=08e24cbd-d67e-43d4-9d83-1e6dd1d9c760
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/a-complete-introduction-to-earthen-building-techniques-cob-wattle-and-daub-and-timber-framing-in-the-cloud-forests-of-el-salvador/
LOCATION:Clouds of El Pital Eco-Tourism Cooperative\, El Pital Mountain\, San Ignacio\, Chalatenango\, 503\, El Salvador
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/flyer-cob-workshop.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Tobias%20Roberts":MAILTO:tobiasroberts20@hotmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250119T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250223T170000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20240918T232534Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240930T221213Z
UID:9489-1737302400-1740330000@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Build a Cob Bohío/Cottage in Borikén/Puerto Rico in January/February 2025
DESCRIPTION:THE PROJECT \n  \nUtuado\, Puerto Rico Workshop\, February 2024 \nThe best roof ever for all of our Cob Buildings! \nWe will be building a 14m2/150ft2 round Cob Bohío for the “Healing through Art” Center where workshops and classes will be held for the community and others. The reciprocal roof we build in all of our workshops is the strongest roof there is due to its interlocking spiral structure. In addition it represents the horizontal social structure favored in indigenous societies for council circles and other gatherings. Building in hurricane zones like Puerto Rico requires a strong resistant roof well-connected to our heavy-walled earthen buildings. \n\nStudents in this Advanced Cobber Certification training will\, as always\, learn all the steps to building a complete Cob Building from scratch: digging the trench and building a stone foundation and pouring the floor in week 1\, building the monolithic cob wall with all its detailed insertions in weeks 2 & 3\, sculpting the wall in week 3\, plastering in week 4\, building the completed roof in weeks 4 & 5 and finishing the wall and the second floor coat at the end of week 5. \nJade & Arica in Pescadero: A new CobBond! \nWe especially invite non-White and multiracial students who are curious or already interested and passionate about earthen construction to come learn the art and technique of cob building with CCG in Borikén\, the indigenous name of the island.  We want a workshop that feels comfortable for non-white students\, and in which white students are not the majority. CCG has taught in many countries of the world and our mission is to create access to everyone interested\, especially the local people so we can create international cob building families.  We aim to create intercultural and interhuman bonding experiences through our Cob building workshops to heal the world one Cob house at a time.  So please follow your Heart & Soul\, listen to the Call\, and come and embark on a life-changing adventure in 2025. \n  \nDETAILED WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION \n  \n\nDay 1 : Foundation & The Rocks\, Day 1 in Pescadero\, CA.\, 2024 \nThe 35-day Advanced Cob Building Workshop consists of 25 days (Monday through Friday) of learning & construction for 4 hours in the morning and 3 hours in the afternoon with theoretical instruction (lectures with graphics) on most Monday\, Wednesday and Friday afternoons to complement the hands-on experience. \nStudents arrive on Sunday between noon and 2pm and settle in. The workshop begins at 4pm with the Opening Circle followed by a Host Site Orientation and Introduction to the Project. Dinner is served at 6pm\, and will be followed by an Introduction to the 5-week Workshop by Instructors Tom Van Well and Christian Eder.  Monday morning we begin digging the trench for our Cob Building!!!! \nTrimmin’ the Wall in CA. 2024 \nFollowing Breakfast from 7:30-8:15am\, the morning learning/building session begins at 8:30 am and lasts until 1pm with a 20-minute snack pause at 11am. Lunch break is from 1pm to 2:30pm\, which includes a rest time before the 3-hour afternoon session begins. Mondays\, Wednesdays and Fridays there is a 60-minute lecture\, followed by construction time. Tuesdays and Thursdays students begin building again right after the rest time. After class in the afternoon there is a 90-minute break before dinner (served from 7pm to 8pm)\, in which students are encouraged to stretch\, do some type of relaxation/movement practice\, go swimming\, walking and just relax. \nOur most recent soon-to-be certified Advanced Cobbers in Pescadero\, California with Instructors Branden & Daniel holdin’ down the passionate Cob Crew! \nThere is sometimes a work trade student officially or informally leading yoga and movement practice in the mornings or afternoons (depending on student preference). There will also be 3-4 evenings (once a week) after dinner for showing slides\, videos and having Course-related discussions. Other evenings are mostly free and sometimes students offer informal courses in their specialties and passions. Tuesdays are reserved for our weekly Council Circle\, where we do a deeper sharing and listening to attend to the inner worlds of our students\, staff & Host(s) during this intense experience. \nAlways a healthy spread at our workshops thanks to our conscious caring Hosts! \nOn weekends students are free to explore the area\, rest onsite\, and even continue building\, subject to Instructor approval.  All weekend meals are provided by students who are welcome to use the kitchen.  Host and/or other students can carpool into town for weekend food provisions. \nThe 35-day Course will offer practical learning by building a complete 15m2  curvilinear building from foundation to roof\, as 
described in the “Project” section. Those who complete the 35-day Workshop will receive an Advanced Cobber Certificate of Completion for Foundation\, Cob Walls (which includes Door\, Windows\, Shelves\, Art\, Electrical Housing & Plumbing preparation)\, Floor\, Plaster & Roof. \n\n\n\n  \nDAILY SCHEDULE \n  \nThe Advanced Cob Building Workshop begins on a Sunday at 4pm and ends on a Sunday\, 5 weeks later\, after the morning Closing Circle & Brunch. Students can arrive a day or two before to acclimate and settle in (please let us know) but will need to cover their own food
 needs unless a work trade is approved by Host (to be decided closer to the date). \nThe daily schedule (subject to slight modifications due to climate/time of year) will be: \n7:30-8:15 Breakfast \n8:30-1:00 Class \n1:00-2:30 Lunch \n2:30-5:30 Class (Lecture on MWF’s) \n5:30-7:00 Rest/Yoga \n7:00-8:00 Dinner \n8:00-9:00 Slides/Videos/Discussion (once a week) \nStudents are expected to be on time and participate in all sessions and required activities as the goal of building a full construction depends on the whole group working together! \n  \n  \nCOURSE CONTENTS \n  \nStudents will learn every phase of building a cob building from foundation through the reciprocal roof in hands-on building and lectures/theory. In addition to the lectures\,
slideshows and videos will be shown to support and enhance their understanding of cob materials\, cob building\, design\, geography\, budgeting\, business options and legal issues. \nOur hands-on practice will include: \ndigging foundation trench\npouring gravel and inserting drainage pipe (if applicable)\nbuilding foundation stemwall\nanalyzing soils and materials\nmaking test bricks\ndeciding on correct mixture\ndeciding on best location\nmaking cob w/ partner and solo\nbuilding with cob\npreparing and inserting the door\npreparing and inserting fixed and opening windows\npreparing and inserting shelves\ninserting bottle windows\, glass and other objects\ninserting electrical housing and outlet/switch boxes (when applicable)*\ninsert PVC pipe for plumbing in walls (when applicable)*\nsculpting\npreparing and applying earthen plaster (1 coat)\npouring an earthen floor (2 coats)\npreparing walls for roof connection\nbuilding reciprocal roof frame\nputting on roof sheathing and other elements\ninstalling green roof\nmaking small-scale cob designs of future projects\, time permitting \nIn addition to Cob Building practices\, the Course material\nalso includes: \nlegal cob construction practices & the international cob code (Appendix AU in the IRC)\ncost analysis\ncreating a cob business (building/teaching)\nassisting\, interning and teaching with CruzinCobGlobal \n*While the insertion of electrical housing and one or more outlet/switch boxes and PVC pipes to hold plumbing are always included in the workshops\, the simplicity or complexity depends on the host’s design and preferences. There will be no electrical wiring or plumbing pipes installed during workshop. That is beyond the focus of this course and requires professional experience and certification/licensing. \n  \nREQUIREMENTS & IMPORTANT INFORMATION \n  \nStudents will need to come prepared for demanding physical work from Day 1. \nThis includes bringing: \nWork clothes appropriate for the country and climate we are in\nWork boots or other closed-toe shoes (for foundation and roof)\nFlip-flops (for cobbing/plaster days)\nRubber dishwashing gloves (for lime mortar)\nWork Gloves (for stone work)\nTape Measure\nBox Cutter\nWood Hand Saw (cheap)*\nLevel (2ft)*\nHammer*\nJapanese plastering trowel(s) (email:goldhillclayplaster@gmail.com)\nEar Plugs (roof week)\nWood Chisel*\n4”-6” Diameter Round Plastic Container Lids (for plastering)\nGood Moisturizer\nHat\nSunglasses\nWater Bottle\nNotebook/Pen/Camera\nSafety Glasses\nCarpenter Pencil & Sharpener\nSample of your Soil (optional) \nAny other power tools like skilsaw\, grinder wth metal blade\, cordless drill\, chop saw…will be very welcome if you are driving in. \n*These tools will be very helpful to bring if you can\, to minimize sharing and waiting\, but if you can’t the Host will provide them of course. \n  \n***VERY IMPORTANT INFO*** \n  \nAll are welcome\, no experience needed\, just a positive open attitude and mucho energy! \nThese workshops are designed for people that want to learn how to build a complete structure from start to finish in a professional manner and amount of time. They are very intensive and\, while we make time for yoga\, stretching\, dancing\, music\, relaxing….all students are expected to be present and participating in all building and lecture learning hours unless absolutely incapable due to illness or have some other significant/emergency reason. This is because we design the size of the building
 and organize the structure of the workshop in accordance with the number of students and when people are absent it impacts the whole group and the other students have to work harder. In addition Instructors try to set up building work according to students’ preferences and learning needs. \nPouring the floor on Day 5\, Pescadero\, 2024 \nWe need and depend on everyone’s full participation in each day of the workshop.  This is a total group effort on all levels:  physically\, mentally\, emotionally and energetically.. If someone is physically absent from the site and lectures due to illness or other urgency for more than one full day\, they will need to make up the days missed in a subsequent workshop to receive the Certificate (only paying food costs).  If physically injured or ill (and capable)\, it is requested students still be present at the site and for lecture and other required evening activities to not miss out on information and learning by observation\, and to qualify for the Certificate. \nDigging the trench on Day 1\, Pescadero 2024 \nThe workshop intensity changes from week 1 to week 5 with the focus of the week. The first foundation week breaks people in with the work of moving\, lifting\, rolling and placing rocks and is a new and demanding physical experience for most students. It also includes 
the first layers and coat of cob floor. The second week and part of the third week of cob making and building are similar to the rock foundation week in physical demand but are more flowing and active in movement and cardiovascular exercise. On Thursday & Friday of week 3\, the workshop takes a turn and slows down and the body can rest as students \nAnd the roof begins at end of week 4 with setting up the primary rafters\, Pescadero 2024 \ntap into their creative source now  and design and sculpt the walls and around niches\, shelves\, windows\, etc.  This is a very special rewarding experience and time of the workshop\, decorating the walls with visual beauty and meaning as expressed by each unique student.  Usually there is an overarching theme decided on by Host(s). \nPlastering follows sculpting and is also an enjoyable more lightweight physical experience that lends itself to talking and sharing at the wall in a meditative rhythm as the students have bonded and shared deeply through a variety of experiences for a month. On day 5 of week 4\, the roof begins.  This part is the beginning of a change of pace from the earthen building work to carpentry skills\, power tools\, drilling\, hammering\, screwing\, trimming\, etc. But now the workshop is in its final stretch and there is a boost of energy to wrap up the roof\, close the top of the wall\, and tend to finishing touches….the grand finale. \nAhhhhh\, finally\, a loooong breath after the intensity of the first 4 weeks! \nFor students wanting a more mellow slow-paced cob experience along with time for personal exploration and experimentation\, these workshops are not for you. However you can find a more suitable workshop online with other organizations that are usually for a
 shorter period building a garden wall\, a bench\, a compost toilet or some other smaller scale project. \n\nStudents are required to read “The Hand-Sculpted House” and “Essential Cob Construction” (see website Resources page) before the workshop begins and any other books they find or listed on our Resources page\, ideally on plastering and reciprocal roof building\, as well as watching our “International Cob Workshop” videos on Claudine’s YouTube channel\, the new educational YouTube series “Building a Mud Home” by Cooper Green\, posted by Natural Buildings and created from our North Carolina workshop footage\, and the ones posted on CruzinCobGlobal’s website under Gallery\, to get an idea of what is expected. Also it is a great idea to watch as many other videos on cob and reciprocal roofs as you can to come mentally prepared. Please bring your book(s). \nThe Dessert after the hard work! Tania plastering in Puerto Rico \nStudents must tend to their own personal needs\, drink alot of water\, rest when needed and exert themselves at a steady pace. Students who cannot do the strenuous physical work should let us know when registering so we can make sure the workshop is a good fit. If approved before the workshop begins\, we can adjust appropriately. It is totally OK to come for the lecture/theory part\, and sometimes help the building part in less physically
 demanding ways if you have physical limitations\, ie cutting straw\, sifting for plaster\, hammering nails into frames or shelves\, sculpting\, plastering\, cutting bottles. There is alot to do to support making and building with cob!!!! \nFinally\, please bring a watch or use your phone to be prompt and ready for each part of the Course including meals. Please make sure you share your dietary restrictions/allergies with CCG in your \nPescadero California Cob Crew! \nregistration form. Note that very demanding dietary needs will not be
 able to be met (vegan & non-gluten ok) and those students may be recommended not to participate unless they are willing to meet their special needs on their own\, which will not include kitchen access on weekdays. Please discuss with Claudine at time of desire to register. Also please bring your essential snacks and foods\, pillow and whatever you NEED to be comfortable and happy. Feel free to also bring playlists\, speaker\, slides\, videos\,
movies and books to share\, as well as a sample of your soil to test. \n\nWe look forward to opening you to a whole new world of experience\, skill\, growth and transformation as you bond with your new COB family for life! \n  \nCO-INSTRUCTORS \n  \nChristian Eder\n \nCOB CO-INSTRUCTOR \nHello I am Christian and I grew up in Südtirol\, a German-speaking area in the Alps in Northern Italy\, surrounded by mountains and beautiful woods and lakes. From a young age nature and sustainability were part of my values\, and that is why this particular style of building makes a lot of sense to me. \nAfter finishing high school with a focus on economics\, I worked in a trading company for some time\, which didn’t satisfy me much. So I decided to do a computer science training\, after which I worked as a web developer\, but then decided to go traveling around the world for some years\, and worked as a shepherd\, industrial climber\, fruit picker and waiter.  I travelled following my passions like climbing\, hiking\, nature\, and Eastern philosophy\, specifically meditation and yoga in India.  I love to get to know people from around the world\, their cultures and their food. In essence I love the diversity of our planet and getting to know it first hand.  On the way\, I have learned many languages: German and Italian at home\, then English\, Spanish\, and some French during my studies and life\, and am currently learning Portuguese. \nCompost Toilet Intensive in the Azores \nAfter settling in Italy again\, I worked as a landscape gardener\, where I was able to gain experience that helped spark my interest in the Cob building path.  When I saw my first Cob Building in California a few years ago\, Natural Building got my attention and Cob\, especially\, felt like the path I wanted to dedicate myself to. Studying by myself with books and gaining some basic knowledge\, I felt like going deeper into this new/old field. That’s when I decided to sign up for my first Complete Cob Building Workshop taught by CruzinCobGlobal Instructor Nicolas Pimentel on the beautiful island of São Miguel in the Azores. \nI immediately felt drawn to building naturally with no huge impact on Nature.  I am fascinated with building\, not only the construction side itself\, but the community aspect as well. To create something with like-minded people feels right and is fulfilling and fun.  I also attended a bench and oven workshop where I met Tom\, my Co-Instructor and went on to build a compost toilet as a return student at Quinta da Vida Beleza\, Claudine’s Ecovillage Farm in the Azores. \nSince then I have been practicing with more projects. Last winter\, my friend Zoe\, who I also met at a CCG workshop\, and I taught and built with local people in Zanzibar at a Volunteer project in which we built an outdoor classroom. My mission is to continue on this path\, by learning\, building and passing on my knowledge. \nYou too will fall in love with this beautiful world of Natural Building. \n  \nTom Van Well \nCOB CO-INSTRUCTOR \n I’m Tom from the Netherlands and living and working in Portugal now. After I was born in Amsterdam my parents decided to take me out of the big city\, and we ended up in Maastricht! Other cultures and languages were never far away\, in Belgium and Germany right next door. \nDoing honor to the region I took my bachelor in ‘European Studies’\, with no clue where I wanted it to take me. However\, taking example from an entrepreneurial father I’d always known I wanted to do something for myself. Exploring different paths led me to be in South America for more than a year\, finish my bachelor’s degree in Berlin\, and staying there to work in a café\, which I had been doing since the age of 14. \nLeaving all my stuff in Berlin I decided to head to Portugal\, and never returned. Life took me on a rollercoaster and since that felt good\, I did not resist. While living on farms\, my partner and I learned about distillation of wild plants for essential oils and hydrosols. Over the last 2 years we have ntake people on hands-on distilling experiences and travelled around the Lisbon selling our products at markets. \nHappy Cob Sculptor! \nFour years after leaving Berlin\, I still find myself in Portugal\, climbing its rocks\, taking cold bathsevery morning in the Atlantic\, playing guitar on its beaches\, building my community of like-minded people\, developing my own COB projects and continuing the business of artisanal distillation projects\, all while enjoying life! \nI have been living on Permaculture farms in different countries over the last few years\, where the concept of natural building was always present in theory and in practice. The accessibility and intuitive approach that is inherent to COB enchanted me like nothing else. I started following this interest\, reading everything I got my hands on and practicing whenever I could until I naturally flowed into really dedicating my being to the study and practice of this ancient technique. \nTom starting to teach his own personal workshops this year in Portugal \nAfter some years of study\, I found CruzinCobGlobal and registered for two workshops back to back: a Cob Oven course in the Azores and a 5-week Full Build in Tennessee. This turned out to be a catalyst for my skills and the beginning of the next new chapter of my Life: building independently\, sharing knowledge through workshops and growing my COB community in Portugal. \nThe 5-week Full Build Workshop in Puerto Rico is a continuation of my teaching and learning journey.  I feel blessed co-teaching this workshop with my friend Christian\, whom I met in a CCG workshop! I am excited for you to join us\, as these workshops are a life-changing experience\, and have definitely been for me. \n  \nMEALS & ACCOMMODATIONS \n  \nHost Nicole’s layout in Pescadero\, CA\, 2024 \nWe will serve three meals a day from Monday through Friday including the Welcome and Celebration Dinners and Farewell Brunch.  Weekends students will be on their own for food and may use the onsite kitchen.  Meals will be vegetarian and locally-based as much as possible\, including farm produce and eggs! \nWe will attend to vegan and gluten-free diets if needed but any other restrictions & allergies that require extensive preparation needs will not be able to be honored. And kitchen will only be accessible on weekends for students. \nCamping in your own tent with your own bedding is the only accommodations offered at the workshop.  Other possible local indoor housing like Airbnbs may be available and may require a vehicle. Please inquire with Claudine.  Please bring a good tent and warm sleeping bag\, pad\, pillow and blanket just in case… or camping hammock. \n\n  \nTRANSPORTATION \n  \nStudents can fly in to San Juan Airport (SJU) and a shuttle will be arranged for students to the workshop site on Saturday and Sunday (arriving onsite by 2pm at the latest).  There is also a closer airport\, Jose Aponte de la Terra\, only 25 minutes to the farm. The shuttle costs will be covered by the students separately.  Local students may also be able to pick others up in San Juan. Students will be responsible for their meals and food until Dinner on Sunday.  Host MAY offer these additional meals for an additional fee. \n  \n  \nREGISTRATION & PAYMENT \n  \nVery Early Bird Rate: USD$2500\, paid in full by September 19th\, 2024 \nEarly Bird Rate: USD$2600\, paid in full by November 19th\, 2024 \nStandard Rate: USD$2700\, paid in full by January 5th\, 2025 \nWe are offering 4 work trade positions which give you a $250 discount on either food or tuition for working one hour each weekday supporting the site before breakfast or preparing & putting away breakfast. Two persons for each service.  These are the first options to go. Depending on when you pay in full\, the discount is taken off the appropriate amount. \nPayment can be made using Zelle\, Paypal and  Venmo to claudinedesiree@gmail.com. Europeans and other international students can pay in USD using the Wise app/website using same email. \nPlease contact claudine@cruzincobglobal.org or Whatsapp +1(831) 212-7225 to register and ask any questions. \nTo hold your spot (there are 12 for new students and 3 for returning students)\, you can make a 50% deposit.  The balance owed depends on the date of payment in full. Final payment deadline is January 5th\, 2025. \nEstudiantes boricuas con bajo ingreso pueden contactar Claudine al claudinedesiree@gmail.com para saber más sobre las opciones para residentes. \n  \nCANCELLATION POLICY \n  \nStudents who have paid and cancel by November 19th\, 2024 can get a full refund minus a 5% administrative/inconvenience fee on the amount they have paid. \nStudents who have paid and cancel by December 19th\, 2024 will receive a credit for a future workshop within two years minus a 10% administrative/inconvenience fee. \nStudents who have paid and cancel after December 19th\, 2024 will not receive a refund or credit unless they have proof of an emergency situation or other reason out of their control\, in which case they will receive a credit for two years minus the 10% admin fee. \nLocal Puerto Rican residents who need financial support please contact Claudine at +18312127225 (Whatsapp). \n  \nSEE YOU IN THE MUUUUUUD! \n \n  \n 
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/build-a-cob-bohio-cottage-in-boriken-puerto-rico-in-january-february-2025/
LOCATION:Finca Don Chu\, Naguabo\, Puerto Rico
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/CCG-Flyer-PR-2025-01-scaled.jpeg
ORGANIZER;CN="CruzinCobGlobal":MAILTO:claudine@cruzincobglobal.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20250209T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20250316T160000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20240918T233737Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250120T164419Z
UID:9493-1739116800-1742140800@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Build a Cob Community Roundhouse at Mlango Farm in Ngecha\, Kenya in February/March 2025!
DESCRIPTION:A PERSONAL WORD FROM CLAUDINE…. \n  \nI am so excited that CruzinCobGlobal will be back on the vibrant and diverse continent of Africa after an 8-year hiatus. We led several multicultural Cob workshops in Senegal and Morocco between 2015 & 2016\, building bungalows and ovens\, and half a dozen full-builds between 2016 and 2022 in Cabo Verde\, the African islands off the coast of Senegal. Now we have a long-awaited opportunity to be hosted in East Africa\, in the Limuru region of Kenya\, just outside of Nairobi\, by Els Breet and her Mlango (door to a better world) Organic Farm crew. We are wanting to create a workshop consisting of students coming from Kenya\, other parts of Africa\, and of course from the immediate local community. \n  \nOUR HOST \n  \n  \n \nOur Host Els with her beloved Kamande \n\n  \nMlango Farm was started in 2007 on the Mundia family land in Ngecha by Els Breet Kamande and her late husband\, Kamande Njenga (1960-2023). Kamande’s broad business experience\, sense of hospitality\, his knowledge of Kenya and its people together with Els’ work experience in international diplomatic\, environmental and educational institutions proved a good base to start a farm together. Over the years a neglected farmland was turned into a heaven on earth\, a beautiful organic farm with over 50 different types of crops growing\, providing a livelihood for people from the Ngecha community. The passion and love for the project can be seen and felt when guests are visiting the family home at Mlango Farm. \n  \n \nOur source of veggies for the workshop! Lucky us! \n\n  \nWe are developing a natural playground in the forest. For over 17 years\, we’ve been pioneers in Kenya\, growing organic vegetables with love and care. We’ve welcomed over 10\,000 children\, mostly from the bustling city of Nairobi\, and shown them how we work in harmony with nature—because we believe their future depends on it. \nBut we’re dreaming even bigger. Our new goal? We want to give far more than 10\,000 children the chance to experience nature\, to taste it\, to smell it. We want to create a large natural playground to explore\, be creative and learn in and from nature. And that’s just the beginning. \n  \n \nãW \n\n  \nMlango Farm supports the Mlango Farm Foundation\, an organization that offers school visits and various courses on agriculture on the farm. The educational work of the Mlango Farm Foundation is supported by the Stichting Mlango Farm in The Netherlands. \nMlango Farm grows in a sustainable way\, following the rule of the 5 R’s: we Refuse\, Reduce\, Recycle\, Re-use\, and Rot our resources as much as we can. We make and collect Ecobricks (building blocks made of plastic waste) to reduce the amount of plastic waste in our environment. Soon we will build a cottage made of ecobricks and cob. We will be happy to tell you more about it! \nAt Mlango Farm we aim at a sustainable way of farming\, without using chemical pesticides or synthetic fertilizers. We follow the principles of Permaculture and regenerative farming. \nFor individual households in Nairobi we deliver weekly farmshare baskets with a variety of fresh vegetables. We literally share the harvest with our ‘share-holders’. The basket comprises of at least 10 varieties and changes weekly\, depending on availability. One basket is enough for 4 or 5 meals. \nFollowing Mlango Farm’s commitment to sustainability\, reducing our carbon footprint\, and supporting greener living\, we deliver the baskets by electric bicycle\, to different areas in Nairobi. \nMlango Farm grows the following vegetables\, herbs\, and a few fruits: Arrowroot\, Avocado\, Baby Carrot\, Bananas (+ matoke)\, Beetroot\, Borage\, Broccoli\, Cabbage\, Cauliflower\, Carrots\, Celery\, Cherry tomatoes\, Chinese cabbage\, Chioggia\, Chives\, Chayote\, Courgette\, Cucumber\, Daikon\, Dhania/Coriander\, Eggplant\, Fennel\, Green capsicum\, Kohlrabi\, Leek\, Lemongrass\, Lemon Verbena\, Lettuce (12 different types)\, Mint\, Mizuna\, Nasturtium\, NewZealand Spinach\, Pakchoi\, Parsley\, Peaches (only in November)\, Radish\, Red Cabbage\, Rosemary\, Rucola\, Sage\, Savoy cabbage\, Spinach\, Spring Onion\, Sukuma Wiki\, Sweet potato\, Swiss Chard\, Tarragon\, Tatsoi\, Tree tomatoes\, Turnips\, White Sapote. \nThe Home Art Gallery at Mlango Farm is run by Njee Muturi (of Zanji Art). The collection consists of a wide range of African art: paintings from known and less known (mainly Kenyan) artists\, masks\, sculptures and wood carved furniture. Often we have an ‘artist in residence’ staying with us at the farm. We also organize workshops on ‘nature print’ and we support the Ngecha Artists group with workshops with different materials and different techniques. \nOur Host has been a COB-aholic for a long time and while her staff have made a Kenyan-style cob house with stick framing\, now Els and her team will get to experience Euro-American-style cob building  as taught by CruzinCobGlobal and built by the workshop students. \n  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nãW\n\n\n  \nTHE PROJECT \n  \nWe will be building a 14m2/150ft2 round Cob Community Space for the temporary volunteers and visitors as well as the permanent residents of Mlango Farm to meet as a community for Council Circles\, Healing Work\, classes\, trainings\, meditation\, ceremonies and other personal activities . The reciprocal roof we build in all of our workshops symbolizes an interdependent community in which all are equal at their essence.  It is the strongest roof there is due to its interlocking spiral structure\, which reflects the individuals sitting together below and the strength of their interconnection. It represents the horizontal social structure favored in indigenous and traditional societies. \n\nStudents in this Advanced Cobber Certification training will\, as always\, learn all the steps to building a complete Cob Building from scratch in the following order: \nWeek 1: digging the trench and building a stone foundation and building the first floor layers \nWeeks 2 & 3:  building a circular monolithic cob wall with all its detailed insertions with sculpting \nWeek 4:  plastering the inside and outside of the wall & building the primary rafter structure \nWeek 5:  completing the wood roof structure\, green roof\, the top of the wall & the 2nd floor coat \n  \n \nPescadero\, California workshop July/August 2024 \n\n  \nWe especially invite non-White and multiracial students to come learn the art and technique of cob building with CCG in Kenya\, in the Motherland of Humanity.  We want a workshop that feels comfortable for non-white students\, and in which there is a healthy balance of races and cultures. CCG has taught in many countries of the world and our mission is to create access to everyone interested\, especially the local people so we can create international cob building families.  We aim to create intercultural and interhuman bonding experiences through our Cob building workshops to heal the world one Cobber and one Cob house at a time.  So please listen to your Soul Calling and the excitement of your Heart when thinking of joining us in Kenya or anywhere else we are teaching\, and come and embark on a life-changing adventure in 2025. And be part of creating a New World…\n \n  \n  \nDETAILED WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION \n  \n\n\n  \n\n  \n \nA new Cob Family ready to go! \n\n  \nThe 35-day Advanced Cob Building Workshop consists of 25 days (Monday through Friday) of learning & construction for 4 hours in the morning and 3 hours in the afternoon with theoretical instruction (lectures with graphics) on most Monday\, Wednesday and Friday afternoons to complement the hands-on experience. \nStudents arrive on Sunday between noon and 2pm and settle in. The workshop begins at 4pm with the Opening Circle followed by a Host Site Orientation and Introduction to the Project. Dinner is served at 6pm\, and will be followed by an Introduction to the 5-week Workshop by Instructor Claudine Desiree and Assistant Tania de Froberville.  Monday morning we begin digging the trench for our Cob Building!!!! \n  \n \nSnack time….after a long day finishing the roof! \n\n  \nFollowing Breakfast from 7:30-8:15am\, the morning learning/building session begins at 8:30 am and lasts until 1pm with a 20-minute snack pause at 11am. Lunch break is from 1pm to 2:30pm\, which includes a rest time before the 3-hour afternoon session begins. Most Mondays\, Wednesdays and Fridays there is a 60-minute lecture\, followed by another session of construction and demonstrations. Tuesdays and Thursdays students begin the building and learning session again right after the rest time. After class in the afternoon there is a 90-minute break before dinner (served from 7pm to 8pm)\, in which students are encouraged to stretch\, do some type of relaxation/movement practice\, go swimming\, walking and just relax. \n  \n \nAppreciating the finish work! \n\n  \nThere is sometimes a work trade student officially or informally leading yoga and movement practice in the mornings or afternoons (depending on student preference). There will also be 3-4 evenings (once a week) after dinner for showing slides\, videos and having Course-related discussions. Other evenings are mostly free and sometimes students offer informal courses in their specialties and passions and we will also enjoy local music and dance\, fire\, singing and whatever other surprises our Host Nyakio has in store for the group. Tuesdays are reserved for our weekly Council Circle\, where we do a deeper sharing and listening to attend to the inner worlds of our students\, staff & Host(s).  This is a required and essential element of our workshops to keep a balance between the physical work and emotional/spiritual needs that will come up\, in a safe and intimate setting. \n  \n \nPlacing the roof shims on the rafters \n\n  \nOn weekends students are free to explore the area\, rest onsite\, and even continue building\, subject to Instructor approval.  All weekend meals are provided by students themselves\, who are welcome to use the kitchen.  Host and/or other students can carpool into town for weekend food provisions.  Students are encouraged to visit the surroundings and eat in local eateries and will be guided by Nyakio.  Also there will be information and transport options available for those who want to go on weekend getaways to see other parts of Kenya.  These are always an additional cost of course. \n  \n \nEnjoying the accomplishment of a beautiful niche \n\n  \nThe 35-day Course will offer practical learning by building a complete 15m2  curvilinear building from foundation to roof\, as 
described in the “Project” section. Those who complete the 35-day Workshop will receive an Advanced Cobber Certificate of Completion for Foundation\, Cob Walls (which includes Door\, Windows\, Shelves\, Art\, Electrical Housing & Plumbing preparation)\, Floor\, Plaster & Roof.  Students who have to miss more than ONE day of the workshop will receive a temporary partial Certificate naming the parts they have completed and will need to complete all the missed time in another workshop to get the final Certificate. \n\n\n\n  \n  \nDAILY SCHEDULE \n  \nThe Advanced Cob Building Workshop begins on a Sunday at 4pm and ends on a Sunday\, 5 weeks later\, after the morning Closing Circle & Brunch. International students should arrive a day or two before Sunday to acclimate and settle in (please let us know) but will need to cover their own food
 needs unless a work trade or payment option is approved by Host (to be decided closer to the date). \nThe daily schedule (subject to slight modifications due to climate/time of year) will be: \n7:30-8:15 Breakfast \n8:30-1:00 Class \n1:00-2:30 Lunch \n2:30-5:30 Class (Lecture on MWF’s) \n5:30-7:00 Rest/Yoga \n7:00-8:00 Dinner \n8:00-9:00 Slides/Videos/Discussion (once a week) \nStudents are expected to be ON TIME and participate in ALL sessions and required activities as the goal of completing a full construction depends on the whole group being present and working together: physically\, energetically\, emotionally. \n  \n  \nCOURSE CONTENTS \n  \nStudents will learn every phase of building a cob building from foundation through the reciprocal roof in hands-on building and lectures/theory. In addition to the lectures\,
slideshows and videos will be shown to support and enhance their understanding of cob materials\, cob building\, design\, geography\, budgeting\, business options and legal issues. \nOur hands-on practice will include: \ndigging foundation trench\npouring gravel and inserting drainage pipe (if applicable)\nbuilding foundation stemwall\nanalyzing soils and materials\nmaking test bricks\ndeciding on correct mixture\ndeciding on best location\nmaking cob w/ partner and solo\nbuilding with cob\npreparing and inserting the door\npreparing and inserting fixed and opening windows\npreparing and inserting shelves\ninserting bottle windows\, glass and other objects\ninserting electrical housing and outlet/switch boxes (when applicable)*\ninsert PVC pipe for plumbing in walls (when applicable)*\nsculpting\npreparing and applying earthen plaster (1 coat)\npouring an earthen floor (2 coats)\npreparing walls for roof connection\nbuilding reciprocal roof frame\nputting on roof sheathing and other elements\ninstalling green roof\nmaking small-scale cob designs of future projects\, time permitting \nIn addition to Cob Building practices\, the Course material\nalso includes: \nlegal cob construction practices & the international cob code (Appendix AU in the IRC)\ncost analysis\ncreating a cob business (building/teaching)\nassisting\, interning and teaching with CruzinCobGlobal \n*While the insertion of electrical housing and one or more outlet/switch boxes and PVC pipes to hold plumbing are always included in the workshops\, the simplicity or complexity depends on the host’s design and preferences. There will be no electrical wiring or plumbing pipes installed during workshop. That is beyond the focus of this course and requires professional experience and certification/licensing. \n  \nREQUIREMENTS & IMPORTANT INFORMATION \n  \nStudents will need to come prepared for demanding physical work from Day 1. \nThis includes bringing: \nWork clothes appropriate for the country and climate we are in\nWork boots or other closed-toe shoes (for foundation and roof)\nFlip-flops (for cobbing/plaster days)\nRubber dishwashing gloves (for lime mortar)\nWork Gloves (for stone work)\nTape Measure\nBox Cutter\nWood Hand Saw (cheap)*\nLevel (2ft)*\nHammer*\nJapanese plastering trowel(s) (email:goldhillclayplaster@gmail.com)\nEar Plugs (roof week)\nWood Chisel*\n4”-6” Diameter Round Plastic Container Lids (for plastering)\nGood Moisturizer\nHat\nSunglasses\nWater Bottle\nNotebook/Pen/Camera\nSafety Glasses\nCarpenter Pencil & Sharpener\nSample of your Soil (optional) \nAny other power tools like skillsaw\, grinder with metal blade\, cordless drill\, chop saw…will be very welcome if you are driving in and able to bring them. \n*These tools will be very helpful to bring if you can\, to minimize sharing and waiting\, but if you can’t because you are flying in\, the Host will provide them of course. \n  \n  \n***VERY IMPORTANT INFO*** \n  \n  \n \nFinishing the roof in Puerto Rico \n\n  \nThese workshops are designed for people that want to learn how to build a complete structure from start to finish in a professional manner and timeframe. They are very intensive and\, while we make time for yoga\, stretching\, dancing\, music\, relaxing….all students are expected to be present and participating in ALL building and lecture learning hours unless absolutely incapable due to illness or have some other significant/emergency reason. This is because we design the size of the building
 and organize the structure of the workshop in accordance with the number of students we will have\, and when people are absent it impacts the whole group and the other students have to work harder. In addition Instructors try to set up building work according to students’ preferences and learning needs. \n  \n \nMorning stretching is critical to a successful workshop and creates time for meaningful connection before starting the day \n\n  \nWe need and depend on everyone’s full participation in each day of the workshop.  This is a total group effort on all levels:  physically\, mentally\, emotionally and energetically.. If someone is physically absent from the site and lectures due to illness or other urgency for more than one full day\, they will need to make up the days missed in a subsequent workshop to receive the complete Certificate (and will only pay food costs).  If physically injured or ill (and capable)\, it is requested students be present at the site and for lecture and other required evening activities to not miss out on information and learning by observation\, and to qualify for the Certificate.  For those who have any disabilities that may interfere with these requirements and would like to participate in the workshop\, please contact Claudine. \n  \n \nWorking with the Ancestors \n\n  \nThe workshop intensity changes from week 1 to week 5 with the focus of the week. The first foundation week breaks people in with the work of moving\, lifting\, rolling and placing rocks and is a new and demanding physical experience for most students. It also includes 
the first layers and coat of cob floor. The second week and part of the third week of cob making and building are similar to the rock foundation week in physical demand but are more flowing and active in movement and cardiovascular exercise. On Thursday & Friday of week 3\, the workshop takes a turn and slows down and the body can rest as students their creative source now and design and sculpt the walls and around niches\, shelves\, windows\, etc.  This is a very special rewarding experience and time of the workshop\, decorating the walls with visual beauty and meaning as expressed by each unique student.  Usually there is an overarching theme decided on by Host(s) but sometimes students are free to create the theme and design and present to Host. \n  \n \nSomeone enjoys the finishing work! \n\n  \nPlastering follows sculpting and is also an enjoyable more lightweight physical experience that lends itself to talking and sharing at the wall in a meditative rhythm as the students have bonded and shared deeply through a variety of experiences for a month. On day 5 of week 4\, the roof begins.  This part is the beginning of a change of pace from the earthen building work to carpentry skills\, power tools\, drilling\, hammering\, screwing\, trimming\, etc. But now the workshop is in its final stretch and there is a boost of energy to wrap up the roof\, close the top of the wall\, and tend to finishing touches….the grand finale.  The group also begins the process of letting go and tending to the new relations they have made and talking about the future. \nFor students wanting a more mellow slow-paced cob experience along with time for personal exploration and experimentation\, these workshops are not for you. However you can find a more suitable workshop online with other organizations that are usually for a
 shorter period building a garden wall\, a bench\, a compost toilet or some other smaller scale project. \n\nStudents are required to read “The Hand-Sculpted House” and “Essential Cob Construction” (see website Resources page) before the workshop begins and any other books they find or listed on our Resources page\, ideally on plastering and reciprocal roof building\, as well as watching our “International Cob Workshop” videos on Claudine’s YouTube channel\, the new educational YouTube series “Building a Mud Home” by Cooper Green\, posted by Natural Buildings and created from our North Carolina workshop footage\, and the ones posted on CruzinCobGlobal’s website under Gallery/Videos\, to get an idea of what is expected. Also it is a great idea to watch as many other videos on cob and reciprocal roofs as you can\, to come mentally prepared. Please bring your book(s). \n  \n \nThe joy of sculpting after all the heavy work is done \n\n  \nStudents must tend to their own personal needs\, drink alot of water\, rest when needed and exert themselves at a steady pace. Students who cannot do the strenuous physical work should let us know when registering so we can make sure the workshop is a good fit. If approved before the workshop begins\, we can adjust appropriately. It is totally OK to come for the lecture/theory part\, and sometimes help the building part in less physically
 demanding ways if you have physical limitations\, ie cutting straw\, sifting for plaster\, hammering nails into frames or shelves\, sculpting\, plastering\, cutting bottles. There is alot to do to support making and building with cob!!!!  But this has to be discussed and approved with Claudine so it does not impact the schedule of construction. \n  \n \nthe usual fine dining our Hosts provide to show their gratitude for the hard work of the students \n\n  \nFinally\, please bring a watch or use your phone to be prompt and ready for each part of the Course including meals. Please make sure you share your dietary restrictions/allergies with CCG in your registration form. Note that very demanding dietary needs will not be
 able to be met (vegan & non-gluten ok) and those students may be recommended not to participate unless they are willing to meet their special needs on their own\, which will not include kitchen access on weekdays. Please discuss with Claudine at time of desire to register. Also please bring your essential snacks and foods\, pillow and whatever you NEED to be comfortable and happy. Feel free to also bring playlists\, speaker\, slides\, videos\,
movies and books to share\, as well as a sample of your soil to test. \n\nWe look forward to opening you to a whole new world of experience\, skill\, growth and transformation as you bond with your new international COB family for life! \n  \n \nMud on the Brain after 4 weeks! \n\n  \n  \nMEALS & ACCOMMODATIONS \n  \nWe will serve three meals a day from Monday through Friday including the Welcome and Celebration Dinners and Farewell Brunch.  Weekends students can either be on their own for food and may use the onsite kitchen\, or choose to have meals made by the staff for a rate of 15€/day or 3€ for breakfast and 6€ for lunch or dinner.  Meals will be mostly vegetarian and locally-based as much as possible\, including farm produce and eggs\, but we will attend to meat eaters several times a week if desired! \nWe will also attend to vegan and gluten-free diets if needed but any other restrictions & allergies that require extensive preparation needs will not be able to be honored. Kitchen will not be accessible on weekends for students\, but there are plenty of places to eat in the surrounding neighborhoods! \nCamping in your own tent is free and available for everyone.  Please bring your camping gear. Our host is also offering a limited number of beds (first come first serve) in various locations on the Farm.  The fee will be 6€/night. Students can buy camping gear or just blankets in Nairobi with the help of our host if they don’t want to travel with it. \n  \nTRANSPORTATION \n  \nInternational students will fly into Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) in Nairobi and can share an Uber or Bolt (cheapest) to the site\, an hour away.   The distance to the site is only 25 miles/40km from Nairobi. Students should arrive on Saturday and can eat with the residents before the workshop for a small fee or choose to have meals prepared for a larger fee or bring their own food to make. \nADDITIONAL IMPORTANT TRAVEL INFORMATION: \nELECTRONIC TRAVEL AUTHORIZATION (ETA) \nAs of January 1st\, 2024\, all foreign nationals\, regardless of nationality\, can enter Kenya without a visa for tourism or business travel for stays up to 90 days. \nHowever\, you must obtain a new Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) online prior to travel. \nTo apply\, visit the ETA Platform. Please note that this is the only website you should be using\, any other website you may find on Google is a scam! \nThe ETA costs $30\, is valid for 90 days from the day when you make the payment (i.e. the day you apply) and it takes about seven days to be processed and approved.\nHence\, we recommend to apply around two weeks before the trip. \nThe ETA is only valid for one trip and travelers must obtain a new ETA for each visit to Kenya. \nMake sure your passport is still valid for at least 6 months after your planned trip and that you have at least two blank pages. \nIf you plan to travel to other East African countries\, it may make sense to get an East African visa. \nIt’s best to print your ETA and have a paper copy. \nVACCINES \nThere is no mandatory vaccine required to enter Kenya\, unless you are arriving from countries where yellow fever is endemic. In that case\, you will need a valid yellow fever certificate. \nIf you are arriving from Europe\, Mauritius or the USA\, you will not need a yellow fever or any other vaccine\, however there are a few recommended ones.\nPlease visit the Travel Health Pro website for more info. \nWith regards to Malaria\, Kenya is not on the list of the high risk countries. As a result\, the choice of taking Malarone (or any other drug) as a prevention is very personal.\nPlease consult your GP should you have any more questions. \nTRAVEL INSURANCE \nWe recommend anyone to get a Travel Insurance to cover your trip in Kenya. \nYou can refer to Europe Assistance or World Nomads as providers. \n  \nCOB INSTRUCTOR \nClaudine Desiree \n  \n \nLa Reina del Barro! \n\n  \nFounder and Director of CruzinCobGlobal\, Claudine Desiree has been well-known in the world of Cob Workshops for 20 years\, since holding her first workshop in her downtown Santa Cruz\, California home in 2004.  After many years in California teaching shorter-format workshops\, in which part of a building was built or finished\, while holding many careers and raising her three sons\, she launched her GlobalCobTrotter Tour in December of 2014\, and realized a life-long dream of traveling the world by bike for an extended period of time. To keep earning a living while combining her two passions\, she decided to organize cob workshops on the road in all the countries she wanted to bike to and through.  The journey ended up going for 5 years in which 30 workshops in 15 countries were held\, in Africa\, South America\, \n  \n \nAzores livin’ \n\n  \nEurope and the US. The new CruzinCobGlobal was born in 2015 with a website and a new seriousness and organization and consistency that have\, together with the unusual goal of building a complete cob cottage in 5 weeks from feet to head and all the fixins in between\, brought CCG its global reputation as the only and best complete and intensive professional cob training in the world today. \nAt this point\, and after creating her first Cob Ecovillage\, “Quinta da Vida Beleza” from 2020 to 2023 in the Azores\, with workshop students and others\, she has now stepped back from the teaching role to honor and train her best students on this path.  However\, when the workshop takes place in a new location of interest\, like Kenya\, she may decide to step in for old time’s sake\, to keep stoking her passion and love of international cob teaching! \n  \nCOB ASSISTANT \nZoë  Verbaant \n  \n \nIn Zanzibar building a cob permaculture center last year \n\n  \nHi! I’m Zoë\, 34\, I’m from the Netherlands\, and currently I live wherever I lay my head down.\nI have always been very passionate about the world\, nature\, humanity\, and how everything is related. As a child I would philosophy about these topics. I was fascinated with indigenous tribal peoples living exclusively of the land they walk on. I dreamed of living like that too\, in a house made of bamboo\, or mud\, that I’d built myself.\nGrowing up\, I ‘did life’ differently than the people around me\, trying to follow my passions. I eventually studied ecology\, nature and wildlife management\, dreaming to contribute to conservation of primary ecosystems. I’d travel everytime I had managed to save up with waitress jobs. Not only because I love exploring every corner of the world\, also because of my strong need to put my energy into conservation related projects. Through these endeavours I eventually ended up volunteering at a place in Spain\, in 2015\, where 2 elderly people were re-designing their lifestyle to a more connected life\, and that included natural building – restoring the ruined dry stone wall buildings.\nI loved doing that\, and in 2017 I joined a massive earth bag build in Australia\, that also incorporated rammed earth walls and a cob oven. It was a very beautiful holistic experience. And somehow it felt as though I had built like it before. A puzzle piece fell in place.. From then on\, in my travels I would often look for opportunities to build\, restore or beautify people’s homes\, slowly learning more\, gaining skills\, growing as a person and feeding my soul. I’ve been interested in all the different possibilities within the concept of natural building…. and there are many.\nBesides the above\, I worked on 2 hempcrete builds in the Netherlands\, a round timber frame gazebo with reciprocal green roof in France\, restoring an old wattle/daub tudor house in Germany\, a cob roundhouse in Spain. And a month ago a mud brick house in Thailand. I have done several plastering and paint jobs here and there\, using earthen and lime mixes. Adding to that I have done some small works\, learning about slip straw\, pallet cob\, scrafito and other plaster murals\, tadelakt and building rocket mass heaters.\nI joined the Cruzing Cob Global cob house and oven+bench workshop\, on Sao Miguel in 2023. I really wanted a start to finish experience\, combining all the techniques involved. It gave me a big boost in my building skills and I made great friendships.\nMoving on from there I felt confident I could have a go at designing and teaching building\, which I did in Tanzania. We made a gazebo style classroom with coral rock\, earth and wood.\nAnd now it’s very exciting to continue the journey of sharing the knowledge\, with CruzinCobGloblal\, in Kenya\, alongside Claudine.\nI know we will have an amazing time. \n  \nREGISTRATION & PAYMENT \n  \nVery Early Bird Rate: 2250€\, paid in full by November 9th\, 2024 \nEarly Bird Rate: 2350€\, paid in full by December 31st\, 2024 \nStandard Rate: 2450€\, paid in full by January 26th\, 2025 \nWe are offering 2 work trade positions which give you a 250€ discount on either food or tuition for working one hour each weekday preparing the building site from 6:30AM to 7:30AM.  These are the first options to go. Depending on when you pay in full\, the discount is taken off the appropriate amount. \nPayment can be made in Euros using Wise to CruzinCobGlobal at the following IBAN: BE44 9673 1046 6145 or to claudinedesiree@gmail.com at Venmo\, Paypal (including the transaction fee) or Zelle with current Euro to USD conversion. \nPlease contact claudine@cruzincobglobal.org or on Whatsapp +1(831) 212-7225 to register and ask any questions. \nTo hold your spot (there are 12 for new students and 3 for returning students)\, you can make a 50% deposit.  The balance owed depends on the date of payment in full. Final payment deadline is January 26th\, 2025. \nSpecial Note: \nLocal\, Kenyan and African students with a locally-sourced income and with full-time residence on the African continent: \nTuition and Weekday Meals: 1525€ (accommodations & weekend meals extra) \nCamping with own equipment is free (2 tents available to borrow from Host) \nBunkbed: 6€/night \nWeekend meals: 15€/day (Breakfast: 3€  Lunch: 6€ Dinner: 6€) \nWe are working to complete our 4th 1000€ scholarship for a local very motivated Kenyan student Students will need to make the food payment with their own funds or raising money on their own. \nPlease help this happen by supporting our GoFundMe fundraiser here:  (link coming soon) \nGratitude \n  \nCANCELLATION POLICY \n  \nStudents who have paid and cancel by December 9th\, 2024 can get a full refund minus a 5% administrative/inconvenience fee on the amount they have paid. \nStudents who have paid and cancel by January 9th\, 2025 will receive a credit for a future workshop within two years minus a 10% administrative/inconvenience fee. \nStudents who have paid and cancel after January 9th\, 2025 will NOT receive a refund or credit unless they have proof of an emergency situation or other reason out of their control\, in which case they will receive a credit for two years minus the 10% admin fee. \n  \nCAN’T WAIT TO GET MUDDY WITH YOU!!!!
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/build-a-cob-community-roundhouse-in-naivasha-kenya-in-february-march-2025/
LOCATION:Mlango Farm\, Ngecha\, Kenya
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/CCG-Flyer-KenyaCOB2025.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="CruzinCobGlobal":MAILTO:claudine@cruzincobglobal.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20250210T090000
DTEND;TZID=Pacific/Auckland:20250318T150000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241228T000034Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250115T064329Z
UID:9588-1739178000-1742310000@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:5-Week Cob Workshop in New Zealand
DESCRIPTION:We are building a cob cottage from the ground up in this 5-week course in beautiful Northland\, New Zealand. Anyone interested in learning about earth building can sign up for one week of instruction and hands-on experience in a particular topic\, or sign up for the entire 5-week build.  Taught by certified cob instructors\, we’ll cover foundation\, walls\, living roof\, earth floor\, finish plaster\, pallet cob and more. Details on the flyer below.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/5-week-cob-workshop-in-new-zealand/
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/cob-flyer-1mb-scaled.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Earthenbuilds":MAILTO:earthenbuilds@gmaial.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20250309T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20250316T080000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241124T175108Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241124T175420Z
UID:9561-1741536000-1742112000@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:A Complete Introduction to Earthen Building Techniques (Cob\, Wattle and Daub\, and Natural Plasters) in the Cloud Forest of El Salvador
DESCRIPTION:Come and experience our natural building oasis\, agroecology farm\, and ecotourism project in the cloud forests of El Salvador´s highest mountain range!This workshop is being hosted by the Nubes del Pital (Clouds of El Pital) agroecology farm and ecotourism project. Over the past ten years\, we have collectively built 15 different cob houses\, restaurants\, and cabins to host tourists in the beautiful El Trifinio Biosphere on the slopes of El Salvador´s highest mountain. The nearby cloud forest offers a beautiful site to learn about natural building techniques\, permaculture\, agroecology\, and sustainable living. Besides participating in the actual building workshop\, you will also be staying on a beautiful permaculture farm presenting the opportunity to learn about regenerative homesteading\, organic farming\, and different ways to integrate earthen structures into the landscape. \nDuring this workshop\, we will be building a new cob sauna in a food forest and ecotourism project. The workshop site is surrounded by a beautiful pine and cedar forest\, along with a coffee\, avocado\, and other fruit trees. Participants will have the opportunity to experience and learn about all aspects of the building process\, from rubble trenches and rock foundations\, building cob\, wattle and daub\, and cordwood walls\, timber framing\, installing doors and windows\, incorporating recycled materials/bottles into the structure\, plastering\, natural clay-based paints\, and more. \nThis workshop offers you the opportunity to see\, experience\, and live in several different naturally-built structures on our farm. Besides staying in beautifully furnished cob and timber-framed cabins with fantastic views of El Salvador´s highest mountain\, you will also have plenty of hands-on experience to learn a wide variety of natural building techniques. \nThe six full-day workshop costs $650 USD per person\, and includes: \n• 7 nights of lodging in private cob/wood cabins (check out the AirBnb links below to see where you´ll be staying)• 3 locally-harvested meals a day• All the coffee\, tea\, and water you can drink• Local transportation from the cabins where you will be staying to the build site on the coffee farm.• The workshop learning experience• Several free e-books on cob and natural building• A half-day hiking trip to visit the mystical cloud forest of El Pital• We will also be visiting different cob and wood homes that have been built in our community to learn how natural building positively impacts local communities. \nFor more information or to sign up and secure your place (we have a maximum of 15 participants for our workshops) you can send us an email at: tobiasroberts20@hotmail.com\, or contact us via Whatsapp at +503 7024 6928 \nAgain\, we have a maximum of 15 spots available for this workshop\, so contact us today with any questions you might have! \nAirBnb links for cabins where you will be lodged during the workshop:El Trigal: https://es.airbnb.com/rooms/21275949…Rosa de Montaña: https://es.airbnb.com/rooms/21276181…El Colibrí: https://es.airbnb.com/rooms/21239316…La Libélula: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/857860869520040145?guests=1…El Roble: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/682837356124333465?guests=1…El Abeto: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/683176565394719587?guests=1…
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/a-complete-introduction-to-earthen-building-techniques-cob-wattle-and-daub-and-natural-plasters-in-the-cloud-forest-of-el-salvador/
LOCATION:Clouds of El Pital Eco-Tourism Cooperative\, El Pital Mountain\, San Ignacio\, Chalatenango\, 503\, El Salvador
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/1.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Tobias%20Roberts":MAILTO:tobiasroberts20@hotmail.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250312
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250317
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250213T215005Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250312T035543Z
UID:9632-1741737600-1742169599@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:POSTPONED TO NOVEMBER 2025: Bioconstruction II
DESCRIPTION:Join us for Phase 2 of our Bioconstruction Workshop series. \nWith Habitat Recovery Project\, we are creating a hexagonal Sanctum as a spiritual beacon. This project brings together folks from near and far to learn to construct with nontoxic materials. In Phase 1\, we used many bioconstruction techniques: cordwood\, cob\, light clay straw\, Bousillage (a Louisiana regional cob method)\, bottle-bricks\, roundwood framing\, natural plasters. We had additional education sessions on chainsaw safety and felling trees. We held classroom sessions with special guests about environmental racism\, local indigenous history\, and construction sites culture. \nDuring this time frame\, we we will doing \n\nFinishing Plasters\nNatural Paints\nGlass Bottle Bricks\nCob Construction\nBuilding envelope education\n\nNatural Building Materials Used \n\nLand-Harvested Wood\nLocal Clay\nLocal Sand\nStraw Bales\nSpanish Moss\nUpcycled Glass\nUpcycled Hardware\n\nJoin Us to touch clay\, meet new friends\, and sing a few campfire songs.\nREGISTER HERE: http://bit.ly/HRPEARTHRISE \nReach out with any questions: +1 540.908.0218
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/bioconstruction-ii-natural-paints-plasters/
LOCATION:Snow White Sanctuary\, 1636 Arledge Road\, Vinton\, LA\, 70668\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/WhatsApp-Image-2025-03-11-at-18.22.37.jpeg
ORGANIZER;CN="Habitat%20Recovery%20Project":MAILTO:misha@habitatrecovery.org
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20250322T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20250322T153000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250310T232146Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250310T233945Z
UID:9646-1742630400-1742657400@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Workshop Series: Building a Community Tool Library – Day 1
DESCRIPTION:Join Us in Building a Tool Library at Riverside Corona Resource Conservation District\, (RCRCD) \nWe’re using the Palletable Cobin Method\, developed by Miguel Elliot\, to create a sustainable\, low-cost\, and waste-conscious structure. This method uses fewer heavy earth materials\, requires less cob\, and repurposes more salvaged materials—making it faster and more efficient to build! \nDay 1 Workshop:\n🛠️ Setting posts\n🔨 Digging & filling the rubble drainage trench\n🧱 Building the stem wall\n📦 If time allows\, adding pallets & framing \nThis is a 6-part workshop series—join for one or all! Register by making a donation that fits your budget using the link below. All donations are used to purchase materials\, tools\, supplies and insurance. For scholarship requests\, contact Susan at 310-990-8695.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/workshop-series-building-a-community-tool-library-day-1/
LOCATION:RCRCD\, 4500 Glenwood Drive\, Riverside\, CA\, 92501\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/Digging-Rubble-Trench.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Susan%20Krings":MAILTO:dihgeco@gmail.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Costa_Rica:20250323T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/Costa_Rica:20250427T140000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241018T182820Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241018T182820Z
UID:9505-1742738400-1745762400@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Community Healing Cob "Cabina" in Puerto Viejo\, Costa Rica!
DESCRIPTION:LOCATION \n  \nThe workshop will be held at Eso Terra’s cozy jungle-immersed campus\, located a short walk from Playa Chiquita\, and close to the town of Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean coast near the Panamanian border. More mellow then the Atlantic coast of Costa Rica\, it also has a more African influence and calm waters.  We are not only perfectly located between Manzanillo National Park and Puerto Viejo town\, but also situated just a short ten-minute walk from one of the nicest beaches in town\, Playa Chiquita\, safe and beautiful\, with numerous cafes & restaurants for after-class and weekend hanging out.  Puerto Viejo itself is a creative and vibrant town\, bustling with visitors from all over the world\, and infused with Caribbean and indigenous Bri Bri cultures. \n  \n \nLa Playa Chiquita \n\n  \nAt your fingertips will be nature like you’ve never experienced – monkeys\, sloths\, hummingbirds\, etc.  Most unique about the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica is the “jungle meets ocean” experience.  Our home is situated in the jungle\, which walks right up to the incredibly stunning beaches nearby. This is a true paradise! But not for the faint of heart. While the days are mostly sunny\, and the temperature not too hot (though sometimes it can be quite humid)\, there are certainly hard rains\, insects\, scorpions and spiders – and any other animals that come in a jungle rain forest environment. \n  \n \nSecond Floor Communal Space in the treetops \n\n  \nThe house is a unique open air rustic refuge. Troupes of monkeys\, hummingbirds\, and toucans regularly dance amidst the trees here. You’ll arrive through an open air kitchen with an open bathroom layout.  We have a communal table in the open kitchen\, inviting community cooking and chats. Upstairs is our lounge and co-working and community space\, where people can eat\, meet\, work and connect\, and another bathroom space. \nThere are two bedrooms upstairs and one downstairs. Upstairs bedrooms have canopy views\, open access to the communal lounge area\, and a shared bathroom. The downstairs room lacks windows\, and feels more enclosed.  This will be the location for indoor camping with mattresses\, for people who want slightly upgraded indoor living conditions \nWe have outdoor exposed and covered spaces for camping and can offer a wooden bungalow/ cabina\, which can sleep up to two people\, for an additional fee. This space would be perfect for a couple who wishes to have private living quarters\, or could be outfitted with two beds/ and mattresses to fit two individuals who would like a private indoor room rather than a camping setup. We also have Mary Luz hotel just down the hill (on the way to the beach) for anyone looking for shared rooms at a relatively cheap price ($20-$25/ per person per night). \nOur community here is one of a kind – there are ecstatic dances\, sound and medicine journeys\, sweat lodges\, fresh markets\, yoga\, kundalini and art classes at your fingertips weekly. We are surrounded by waterfalls\, hikes\, dolphins and nature excursions. Our diverse and vibrant community gathers regularly for singing circles\, potlucks and bonfires under the stars.  We welcome all you future Cobbers in this magical space and look forward to getting to know you and spending some magical time together! \nGALLERY \n  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCabina\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n  \n  \nTHE PROJECT \nThrough this collaboration\, Eso Terra campus will have a beautiful Cob Cabina that will function as a central meeting space for ritual and connection. It will also serve as a meditation room and treatment room for guests to give and receive holistic treatments like massage\, reiki\, and purpose work. This will be a private and nourishing space for integrative community\, restorative and healing experiences.\n  \n \nAzores\, 2023 \n\n  \nThe 5-week Advanced Cobber Certification Workshop students will be building the Cob Cabina\, as always\, with 12 pairs of loving\, muddy hands and feet.  From the “boots”\, or rock foundation\, to the “hat”\, or reciprocal green roof\, we will cover everything in between!  Students leave full of inspiration\, motivation\, passion\, empowerment and hunger for more.  Did we tell you that Cob is an addiction?  The best kind! \n  \n  \n \nAzores\, 2024 \n\n  \nWe will be building our trademark 14m2/150ft2 round building (final size is always dependent on class number) for Eso Terra residents & guests to use. The breathtaking reciprocal roof structure we build in all of our workshops is the strongest roof there is\, due to its interlocking spiral structure which holds itself up with no outward pressure on the monolithic round wall of the building. In addition\, it mirrors the horizontal social structure favored in indigenous societies\, who meet under these types of rooves for council circles and ceremonies\, and thus acts as a spiritual support for any meaningful interactions taking place within our cob buildings.  The Earthen walls provide the feel of being in a womb\, protected from toxins\, noise\, and are visually nurturing & comforting in their irregular imperfect appearance & texture. \n\nStudents in this Advanced Cobber Certification training will\, as always\, learn all the steps to building a complete Cob Building from scratch.  In week 1\, we start off by digging the trench and fill it with gravel\, a drainage pipe\, and a sturdy aesthetic stone foundation to support the wall and roof.  We finish the week off by pouring the adobe/cob floor on a gravel base.  In weeks 2 & 3\, we build the monolithic cob wall with all its detailed insertions and finish it with 1-2 days of relaxed sculpting.  In week 4 we plaster our beautifully-decorated and strong wall with an earthen mix\, followed by the reciprocal green roof installation that extends into week 5.  On the last day of the workshop we  close up the top of the wall and pour the final floor coat to complete the workshop.\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n \n2-Story Cob House\, Azores\, 2021 \n\n  \nNote: We especially invite non-White and multiracial students who are curious or already interested and passionate about earthen construction to come learn the art and technique of cob building with CCG.  We want a workshop that feels comfortable for non-white students\, and aim for a healthy balance as our ideal.  CCG has taught in many countries of the world and our mission is to create access to everyone interested\, especially the local people\, so we can create international cob building families where all students grow and learn on a personal and interpersonal level.  We aim to create intercultural and interhuman bonding experiences through our Cob building workshops to heal the world one Cob house at a time.  So please follow your Heart & Soul\, listen to the Call\, and come and embark on a life-changing adventure in 2025. \n\n  \nDETAILED WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION \n  \n\nThe 35-day Advanced Cob Building Workshop consists of 25 days (Monday through Friday) of learning & construction for 4 hours in the morning and 3 hours in the afternoon with theoretical instruction (lectures with graphics) on most Monday\, Wednesday and Friday afternoons to complement the hands-on experience. \nStudents arrive on Sunday between noon and 2pm and settle in. The Workshop begins at 4pm and ends on a Sunday\, 5 weeks later\, after the morning Closing Circle & Brunch\, around 2pm. Students can arrive a day or two before to acclimate and settle in (please let us know) but will need to cover their own food
 needs\, unless a work trade or meal fee is approved by Host (to be decided closer to the date). The Opening Circle begins promptly at 4pm\, followed by a Host Site Orientation at 5pm\, Dinner at 6pm and an Introduction to the Project by the Instructors at 7pm. \nWe require that students arrive Saturday or Sunday by 2pm AT THE LATEST!!! We need to begin ALL TOGETHER\, as the MOST important information for the success and smooth-running of the workshop and the well-being of the students will happen on Sunday between 4pm and 8:30pm.  It is very inconvenient for late students\, Host\, Instructors and the group\, when someone arrives late and misses any of the opening sessions.  Please be punctual because Monday morning at 9 am we begin digging the trench for our Cob Building and students need to be prepared and ready to go!!!!  Please aim to arrive to this workshop on Saturday\, unless you are a local resident\, to avoid issues due to flight delays or changes.\n \nFollowing Breakfast from 7:30-8:15am\, the morning learning/building session begins at 8:30 am and lasts until 1pm with a 20-minute snack pause at 11am. Lunch break is from 1pm to 2:30pm\, which includes a rest time before the 3-hour afternoon session begins\, from 2:30pm-5:30pm. Mondays\, Wednesdays and Fridays there is a 60-minute lecture at 2:30pm\, followed by construction time. Tuesdays and Thursdays students begin building again right after the rest time. After class in the afternoon there is a 90-minute break before dinner (served from 7pm to 8pm)\, in which students are encouraged to stretch\, do some type of relaxation/movement practice\, go swimming\, walking and just relax. \n\nThere is sometimes a work trade student officially or informally leading yoga and movement practice in the mornings or afternoons (depending on student preference). There will also be 3-4 evenings (once a week) after dinner for showing slides\, videos and having Course-related discussions. Other evenings are mostly free and sometimes students offer informal courses in their specialties and passions. Tuesdays are reserved for our weekly Council Circle\, where we do a deeper sharing and listening to attend to the inner worlds of our students\, staff & Host(s) during this intense experience. \nOn weekends students are free to explore the area\, go traveling\, rest onsite\, and even continue building\, subject to Instructor approval.  All weekend meals are provided by students who are welcome to use the kitchen.  Host and/or other students can carpool into town for weekend food provisions.  Puerto Viejo has bikes to rent and students can organize car rentals to explore farther on weekends. \nThe 35-day Course will offer practical learning by building a complete 15m2 curvilinear building from foundation to roof\, as 
described in the “Project” section. Those who complete the 35-day Workshop will receive an Advanced Cobber Certificate of Completion for Foundation\, Cob Walls (which includes Door\, Windows\, Shelves\, Art\, Electrical Housing & Plumbing preparation)\, Floor\, Plaster & Roof. \n\n\n\n  \nDAILY SCHEDULE \n  \nThe daily schedule (subject to slight modifications due to climate/time of year) will be: \n7:30-8:15 Breakfast \n8:30-1:00 Class \n1:00-2:30 Lunch \n2:30-5:30 Class (Lecture on MWF’s) \n5:30-7:00 Rest/Yoga \n7:00-8:00 Dinner \n8:00-9:00 Slides/Videos/Discussion (once a week) \nStudents are expected to be on time and participate in all sessions and required activities as the goal of building a full construction depends on the whole group working together both physically & energetically!  Out of respect for the Instructors & the group\, we ask that students always communicate with Instructors if they are having any issues that cause them to be late or have to excuse themselves from class for something. \n  \n  \nCOURSE CONTENTS \n  \nStudents will learn every phase of building a cob building from foundation through the reciprocal roof in hands-on building and lectures/theory. In addition to the lectures\,
slideshows and videos will be shown to support and enhance their understanding of cob materials\, cob building\, design\, geography\, budgeting\, business options and legal issues. \nOur hands-on practice will include: \ndigging foundation trench\npouring gravel and inserting drainage pipe (if applicable)\nbuilding foundation stemwall\nanalyzing soils and materials\nmaking test bricks\ndeciding on correct mixture\ndeciding on best location\nmaking cob w/ partner and solo\nbuilding with cob\npreparing and inserting the door\npreparing and inserting fixed and opening windows\npreparing and inserting shelves\ninserting bottle windows\, glass and other objects\ninserting electrical housing and outlet/switch boxes (when applicable)*\ninsert PVC pipe for plumbing in walls (when applicable)*\nsculpting\npreparing and applying earthen plaster (1 coat)\npouring an earthen floor (2 coats)\npreparing walls for roof connection\nbuilding reciprocal roof frame\nputting on roof sheathing and other elements\ninstalling green roof\nmaking small-scale cob designs of future projects\, time permitting \nIn addition to Cob Building practices\, the Course material\nalso includes: \nlegal cob construction practices & the international cob code (Appendix AU in the IRC)\ntime & cost analysis\ncreating a cob business (building/teaching)\nassisting\, interning and teaching with CruzinCobGlobal \n*While the insertion of electrical housing and one or more outlet/switch boxes and PVC pipes to hold plumbing are always included in the workshops\, the simplicity or complexity depends on the host’s design and preferences. There will be no electrical wiring or plumbing pipes installed during workshop. That is beyond the focus of this course and requires professional experience and certification/licensing. \n  \nREQUIREMENTS & IMPORTANT INFORMATION \n  \nStudents will need to come prepared for demanding physical work from Day 1. \nThis includes bringing: \nWork clothes appropriate for the country and climate we are in\nWork boots or other closed-toe shoes (for foundation and roof)\nFlip-flops (for cobbing/plaster days)\nRubber dishwashing gloves (for lime mortar)\nWork Gloves (for stone work)\nTape Measure\nBox Cutter\nWood Hand Saw (cheap)*\nLevel (2ft)*\nHammer*\nJapanese plastering trowel(s) (email:goldhillclayplaster@gmail.com)\nEar Plugs* (roof week)\nSafety Glasses*\nWood Chisel*\n4”-6” Diameter Round Plastic Container Lids* (for plastering)\nGood Moisturizer\nHat\nSunglasses\nWater Bottle\nNotebook/Pen/Camera\nCarpenter Pencil & Sharpener\nSample of your Soil (optional) \nAny other power tools like skilsaw\, grinder wth metal blade\, cordless drill\, chop saw\, extra hammers\, trowels\, saws\, levels…will be very welcome if you have them and are driving in.  Some students fly in wth only carry-on luggage and can’t bring some of these tools. \n*These tools will be very helpful to bring if you can\, to minimize sharing and waiting\, but if you can’t the Host will provide them. \n  \n***PLEASE READ THIS VERY IMPORTANT INFO!!!*** \nThese workshops are designed for people that want to learn how to build a complete structure from start to finish in a professional manner and amount of time. They are very intensive and\, while we make time for yoga\, stretching\, dancing\, music\, relaxing….all students are expected to be present and participating in all building and lecture learning hours unless absolutely incapable due to illness or have some other significant/emergency reason. This is because we design the size of the building
 and organize the structure of the workshop in accordance with the number of students and when people are absent\, it impacts the whole group and the other students have to work harder and it disturbs the integrity of the group. It takes the whole village to see the building through from start to finish!  In addition\, Instructors set up building work according to students’ strengths and learning needs.  In short\, if you don’t feel that you will be able to be present every day for every session\, please re-think your readiness for our Advanced Training.  We attract serious and highly-motivated students so if that’s you\, you will be surrounded by others with the same desire to learn and build! \nWe need and depend on everyone’s full participation in each day of the workshop.  This is a total group effort on all levels:  physically\, mentally\, emotionally and energetically.. If someone is physically absent from the site and lectures due to illness or other urgency for more than one full day\, they will need to make up the days missed in a subsequent workshop to receive the Certificate (only paying food costs).  If physically injured or ill (and capable)\, it is requested students still be present at the site and for lecture and other required evening activities\, so as to not miss out on information and keep learning by observation\, and thus still qualify for the Certificate. \nThe workshop intensity changes from week 1 to week 5 with the focus of the week. The first foundation week breaks people in with the work of moving\, lifting\, rolling and placing rocks and is a new and demanding physical and mental experience for most students. It also includes 
the first layers and coat of cob floor. The second week and part of the third week of cob-making and building are similar to the rock foundation week in physical demand\, but are more flowing\, multi-faceted and cardiovascular in movement. On Thursday & Friday of week 3\, the workshop takes a turn and slows down and the body can rest as students tap into their creative source now and design and sculpt the walls and around niches\, shelves\, windows\, etc.  This is a very special rewarding experience and time of the workshop\, decorating the walls with visual beauty and meaning as expressed by each unique student.  Usually there is an overarching theme decided on by Host(s).  Plastering follows sculpting and is also an enjoyable more lightweight physical experience\, that lends itself to talking and sharing at the wall in a meditative rhythm as the students have bonded and shared deeply through a variety of experiences for a month. On day 5 of week 4\, the roof begins.  This part is the beginning of a change of pace from the earthen building work to carpentry skills\, power tools\, measuring\, sawing\, drilling\, hammering\, screwing\, trimming\, etc. But now the workshop is in its final stretch and there is a boost of energy to wrap up the roof\, close the top of the wall\, and tend to finishing touches….the grand finale. \nFor students wanting a more mellow slow-paced cob experience\, along with time for personal exploration and experimentation following their own rhythm\, these workshops are not for you! However\, you can find a more suitable workshop online with other organizations that offer a
 shorter period\, building a garden wall\, a bench\, a compost toilet or some other smaller scale project. \nStudents are required to read “The Hand-Sculpted House” and “Essential Cob Construction” (see website Resources page) before the workshop begins\, and any other books they find or are listed on our Resources page\, ideally on plastering and reciprocal roof building.  We ask that you watch the many videos on our our “International Cob Workshop” playlist on Claudine’s YouTube channel\, the new educational YouTube series “Building a Mud Home” by Cooper Green\, posted by Natural Buildings and created from our North Carolina workshop footage\, and the ones posted on CruzinCobGlobal’s website under Gallery\, to get an idea of what is expected. Also it is a great idea to watch as many other videos on cob and reciprocal roofs as you can\, to come mentally prepared. Please bring your book(s). \nStudents must tend to their own personal needs\, drink alot of water\, rest when needed and exert themselves at a steady pace. Students who cannot do the strenuous physical work should let us know when registering\, so we can make sure the workshop is a good fit. If approved before the workshop begins\, we will aim to adjust appropriately. There is alot to do to support making and building with cob while respecting your physical limitations!!! \nFinally\, please bring a watch or use your phone to be prompt and ready for each part of the Course including meals. Please make sure you share your dietary restrictions/allergies with CCG in your registration form. Note that very demanding dietary needs will not be
 able to be met (vegan & non-gluten ok) and those students may be recommended not to participate\, unless they are willing to meet their special needs on their own\, which will not include kitchen access on weekdays. Please discuss with Claudine at time of desire to register. Also please bring your essential snacks and foods\, pillow and whatever you NEED to be comfortable and happy. Feel free to also bring playlists\, speaker\, slides\, videos\, 
movies and books to share\, as well as a sample of your soil to test. \nWe look forward to opening you to a whole new world of experience\, skill\, growth and transformation as you bond with your new COB family for life! \n\n\n\n\n  \nMEALS & ACCOMMODATIONS \nWe will serve three meals a day from Monday through Friday including the Welcome and Celebration Dinners and Farewell Brunch.  Weekends students will be on their own for food and may use the onsite kitchen.  Meals will be  vegetarian and locally-based as much as possible\, including farm produce and eggs! Carnivores & pescatarians & omnivores will\, if desired\, be offered non-vegetarian options of meals a few times a week and/or supplemented with canned fish\, dried meats\, cold cuts. They are also welcome to buy additions to cook on the side. \nWe will attend to vegan and gluten-free diets if needed\, but any other restrictions & allergies that require extensive preparation needs will probably not be able to be honored. And kitchen will only be accessible on weekends for students. \nCamping with your own tent and bedding is always free. There will be an inside floor option for camping for a limited number of people and a wooden cabina for two people to rent. Ask about the fee. The Mary Luz Hotel close by is another option for people but it’ always preferable to be onsite for many reasons. \nThere is Wifi\, a Washer & Dryer (for a fee) & a Hot Shower! \n  \nTRANSPORTATION \nStudents from abroad will need to fly in to San José and take either another short flight for $125 to Limón and an $80 taxi to Eso Terra\, a shared airport shuttle for $65 (4-5 hours) or a standard bus for $7 (cheapest).  Shuttle can be organized just for the students by Host as we get closer to the arrival time and know how many people will arrive together\, which will be cheaper. \n  \nNICOLAS PIMENTEL \nCob Instructor & Master Cobber \n  \n \nHappy Builder! \n\n  \nI was born and raised in Santiago\, Chile\, and had a childhood deeply connected to the arts and nature. From an early age\, I felt a strong curiosity to travel and learn about other cultures\, people\, and places. During my university years as an architecture student\, I went to study in Porto\, Portugal in my final year. There\, I first encountered the idea of natural building while attending a conference in Prague. After this brief introduction to theoretical knowledge\, I wanted to get hands-on experience.  In 2017\, while searching online\, I found a CruzinCobGlobal workshop taught by Claudine in the Azores Islands\, and that was the beginning of this amazing journey of fascination with and passion for Earthen Building\, as well as a great\, long friendship with Claudine. After spending a long time on the islands\, I returned to Chile to receive my degree in architecture. I also went to Colorado to assist in a CCG workshop lead by Claudine\, and then assisted & co-taught 2 CCG workshops in Chile. \n  \n \nNico leading the light straw clay 2nd floor of Claudine’s Cob Villa in 2021 \n\n  \nI also learned other natural building techniques at TIBÁ in Brazil\, and continued working independently in Chile\, where I built my first light straw clay house in southern Chile.  This is when I eventually settled in the northern Patagonian mountain town of Pucón\, where I co-founded my architecture studio\, PIWA.  My focus is designing homes in rural areas\, integrating bioconstruction and bioarchitecture techniques. Parallel to this\, I returned to the Azores Islands to teach a light clay straw workshop on Claudine’s land in 2021 and a Complete Full Build Workshop in 2023. \n  \n \nPlaster Master! \n\n  \nMy motivation to keep learning has never waned\, and this drive took me to Marrakech to learn Tadelakt from ancient masters. I also constantly return to books to learn more about various techniques and experiment with them.  In 2024\, I began teaching online workshops as well as in-person workshops on earthen plasters in southern Portugal and southern Chile. \nCurrently\, I work as an architect in my own studio\, mainly designing in southern Chile. I am also co-founder of a conservation project called Jungla Peumayen\, located in the central region’s mountains\, where we focus on the conservation of flora and fauna\, conducting rewilding efforts by reinserting wild animals\, among other activities. I also co-founded Kalina\, a creative space in nature located in northern Patagonia\, where I reside and am currently building my second light straw clay home. \nI love teaching these techniques and learning from other students. I believe every interaction is an opportunity for learning\, and bringing earthen building to new environments and professionalizing it is a crucial task in contributing to this paradigm shift. The earth has built me and I am constantly growing and learning from it! \n  \nALICIA SALAS \nCob Assistant \n  \n \nBeaming Cobber! \n\n  \nHola\, me llamo Alicia! I’m a Californian Tica (Costa Rican)\, who has led an unconventional\nlife. I have a major in International Relations and a minor in Spanish. My studies and travels have led me to live in the villages of Slovakia\, the brilliant beaches of Brazil\, a cacao farm in Costa Rica\, and now Puerto Rico where I live. \n  \n \nPlastering in Puerto RIco \n\n  \nMy first introduction to Natural Building was in Costa Rica in 2019\, where I built and lived in a super adobe home.  I then had the opportunity to learn and construct two adobe pizza ovens. Being inside my first Earthen home was life changing.  I was amazed by the beauty\, how I felt living in an Earthen home\, and how it completely rewired my brain. I have always loved architecture\, sustainability\, and interior design\, and this encompassed everything I love. Suddenly I didn’t just want to build my own house one day\, I wanted to build an Earthen house. I started looking at different techniques\, and that is when I discovered Cob. \n  \n \nThe crew in the Azores led by Nico! \n\n  \nI built my first Cob house with CruzinCobGlobal in the Azores in Portugal in 2023\, taught by Nico.  After the house build I stayed on to build a beautiful cob oven and bench. I now live in Puerto Rico\, working in construction on houses that were affected by hurricanes. In February 2024\, CruzinCobGlobal came to Utuado Puerto Rico\, and I came back as a return student for my second house build. This house was unique because we got to work with bamboo for the reciprocal roof. I am particularly fond of Earthen floors\, plastering\, and roofing! I love Cob\, and I love the community and friends I have made along the way. Natural building has changed my life\, and I am very excited to continue working in this field\, with the dream of building my own Cob house one day! \n  \nREGISTRATION & PAYMENT \n  \nVery Early Bird Rate: USD$2500\, paid in full by December 1st\, 2024 \nEarly Bird Rate: USD$2600\, paid in full by February 1st\, 2025 \nStandard Rate: USD$2700\, paid in full by March 1st\, 2025 \nWe are offering 4 work trade positions which give you a $250 discount for working one hour each weekday from 6:30am to 7:30am either on the site prepping materials and other work as guided by the Instructors or preparing & putting away breakfast. Two persons for each service.  These are the first options to go. Depending on when you pay in full\, the discount is taken off the appropriate amount. \nPayment can be made using Zelle\, Paypal and  Venmo to claudinedesiree@gmail.com. Europeans and other international students can pay in USD using the Wise app/website using same email. \nPlease contact claudine@cruzincobglobal.org or Whatsapp +1(831) 212-7225 to register and ask any questions. \nTo hold your spot (there are 12 for new students)\, you can make a 50% deposit.  The balance owed depends on the date of payment in full. Final payment deadline is March 1st\, 2025. \n  \nCANCELLATION POLICY \n  \nStudents who have paid and cancel by January 1st\, 2025 can get a full refund minus a 5% administrative/inconvenience fee on the amount they have paid. \nStudents who have paid and cancel by February 1st\, 2025 will receive a credit for a future workshop within two years minus a 10% administrative/inconvenience fee. \nStudents who have paid and cancel after February 1st\, 2025 will not receive a refund or credit unless they have proof of an emergency situation or other reason out of their control\, in which case they will receive a credit for two years minus the 10% admin fee. \n  \nSEE YOU IN THE MUUUUUUD! \n \n 
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/community-healing-cob-cabina-in-puerto-viejo-costa-rica/
LOCATION:Eso Terra\, Playa Chiquita\, Puerto Viejo\, Limón\, Costa Rica
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/11b6905d-c546-428d-8e8a-4028f254166a.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="CruzinCobGlobal":MAILTO:claudine@cruzincobglobal.org
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250405T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250405T153000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250310T232856Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250310T234113Z
UID:9650-1743840000-1743867000@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Workshop Series: Building a Community Tool Library – Day 2
DESCRIPTION:Join Us in Building a Tool Library at Riverside-Corona Resource Conservation District (RCRCD)! 🔨🌱 \nWe’re using the Palletable Cobin Method\, developed by Miguel Elliot\, to create a sustainable\, low-cost\, and waste-conscious structure. This technique reduces the need for heavy earth materials\, requires less cob\, and repurposes salvaged materials—making the process faster and more efficient! \nDay 2 Workshop:\n🛠️ Framing\n📦 Adding pallets\n🏗️ Starting the roof \nThis is a 6-part workshop series—join for one or all! \nRegister by making a tax-deductible donation that fits your budget using the link below. \nAll donations go toward materials\, tools\, supplies\, and insurance. \nFor scholarship requests and/or more information\, contact Susan at 310-990-8695. \n#NaturalBuilding #CobBuilding #SustainableConstruction #RegenerativeDesign #CommunityBuilding #Permaculture #EcoBuilding #HandsOnLearning #UpcycledMaterials #RCRCD
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/workshop-series-building-a-community-tool-library-day-2/
LOCATION:RCRCD\, 4500 Glenwood Drive\, Riverside\, CA\, 92501\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/Saturday-Morning-Start.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Susan%20Krings":MAILTO:dihgeco@gmail.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250419T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250419T153000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250310T233117Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250310T234316Z
UID:9653-1745049600-1745076600@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Workshop Series: Building a Community Tool Library – Day 3
DESCRIPTION:Join Us in Building a Tool Library at Riverside-Corona Resource Conservation District (RCRCD)! 🔨🌱 \nWe’re using the Palletable Cobin Method\, developed by Miguel Elliot\, to create a sustainable\, low-cost\, and waste-conscious structure. This technique reduces the need for heavy earth materials\, requires less cob\, and repurposes salvaged materials—making the process faster and more efficient! \nDay 3 Workshop:\nRoof\, Insulation\, Exterior Cob \nThis is a 6-part workshop series—join for one or all! \nRegister by making a tax-deductible donation that fits your budget using the link below. \nAll donations go toward materials\, tools\, supplies\, and insurance. \nFor scholarship requests and/or more information\, contact Susan at 310-990-8695. \n#NaturalBuilding #CobBuilding #SustainableConstruction #RegenerativeDesign #CommunityBuilding #Permaculture #EcoBuilding #HandsOnLearning #UpcycledMaterials #RCRCD
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/workshop-series-building-a-community-tool-library-day-3/
LOCATION:RCRCD\, 4500 Glenwood Drive\, Riverside\, CA\, 92501\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/Darren-Michael-Stuffing-Straw.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Susan%20Krings":MAILTO:dihgeco@gmail.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250426T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250426T153000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250310T233319Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250310T234503Z
UID:9656-1745654400-1745681400@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Workshop Series: Building a Community Tool Library – Day 4
DESCRIPTION:Join Us in Building a Tool Library at Riverside-Corona Resource Conservation District (RCRCD)! 🔨🌱 \nWe’re using the Palletable Cobin Method\, developed by Miguel Elliot\, to create a sustainable\, low-cost\, and waste-conscious structure. This technique reduces the need for heavy earth materials\, requires less cob\, and repurposes salvaged materials—making the process faster and more efficient! \nDay 4 Workshop:\nRoof\, Interior Fixtures and Cob \nThis is a 6-part workshop series—join for one or all! \nRegister by making a tax-deductible donation that fits your budget using the link below. \nAll donations go toward materials\, tools\, supplies\, and insurance. \nFor scholarship requests and/or more information\, contact Susan at 310-990-8695. \n#NaturalBuilding #CobBuilding #SustainableConstruction #RegenerativeDesign #CommunityBuilding #Permaculture #EcoBuilding #HandsOnLearning #UpcycledMaterials #RCRCD
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/workshop-series-building-a-community-tool-library-day-4/
LOCATION:RCRCD\, 4500 Glenwood Drive\, Riverside\, CA\, 92501\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/Sunday-Morning-1.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Susan%20Krings":MAILTO:dihgeco@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250428
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250503
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241102T195839Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241215T181106Z
UID:9523-1745798400-1746230399@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Intro to Cob and Straw Workshop – East Tennessee
DESCRIPTION:Dates: April 28 – May 2\, 2025 (YES. We are still having the workshop as scheduled.)\n\n\n\nLocation: Greeneville\, Tennessee\n \nCome and join us in beautiful eastern Tennessee for our next Introduction to Cob and Straw Workshop! We will be constructing both a cob building and a straw-clay building. This workshop is perfect for beginners and experts alike! You will get the expert knowledge to build with cob and straw! Either for small-scale structures or large-scale projects like homes and buildings. \n \nThis workshop is a great experience to learn how to build with cob and straw\, and to get a broad learning overview of natural building techniques. You will get a solid foundation in natural building fundamentals. You will learn the advantages of high thermal mass cob versus high insulation straw materials. We will be constructing the walls on a new cob building and a straw-clay building\, mixing and applying lime plaster\, and studying Natural Building together each day. You will also get to see living examples on-site of a completed cob building and straw-clay building. These are excellent examples that you can learn a lot from! After this workshop\, you will have the basic experience and confidence to design and build your own cob and straw constructions or buildings. \n \nHands-On Work Topics: \n– How to make cob (learn how to make cob with the tarp method and with machinery) \n– How to build cob walls using traditional hand-sculpting and using innovative slipforms (learn all the great advantages of building cob walls with forms) \n– How to make straw-clay (also known as light-straw-clay) \n– How to build highly insulating straw-clay walls (learn how to frame and pack the walls) \n– Selecting and testing soils for cob and straw-clay (learn several ways to test your soil composition) \n– Lime Plaster Finishing (learn how to mix and apply lime plaster finishes to your walls) \n– Creating window and door frames in cob walls (learn how to install frames into cob walls) \n  \nClassroom and Discussion Topics: \n– Site selection and design (includes Passive Solar design principles) \n– Materials and tools (covers traditional and modern cob building toolset and materials) \n– Building Solid Foundations (learn all about constructing proper building foundations) \n– Building codes and how to successfully get building permits for cob homes and straw homes. \n– Best practices for building a healthy\, non-toxic home. \n– Basic Electrical and Plumbing integration for cob homes and straw homes \n– Installing windows and doors \n– Roofing and Bond Beams. Proper roof ventilation practices! \n– Natural plasters and finishes (Vapor Permeable / “Breathable” finishes) \n– Overview of all Natural Building materials\, and how to hybridize them! \n \nThis workshop is a unique experience for people to learn about building cob homes and light-straw-clay homes\, and to get an overview of Natural Building. Not only are there plenty of hands-on lessons to learn from\, but we will also have ample discussion and informal classroom time. Most cob workshops and strawbale workshops don’t cover this many topics. But here\, you will learn all the core lessons needed to start building from this one workshop! \nPlus – there will be many hours of discussions about building cob homes and natural building throughout the workshop. Its a great way to get your questions answered and brainstorm your building ideas! \n \nThe workshop will be held at a private property in Greeneville\, Tennessee. \nEach day will begin at 9:00 AM\, and the days will include hands-on building\, classroom sessions\, discussions\, and learning activities related to cob\, straw\, and natural building topics. We will break for lunch between 12:00 to 1:00 PM\, and we will complete each day at around 4:00 PM. They will be full-packed days! Worth your every penny! \nTeacher \n \nThe workshop will be taught by Alex Sumerall\, an east coast Earth Building Mason who has a focus on creating earthen structures that are healthy\, aesthetically pleasing\, and functional for modern life. He is the owner of This Cob House\, which is dedicated to teaching people about cob and earthen building techniques. Alex has been practicing earthen building since 2011. He graduated from the Aprovecho School of Natural Building in 2013 in Cottage Grove\, Oregon\, and continues to teach\, present\, consult\, and construct. \nFree Bonus! \nEveryone who signs up for the workshop will receive a printed copy of Alex’s book\, “Build a Cob House: A Step-By-Step Guide”\, and the downloadable PDF version\, FREE! We only make printed copies for workshop students\, so this is your chance to get one. We will be using the book as a lesson guide throughout the workshop too so you can follow along with your book in hand. \n \n  \nAlpaca Farm Tour! \nAs another added bonus to the workshop\, we also offer a free alpaca farm tour at our neighbor’s Two Roots Farm. They have over 50 friendly alpacas\, a fiber mill\, and a gift shop! We usually go on this tour Wednesday after class. \n \nListen to the great things that our workshop participants are saying! \n  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n“The cob workshop was a life-changing experience. I learned a lot about natural building\, not only from Alex’s instruction\, experience and demonstrations\, but from interacting with people from different backgrounds who were a great source of collective knowledge. The hands-on experience was priceless!” \n\n\nTony Romo\, Texas \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n“The Cob Building Workshop was a great investment of my time! It was well organized\, extremely inspiring\, and FUN! Alex was able to explain construction basics to neophytes like me\, yet he could also answer the complex questions asked by the more experienced workshop attendees. I can’t wait until the next workshop!” \n\n\nMarybeth Babos\, Tennessee \n\n\n\n\n \nLodging \nThere are two options for lodging: free camping on site\, or making reservations at one of the local hotels or AirBnBs. Hotels are available in the neighboring towns of Greeneville\, Newport\, Parrottsville\, and Hot Springs. \nNearby is the Briggs Brother’s Ranch in Parrottsville\, TN (highly recommended)\, and the Hot Springs Resort in Hot Springs\, North Caolina. \nCampers will have access to a private portable toilet and a private outdoor shower. \nThe workshop location has running water available\, and an electrical hookup to charge phones and small devices. \n \nFood \nMeals will not be included in this workshop so participants will need to provide their own food and drinks. There are several local restaurants and grocery stores nearby the workshop site. We even have an amazing corner-store within a walkable distance from the workshop site! \nEach student is responsible for their own meal preparation. An hour for lunch is provided\, allowing adequate time for food\, a quick nap\, or trip into town. There is no official kitchen on site yet. Coolers are welcome and encouraged! \nRecreation & Surroundings \nGreeneville is located near the edge of the Appalachian Mountains in eastern Tennessee. It is a beautiful area\, and there are many scenic places to visit nearby. You can also travel to places like Gatlinburg\, TN or Asheville\, NC within a one hour driving time from the workshop site. \nFamily & Group 10% Discounts \nAsk about the 10% discount. We encourage group & family activities because it enhances learning among your support group. Email me at alex@thiscobhouse.com for custom group/family invoice. \nChildren/young people of any age are welcome to join in and learn. Please be aware that some areas are under construction\, as is the purpose of this workshop\, but it is generally child-safe. \nPrices \nPrice: $499\n \n\n \nAdditional Discounts: 10% for family and friends participating together.  \nTeens accompanying a parent/guardian are half price. Children under 13 accompanying a parent/guardian are free.\n \nPlease email me to register with the group/family discount. For normal registration\, please click the “Sign Up Now” button above.\n \nIf you have any other questions about the workshop\, please feel free to email me at alex@thiscobhouse.com \nIf you have a large party of people registering\, they can all register separately\, or contact me for a custom invoice.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/intro-to-cob-and-straw-workshop-east-tennessee/
LOCATION:Greeneville\, Tennessee\, Greeneville\, TN\, 37743\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/intro-to-cob-and-straw-workshop-2024-3.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Alex%20Sumerall":MAILTO:alex@thiscobhouse.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250503T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250503T153000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250310T233524Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250310T234619Z
UID:9660-1746259200-1746286200@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Workshop Series: Building a Community Tool Library – Day 5
DESCRIPTION:Join Us in Building a Tool Library at Riverside-Corona Resource Conservation District (RCRCD)! 🔨🌱 \nWe’re using the Palletable Cobin Method\, developed by Miguel Elliot\, to create a sustainable\, low-cost\, and waste-conscious structure. This technique reduces the need for heavy earth materials\, requires less cob\, and repurposes salvaged materials—making the process faster and more efficient! \nDay 5 Workshop:\nEarthen Floor\, Lime Plaster Prep \nThis is a 6-part workshop series—join for one or all! \nRegister by making a tax-deductible donation that fits your budget using the link below. \nAll donations go toward materials\, tools\, supplies\, and insurance. \nFor scholarship requests and/or more information\, contact Susan at 310-990-8695. \n#NaturalBuilding #CobBuilding #SustainableConstruction #RegenerativeDesign #CommunityBuilding #Permaculture #EcoBuilding #HandsOnLearning #UpcycledMaterials #RCRCD
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/workshop-series-building-a-community-tool-library-day-5/
LOCATION:RCRCD\, 4500 Glenwood Drive\, Riverside\, CA\, 92501\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/IMG_6980-scaled.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Susan%20Krings":MAILTO:dihgeco@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250505
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250608
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250311T042202Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250311T042202Z
UID:9670-1746403200-1749340799@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:5 weeks Building a cob art space in Victoria Australia
DESCRIPTION:A 5 week coliving and creative immersion. Weekly commitments also available . Hands on building and presentations giving you confidence to build in earth. Building an earthy art space/ greenhouse with experienced earthbuilders.\nCovering site selection\, stone foundation\, what is cob\, earthen floor\, plastering\, wall insertions( windows\, bottles etc) wattle and daub\, straw bale.\nOn Taungurung Country\, Strathbogie\, Victoria.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/5-weeks-building-a-cob-art-space-in-victoria-australia/
LOCATION:Strathbogie Victoria Australia\, Victoria\, 3666
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/3F3499D6-1EED-4375-A467-92DCC349D6BB.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Earthen%20Build":MAILTO:danastrathbogie@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250509
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250515
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20240103T175205Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241223T132549Z
UID:9166-1746748800-1747267199@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:6-Day Cob + Straw Immersion
DESCRIPTION:INSTRUCTORS: Greg + Danielle \nSTUDENT #: 15 students [maximum] \nCOST (meals included): \n– $1230 Early Bird Rate (register 30 days in advance)\n– $1350 Regular Rate\n– 5% discount for family + friends participating together!\n– 10% discount for BIPOC participants\nDESCRIPTION: \nOur Immersion is our most popular course\, and is designed to provide an understanding of four natural wall systems: cob\, strawbale\, slip-straw\, and wattle & daub. Working with multiple wall systems will provide you with insight into which will fit into your own potential projects best. You will also get experience mixing and applying earthen plaster! \nWe emphasize hands-on learning\, with most of each day spent on our work site. We will be building a sculptural cob garden wall on campus\, which simulates the process of building a house while still allowing everyone to have enough space to work and learn. We’ll also be installing full strawbale walls in a pre-constructed wooden frame\, plus demonstrating the slip-straw and wattle & daub wall techniques. On the final day\, the group will apply clay plaster to some of these natural wall systems. \nTo supplement our hands-on work sessions\, there will be time allotted for a local home tour\, a tour of our natural cottages on campus\, plus discussions/presentations on essential topics. We will also provide informational handouts to take home with you\, and share digital presentation materials for your own future reference. \nIn addition to our scheduled learning time\, there is a wonderful community aspect to our workshops. Three wholesome meals are provided each day\, which are shared as a group in our community gathering space. Plenty of unscheduled\, leisure time is available for relaxing. \nExpect to leave the workshop with the confidence and knowledge to take on your own natural building project! \n  \n  \nTOPICS COVERED: \n\n\n\nHANDS-ON:\n* mixing cob by foot\n* mixing cob by machine\, using a mortar mixer\n* building with cob\n* installing a complete straw bale wall section\n* mixing and installing slip-straw\n* mixing and applying clay plaster\n* how to install windows in cob vs. strawbale \nDISCUSSION:\n* “Rubble Trench Foundations”\n* “Simple Roofing Options”\n* “Cob vs. Strawbale: pros and cons\, + hybrid designs”\n* CAMPUS TOUR! – We’ll tour campus buildings\, as a general Q+A\n* LOCAL HOME TOUR! we will visit a local strawbale home to talk with the owners
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/6-day-cob-straw-immersion-2/
LOCATION:Mud Dauber School Campus\, Snow Camp\, NC\, 27349\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/0-6-1-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20250510T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20250519T170000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250216T223539Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250216T223825Z
UID:9639-1746864000-1747674000@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:10 Day Pallet Cob Workshop in Oregon\, May 10-19: Build a Compost Toilet!
DESCRIPTION:Come learn how to build a pallet-cob compost toilet in the forested foothills of Mt. Hood in Estacada\, Oregon this May 10-19th\, 2025!  \nClay Sand Soul\, based in Vancouver\, WA\, is a natural building company dedicated to empowering others to build their own homes and structures with natural building techniques.  This workshop is happening at Coyote Woods in Estacada\, OR.  Coyote Woods is stewarded by two sisters who have been working for the past 10 years to help the land and its ecosystem recover from years of clear cut logging and monoculture farming.  Their mission is to make the land a positive resource for as many living things as possible.  We will be building a 100sf pallet cob compost toilet in their meadow\, so they can begin to host larger events and return all that fertility of humanure back to the land in a responsible way.  \nIn our ten days together you will learn through  lecture and hands-on experience: \n👉🏼how to install pallet walls on an existing post-and-beam structure \n👉🏼how to frame windows and doors \n👉🏼how to prepare and apply earthen base coat plaster  \n👉🏼how to create artistic cob sculpture elements onto the walls  \n👉🏼how to prepare and apply finish plaster from clay and lime \n👉🏼complete an earthen floor installation while learning how to formulate an earthen floor mix and the steps to oil and wax these floors for durability and water resistance \n👉🏼build a living roof frame on top of an existing roof deck and learn how to install a waterproof membrane\, drainage layer\, and growing medium \n👉🏼attend lectures on natural building design\, theory\, and philosophy. \n👉🏼learn compost toilet design for a successful system \n If you are feeling called to dive deeper into natural building\, live and work in a communal environment\, and empower yourself to build functional\, beautiful structures that are truly sustainable\, please join us in this ten day experience. There will be yummy food\, fires at night\, community building activities\, and access to the beautiful forests of Coyote Woods.  \nCheck out our website for more details on what pallet cob is and what other natural building elements you’ll be learning during this workshop 👉🏼   www.claysandsoul.com/coyote-woods-workshop \nPlease email us with questions and connect with us on instagram…we would love to chat with you! 🙂  \nclaysandsoul@gmail.com  \nIG: @claysandsoul \nPictures attached are of different pallet cob structures we have built\, either for clients or with our students!
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/10-day-pallet-cob-workshop-in-oregon-may-10-19-build-a-compost-toilet/
LOCATION:Coyote Woods\, Estacada\, OR\, 97022\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/CC3B8106-F8A1-4BEA-92C1-36ECA8657950.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Clay%20Sand%20Soul":MAILTO:claysandsoul@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250520
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250526
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20240103T174727Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241223T132521Z
UID:9161-1747699200-1748217599@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:6-Day Cob + Straw Immersion
DESCRIPTION:INSTRUCTORS: Greg + Danielle \nSTUDENT #: 15 students [maximum] \nCOST (meals included!): \n–$1230 Early Bird Rate (register 30 days in advance)\n– $1350 Regular Rate\n– 5% discount for family + friends participating together!\n– 10% discount for BIPOC participants\nDESCRIPTION: \nOur Immersion is our most popular course\, and is designed to provide an understanding of four natural wall systems: cob\, strawbale\, slip-straw\, and wattle & daub. Working with multiple wall systems will provide you with insight into which will fit into your own potential projects best. You will also get experience mixing and applying earthen plaster! \nWe emphasize hands-on learning\, with most of each day spent on our work site. We will be building a sculptural cob garden wall on campus\, which simulates the process of building a house while still allowing everyone to have enough space to work and learn. We’ll also be installing full strawbale walls in a pre-constructed wooden frame\, plus demonstrating the slip-straw and wattle & daub wall techniques. On the final day\, the group will apply clay plaster to some of these natural wall systems. \nTo supplement our hands-on work sessions\, there will be time allotted for a local home tour\, a tour of our natural cottages on campus\, plus discussions/presentations on essential topics. We will also provide informational handouts to take home with you\, and share digital presentation materials for your own future reference. \nIn addition to our scheduled learning time\, there is a wonderful community aspect to our workshops. Three wholesome meals are provided each day\, which are shared as a group in our community gathering space. Plenty of unscheduled\, leisure time is available for relaxing. \nExpect to leave the workshop with the confidence and knowledge to take on your own natural building project! \n  \n  \nTOPICS COVERED: \nHANDS-ON:\n* mixing cob by foot\n* mixing cob by machine\, using a mortar mixer\n* building with cob\n* installing a complete straw bale wall section\n* mixing and installing slip-straw\n* mixing and applying clay plaster\n* how to install windows in cob vs. strawbale \nDISCUSSION:\n* “Rubble Trench Foundations”\n* “Simple Roofing Options”\n* “Cob vs. Strawbale: pros and cons\, + hybrid designs”\n* CAMPUS TOUR! – We’ll tour campus buildings\, as a general Q+A\n* LOCAL HOME TOUR! we will visit a local strawbale home to talk with the owners
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/6-day-cob-straw-immersion/
LOCATION:Mud Dauber School Campus\, Snow Camp\, NC\, 27349\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/0-6-scaled.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250526
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250531
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241102T200543Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241215T181242Z
UID:9527-1748217600-1748649599@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Intro to Cob and Straw Workshop – East Tennessee
DESCRIPTION:Dates: May 26 – May 30\, 2025 (YES. We are still having the workshop as scheduled.)\n \nLocation: Greeneville\, Tennessee\n \nCome and join us in beautiful eastern Tennessee for our next Introduction to Cob and Straw Workshop! We will be constructing both a cob building and a straw-clay building. This workshop is perfect for beginners and experts alike! You will get the expert knowledge to build with cob and straw! Either for small-scale structures or large-scale projects like homes and buildings. \n \nThis workshop is a great experience to learn how to build with cob and straw\, and to get a broad learning overview of natural building techniques. You will get a solid foundation in natural building fundamentals. You will learn the advantages of high thermal mass cob versus high insulation straw materials. We will be constructing the walls on a new cob building and a straw-clay building\, mixing and applying lime plaster\, and studying Natural Building together each day. You will also get to see living examples on-site of a completed cob building and straw-clay building. These are excellent examples that you can learn a lot from! After this workshop\, you will have the basic experience and confidence to design and build your own cob and straw constructions or buildings. \n \nHands-On Work Topics: \n– How to make cob (learn how to make cob with the tarp method and with machinery) \n– How to build cob walls using traditional hand-sculpting and using innovative slipforms (learn all the great advantages of building cob walls with forms) \n– How to make straw-clay (also known as light-straw-clay) \n– How to build highly insulating straw-clay walls (learn how to frame and pack the walls) \n– Selecting and testing soils for cob and straw-clay (learn several ways to test your soil composition) \n– Lime Plaster Finishing (learn how to mix and apply lime plaster finishes to your walls) \n– Creating window and door frames in cob walls (learn how to install frames into cob walls) \n  \nClassroom and Discussion Topics: \n– Site selection and design (includes Passive Solar design principles) \n– Materials and tools (covers traditional and modern cob building toolset and materials) \n– Building Solid Foundations (learn all about constructing proper building foundations) \n– Building codes and how to successfully get building permits for cob homes and straw homes. \n– Best practices for building a healthy\, non-toxic home. \n– Basic Electrical and Plumbing integration for cob homes and straw homes \n– Installing windows and doors \n– Roofing and Bond Beams. Proper roof ventilation practices! \n– Natural plasters and finishes (Vapor Permeable / “Breathable” finishes) \n– Overview of all Natural Building materials\, and how to hybridize them! \n \nThis workshop is a unique experience for people to learn about building cob homes and light-straw-clay homes\, and to get an overview of Natural Building. Not only are there plenty of hands-on lessons to learn from\, but we will also have ample discussion and informal classroom time. Most cob workshops and strawbale workshops don’t cover this many topics. But here\, you will learn all the core lessons needed to start building from this one workshop! \nPlus – there will be many hours of discussions about building cob homes and natural building throughout the workshop. Its a great way to get your questions answered and brainstorm your building ideas! \n \nThe workshop will be held at a private property in Greeneville\, Tennessee. \nEach day will begin at 9:00 AM\, and the days will include hands-on building\, classroom sessions\, discussions\, and learning activities related to cob\, straw\, and natural building topics. We will break for lunch between 12:00 to 1:00 PM\, and we will complete each day at around 4:00 PM. They will be full-packed days! Worth your every penny! \nTeacher \n \nThe workshop will be taught by Alex Sumerall\, an east coast Earth Building Mason who has a focus on creating earthen structures that are healthy\, aesthetically pleasing\, and functional for modern life. He is the owner of This Cob House\, which is dedicated to teaching people about cob and earthen building techniques. Alex has been practicing earthen building since 2011. He graduated from the Aprovecho School of Natural Building in 2013 in Cottage Grove\, Oregon\, and continues to teach\, present\, consult\, and construct. \n  \nFree Bonus! \nEveryone who signs up for the workshop will receive a printed copy of Alex’s book\, “Build a Cob House: A Step-By-Step Guide”\, and the downloadable PDF version\, FREE! We only make printed copies for workshop students\, so this is your chance to get one. We will be using the book as a lesson guide throughout the workshop too so you can follow along with your book in hand. \n \n  \nAlpaca Farm Tour! \nAs another added bonus to the workshop\, we also offer a free alpaca farm tour at our neighbor’s Two Roots Farm. They have over 50 friendly alpacas\, a fiber mill\, and a gift shop! We usually go on this tour Wednesday after class. \n \nListen to the great things that our workshop participants are saying! \n  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n“The cob workshop was a life-changing experience. I learned a lot about natural building\, not only from Alex’s instruction\, experience and demonstrations\, but from interacting with people from different backgrounds who were a great source of collective knowledge. The hands-on experience was priceless!” \n\n\nTony Romo\, Texas \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n“The Cob Building Workshop was a great investment of my time! It was well organized\, extremely inspiring\, and FUN! Alex was able to explain construction basics to neophytes like me\, yet he could also answer the complex questions asked by the more experienced workshop attendees. I can’t wait until the next workshop!” \n\n\nMarybeth Babos\, Tennessee \n\n\n\n\n \nLodging \nThere are two options for lodging: free camping on site\, or making reservations at one of the local hotels or AirBnBs. Hotels are available in the neighboring towns of Greeneville\, Newport\, Parrottsville\, and Hot Springs. \nNearby is the Briggs Brother’s Ranch in Parrottsville\, TN (highly recommended)\, and the Hot Springs Resort in Hot Springs\, North Caolina. \nCampers will have access to a private portable toilet and a private outdoor shower. \nThe workshop location has running water available\, and an electrical hookup to charge phones and small devices. \n \nFood \nMeals will not be included in this workshop so participants will need to provide their own food and drinks. There are several local restaurants and grocery stores nearby the workshop site. We even have an amazing corner-store within a walkable distance from the workshop site! \nEach student is responsible for their own meal preparation. An hour for lunch is provided\, allowing adequate time for food\, a quick nap\, or trip into town. There is no official kitchen on site yet. Coolers are welcome and encouraged! \nRecreation & Surroundings \nGreeneville is located near the edge of the Appalachian Mountains in eastern Tennessee. It is a beautiful area\, and there are many scenic places to visit nearby. You can also travel to places like Gatlinburg\, TN or Asheville\, NC within a one hour driving time from the workshop site. \nFamily & Group 10% Discounts \nAsk about the 10% discount. We encourage group & family activities because it enhances learning among your support group. Email me at alex@thiscobhouse.com for custom group/family invoice. \nChildren/young people of any age are welcome to join in and learn. Please be aware that some areas are under construction\, as is the purpose of this workshop\, but it is generally child-safe. \nPrices \nPrice: $499\n \n\n \nAdditional Discounts: 10% for family and friends participating together.  \nTeens accompanying a parent/guardian are half price. Children under 13 accompanying a parent/guardian are free.\n \nPlease email me to register with the group/family discount. For normal registration\, please click the “Sign Up Now” button above.\n \nIf you have any other questions about the workshop\, please feel free to email me at alex@thiscobhouse.com \nIf you have a large party of people registering\, they can all register separately\, or contact me for a custom invoice.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/intro-to-cob-and-straw-workshop-east-tennessee-2/
LOCATION:Greeneville\, Tennessee\, Greeneville\, TN\, 37743\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/intro-to-cob-and-straw-workshop-2024-4.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Alex%20Sumerall":MAILTO:alex@thiscobhouse.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20250529T153000
DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20250602T153000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250520T061605Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250520T062337Z
UID:9820-1748532600-1748878200@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Focusing on Natural Building Finishing…the Fast Cob Way!
DESCRIPTION:We are continuing our 19 year tradition of hosting Fast Cob Natural Building Workshops…and it begins with this Finishing Workshop. \nTogether\, we’ll learn… \n\n“first layer” of plastering (which nobody else teaches and helps make our Fast Cob building technique even easier and faster…at least 30X faster than any other method!)\,\nthe gorgeous finish layer with two different aggregates (sand or lime)\,\nhow to make and use 100% natural pigment paints (a DIY recipe)\, and\nplus a small cob floor!\n\nWe’ve made finishing not only gorgeous\, but very easy.  Just like our Fast Cob building technique. \nOur lime plaster is perfect for areas subjected to water spray (like showers and around sinks).  The sand plaster is limit-less in its applications and dirt cheap. \nOur natural paints are completely non-toxic at every stage and as vibrant as any other paint\, ranging from bright white\, to yellows\, oranges\, reds\, greens\, blue\, purple and black.  All from our Mother Earth. \nOur Workshops begin on a Thursday evening with a welcoming dinner and end with a Farewell breakfast on Monday before you depart on the 11 am passenger-only ferry. \nFood\, Food\, and more Food! \nEvery workshop day\, we start with a hot\, hearty breakfast (with a Q&A)\, after which we start learning.  In the morning\, two hands-on sessions sandwich a hearty snack break.  A hot\, hearty lunch (with another Q&A session)\, to make sure we have the strength and stamina to absorb all the learning we can\, precede a longer afternoon session.  After an hour break to clean-up\, a hot gourmet dinner accompanies a daily recap on lessons learned and sets the stage for an evening discussion among ourselves or with an invited guest from the Community. \nPlease visit our workshop page for all the details and to fill in our online application.  This course will prepare you to excel in our All-the-Basics Fast Cob Workshop in June or in July.  It is also part of our Complete Builder’s Programme. \nWe offer discounts to those who register in pairs or who take multiple workshops with us.  Please note that all of our fees are in Canadian dollars; if your currency is US or Euro\, our fees are significantly less (30-50% less!).
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/focusing-on-natural-building-finishingthe-fast-cob-way-2/
LOCATION:Lasqueti Island\, 1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane\, Lasqueti Island\, BC\, V0R 2J0\, Canada
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/Stairs-with-A-2.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Dave%20Olsen":MAILTO:cob@lasqueti.ca
GEO:49.4863406;-124.2758774
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=Lasqueti Island 1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane Lasqueti Island BC V0R 2J0 Canada;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane:geo:-124.2758774,49.4863406
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250531
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250601
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20240103T181115Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241223T133011Z
UID:9182-1748649600-1748735999@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Permitted Cob
DESCRIPTION:INSTRUCTORS: Greg + Stephen \n\n\n\n\n\n\nSTUDENT #: 15 students [maximum] \n\n\n\n\n\n\nCOST: \n– $175 Early Bird Rate (30 days in advance)\n– $195 Regular Rate\n– 5% discount for family + friends participating together\n– 10% discount for BIPOC participants\nDESCRIPTION: \nJoin us for a new course offering that will introduce students to the experience of taking on a permitted cob project. Since cob is considered an alternative building material (even though it’s been used for thousands of years!)\, there are more steps to go through in obtaining a permit\, as compared to a conventionally-framed home. \nWe have planned a schedule that allows for a good balance of hands-on work\, versus presentations and discussions. We will mix cob by foot and by machine\, explore a variety of cob recipes and their compression test results\, and build a part of a cob wall using a forming system. \nThe co-instructor for this course\, Stephen Hren\, has completed two permitted cob projects in North Carolina – in two different counties – and will share his experience with his most recent project\, which was finished in 2023. Stephen will give a slideshow presentation after lunch to discuss his process and answer questions. We’ll also enjoy a partial tour of our Mud Dauber Campus\, to discuss some of our demonstration buildings here. \n  \n\nTOPICS COVERED: \n\n\n*mixing cob by foot \n*mixing cob by machine \n*installing cob in a form system \n*discussion of cob codes and permitting process \n*Q&A session
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/permitted-cob-2/
LOCATION:Mud Dauber School Campus\, Snow Camp\, NC\, 27349\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/IMG_6835-1-scaled.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Mud%20Dauber%20School%20of%20Natural%20Building":MAILTO:muddauberschool@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250607
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250609
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250518T165525Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250518T165525Z
UID:9817-1749254400-1749427199@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:2-Day Intro to Hempcrete
DESCRIPTION:DATES: June 7-8th\, 2025 *** 2 SPOTS LEFT! *** \nINSTRUCTORS: April Magill + Tim Callahan (see bios here) \nSTUDENT #: 16 students [maximum] \nCOST (includes meals):  \n\n\n$415 Early Bird Rate (until May 25th)\n\n\n$460 Regular Rate\n\n\n5% discount for family + friends participating together\n\n\n10% discount for BIPOC participants\n\n\nDESCRIPTION: \nWe’re excited to welcome April Magill and Tim Callahan here to share their knowledge about how to construct with hempcrete\, and to share about why hempcrete is such a great building material (in regards to its performance\, the agriculture it supports\, and the healthy living environment it provides). \nExpect to get lots of hands-on experience with mixing the material properly and safely\, and then installing it into a movable formwork in a stud-framed wall system. There will also be an opportunity to experiment with natural plasters\, which are a great option for creating the final wall surface on a hempcrete-insulated wall. \nIn addition to the hands-on worksite experience\, April and Tim will be presenting more details about hempcrete in a slideshow/Q+A format. Also\, Greg and Danielle will lead a tour of the Mud Dauber Campus\, to show their demonstration cottages made of cob and straw wall systems. \nIn addition to our scheduled learning time\, there is a wonderful community aspect to our workshops. Wholesome meals are provided each day\, which are shared as a group in our community gathering space – including a pizza party dinner at our cob oven on Saturday! Plenty of unscheduled\, leisure time is available for relaxing.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/2-day-intro-to-hempcrete/
LOCATION:Mud Dauber School of Natural Building\, 8813 Lindley Mill Road\, Snow Camp\, NC\, NC\, 27349\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/hempcrete-digital-flyer-2.jpg
GEO:35.8642179;-79.3476967
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=Mud Dauber School of Natural Building 8813 Lindley Mill Road Snow Camp NC NC 27349 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=8813 Lindley Mill Road:geo:-79.3476967,35.8642179
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Denver:20250607T083000
DTEND;TZID=America/Denver:20250607T200000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241114T202813Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241114T202813Z
UID:9551-1749285000-1749326400@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:One Day Intro to Natural Building
DESCRIPTION:If you’re curious about natural building\, this is the class for you. \nWe’ll start early with a tour of our permaculture homestead nestled in the heart of Reno. We have several cabins\, a couple ovens\, earthen and straw bale garden walls\, and appropriate technologies-a-plenty to show off. \nWe’ll spend the rest of morning getting familiar with clay soil\, sand\, and straw and how we process and mix them to make cob and adobe as we build a section of wall. We’ll demonstrate the use of earth bags and how we incorporate straw bales and cordwood into a wall. \nIn the afternoon we’ll focus on different types of plasters from base coats through finish coats using finer materials and pigments. We’ll also take time to do some sculpting and carving and make and use clay paint. \nAt the end of the day\, we’ll fire up our cob oven\, turn on some music\, and make and cook our own pizzas.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/one-day-intro-to-natural-building-2/
LOCATION:Be the Change Project\, 2055 McCloud Avenue\, Reno\, NV\, 89512\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/IMG_20240627_183509229-scaled.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Cobitat":MAILTO:cobitat@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Chicago:20250607T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/Chicago:20250628T160000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241025T212800Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241025T212803Z
UID:9509-1749312000-1751126400@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Cob Hill 21-Day Natural Building Cert
DESCRIPTION:This action-packed\, hands-on/feet-on workshop is for adults who wish to begin their learning journey toward helping others realize their natural building dreams as part of a build crew or to supervise their own home build! Natural building is tough. Are you tougher? Find out during 21 days at Cob Hill Natural Building School\, as Cat Taylor teaches the techniques and skills you will need to get from the foundation to the roofing system. Hands on experience covering site selection home designing passive solar soil testing foundations dig a rubble trench pier and beam stack a stone stem wall (dry stacking) cob building bale cob straw bale palletable cob timber framing windows and doors LSC – light straw clay insulation roof designs living roofs roof sheathing tree felling log peeling log milling (saw mill) earthen plasters Shou Sugi Ban(Japanese art of waterproofing wood) Leading a team Real time home build experience Class time on basic electrical\, basic plumbing\, facts and myths in natural building\, common mistakes in natural building\, choosing build style\, project planning\, budgeting\, acquiring materials\, purchasing property and permits\, correct placement of building\, water catchment\, composting toilets. Primitive tent camping sites are available near the build including access to hot showers\, plus 3 plant-based meals a day are included in your tuition! You will need to bring your own camping gear\, contact us if this is an issue. (See FAQ section of naturalbuildingorg.com) Prospective attendees\, please be advised that we are unable to accommodate guests\, children or pets on site for the duration of the workshop; however\, there are nearby lodging options available for them including Daingerfield State Park\, as well as two boarding options within 30 minutes of Cob Hill. The $1890 tuition includes a $200 deposit to secure your spot that is is non-refundable unless NaturalBuildingOrg has to cancel the workshop for some unforeseen reason. If registration includes two or more people there is a $50 discount per person. Active duty military personnel and honorably discharged veterans with valid ID or DD214 may select the appropriate tuition tier to receive 20% off\, and eligible Cob Hill Lifetime of Learning (L.o.L.) Members can register as such by selecting that tuition tier.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/cob-hill-21-day-natural-building-cert-2/
LOCATION:Cob hill natural building school\, hughes springs\, TX\, 75656\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/Junioer-Treehouse-no-people-1.jpeg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250612T153000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250616T110000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241107T235740Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250606T175904Z
UID:9536-1749742200-1750071600@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Focusing on Natural Building Finishing…the Fast Cob Way!
DESCRIPTION:We are continuing our 19 year tradition of hosting Fast Cob Natural Building Workshops…and it begins with this Finishing Workshop. \nTogether\, we’ll learn… \n\n“first layer” of plastering (which nobody else teaches and helps make our Fast Cob building technique even easier and faster…at least 30X faster than any other method!)\,\nthe gorgeous finish layer with two different aggregates (sand or lime)\,\nhow to make and use 100% natural pigment paints (a DIY recipe)\, and\nplus a small cob floor!\n\nWe’ve made finishing not only gorgeous\, but very easy.  Just like our Fast Cob building technique. \nOur lime plaster is perfect for areas subjected to water spray (like showers and around sinks).  The sand plaster is limit-less in its applications and dirt cheap. \nOur natural paints are completely non-toxic at every stage and as vibrant as any other paint\, ranging from bright white\, to yellows\, oranges\, reds\, greens\, blue\, purple and black.  All from our Mother Earth. \nOur Workshops begin on a Thursday evening with a welcoming dinner and end with a Farewell breakfast on Monday before you depart on the 11 am passenger-only ferry. \nFood\, Food\, and more Food! \nEvery workshop day\, we start with a hot\, hearty breakfast (with a Q&A)\, after which we start learning.  In the morning\, two hands-on sessions sandwich a hearty snack break.  A hot\, hearty lunch (with another Q&A session)\, to make sure we have the strength and stamina to absorb all the learning we can\, precede a longer afternoon session.  After an hour break to clean-up\, a hot gourmet dinner accompanies a daily recap on lessons learned and sets the stage for an evening discussion among ourselves or with an invited guest from the Community. \nPlease visit our workshop page for all the details and to fill in our online application.  This course will prepare you to excel in our All-the-Basics Fast Cob Workshop in June or in July.  It is also part of our Complete Builder’s Programme. \nWe offer discounts to those who register in pairs or who take multiple workshops with us.  Please note that all of our fees are in Canadian dollars; if your currency is US or Euro\, our fees are significantly less (30-50% less!).
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/focusing-on-natural-building-finishingthe-fast-cob-way/
LOCATION:Lasqueti Island\, 1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane\, Lasqueti Island\, BC\, V0R 2J0\, Canada
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/Stairs-with-A-1.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Dave%20Olsen":MAILTO:cob@lasqueti.ca
GEO:49.4863406;-124.2758774
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=Lasqueti Island 1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane Lasqueti Island BC V0R 2J0 Canada;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane:geo:-124.2758774,49.4863406
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250612T153000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250825T110000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250413T200819Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250510T053739Z
UID:9708-1749742200-1756119600@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Our Complete Builder’s Programme\, the Fast Cob Way!
DESCRIPTION:This Programme will not only give you ALL the skills you need to build your home\, it will allow you to start – and finish – your own building this year! \nAfter 19 years of providing effective\, proven Natural Building skills (i.e.\, Fast Cob\, the Fastest Build on Earth!) to all of our participants\, it’s time to up the ante. \nWe’ve been tinkering with the deeper aspects of how to learn all the skills you need to get building NOW\, and we’re very proud to announce our newest offering: The Complete Fast Cob Builder’s Programme! \nFor the past 5 years\, we’ve known that learning how to finish Fast Cob buildings first\, makes it even easier to learn how to build them faster…everyone who has taken this path has readily agreed. \nBut there have been a couple of aspects of building that we haven’t taught because it just wasn’t easy (and therefore not safe) to do so.  That just changed. \nOur new Advanced Fast Cob workshop adds those pieces in to give you the COMPLETE package to start building THIS YEAR! \nNot only will we show you how to put a roof on a Fast Cob building\, we’ll show you how to build a stacked rock foundation\, which will empower you to go home and literally start building. \nThe best part of this new programme is that we also make all of this learning affordable\, by offering deep discounts to those that really want to get building this year.  This is due to our desire to help make more effective Natural Builders in this crazy\, insane world. \nOkay\, let’s get to the details…here are the dates of our 2025 Fast Cob Workshops; all 3 are included in the Complete Fast Cob Builder’s Programme: \n\nFocus on Finishing: Thursday June 12 to Monday June 16\n\nAll the Basics of Building: Thursday July 17 to Monday July 21\nAdvanced Fast Cob: Thursday August 21 to Monday August 25\n\n\nThursdays and Mondays are travel days with a Welcome Dinner and Farewell Breakfast included. \nPlease be aware that we only have room for 2 people in this year’s Complete Builder’s Programme. \nBy registering for all of our workshops together\, we are offering you a huge discount: $900!  Our workshops are always focused entirely on learning – your learning – and this is the ultimate package\, which includes all 3 workshops\, all (hot\, organic) meals and camping facilities\, as well as all of the building and training materials that you’ll need for each workshop.  Please note that all of our fees are in Canadian dollars; if your currency is US or Euro\, our fees are significantly less (30-50% less!). \nPlease see our website for all the details: https://cob.lasqueti.ca/blog.  Our goal is to get more Fast Cobbers into the world so that every other technique becomes obsolete and our earth’s resources are fully respected and never again overspent.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/our-complete-builders-programme-the-fast-cob-way/
LOCATION:Lasqueti Island\, 1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane\, Lasqueti Island\, BC\, V0R 2J0\, Canada
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/House-from-Larry-1-scaled.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Dave%20Olsen":MAILTO:cob@lasqueti.ca
GEO:49.4863406;-124.2758774
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=Lasqueti Island 1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane Lasqueti Island BC V0R 2J0 Canada;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane:geo:-124.2758774,49.4863406
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250619T153000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250623T110000
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241108T000336Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250510T053820Z
UID:9539-1750347000-1750676400@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:All the Basics of Building…the Fast Cob Way!
DESCRIPTION:We are continuing our 19 year tradition of hosting Fast Cob Natural Building Workshops…with our All-the-Basics-of-Building Fast Cob Workshop. \nEvery All-the-Basics-of-Building Fast Cob Workshop includes:\nNatural Building Design: working with nature to make long lasting\, beautiful structures;\nFast Cob: how to mix it and build with it\, including windows and doors…it is now at least 30x faster than “traditional” cob;\nFoundations: we’ll show you how we stack rocks to keep our buildings solid and safe;\nRoofs: we’ll show you various options and simple\, elegant designs (we are now offering a Roofing Workshop for Fast Cobbers!);\nPlumbing and Electrical: you’ll see just how easy it is with Fast Cob! \nOur Workshops begin on a Thursday evening with a welcoming dinner and end with a Farewell breakfast on Monday before you depart on the 11 am ferry. \nFood\, Food\, and more Homemade Organic Food! \nEvery workshop day\, we start with a hot\, hearty breakfast (with a Q&A)\, after which we start learning.  In the morning\, two hands-on sessions sandwich a hearty snack break.  A hot\, hearty lunch (with another Q&A session)\,  to make sure we have the strength and stamina to absorb all the learning we can\, precede a longer afternoon session.  After an hour break to clean-up\, a hot gourmet dinner accompanies a daily recap on lessons learned and sets the stage for an evening discussion among ourselves or with an invited guest from the Community. \nPlease visit our workshop page for all the details and to fill in our online application.  Although not required\, this course is best taken after completing the Focus-on-Finishing workshop in June.  It is also part of our Complete Builder’s Programme. \nWe offer discounts to those who register in pairs or who take multiple workshops with us.  Please note that all of our fees are in Canadian dollars; if your currency is US or Euro\, our fees are significantly less (30-50% less!).
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/all-the-basics-of-buildingthe-fast-cob-way-2/
LOCATION:Lasqueti Island\, 1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane\, Lasqueti Island\, BC\, V0R 2J0\, Canada
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/Birds-eye-view-of-new-roof-2.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Dave%20Olsen":MAILTO:cob@lasqueti.ca
GEO:49.4863406;-124.2758774
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=Lasqueti Island 1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane Lasqueti Island BC V0R 2J0 Canada;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=1 Beautiful Bicycle Lane:geo:-124.2758774,49.4863406
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250623
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250628
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20241102T200925Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241215T181337Z
UID:9530-1750636800-1751068799@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:Intro to Cob and Straw Workshop – East Tennessee
DESCRIPTION:Dates: June 23 – June 27\, 2025 (YES. We are still having the workshop as scheduled.)\n \nLocation: Greeneville\, Tennessee\n \nCome and join us in beautiful eastern Tennessee for our next Introduction to Cob and Straw Workshop! We will be constructing both a cob building and a straw-clay building. This workshop is perfect for beginners and experts alike! You will get the expert knowledge to build with cob and straw! Either for small-scale structures or large-scale projects like homes and buildings. \n \nThis workshop is a great experience to learn how to build with cob and straw\, and to get a broad learning overview of natural building techniques. You will get a solid foundation in natural building fundamentals. You will learn the advantages of high thermal mass cob versus high insulation straw materials. We will be constructing the walls on a new cob building and a straw-clay building\, mixing and applying lime plaster\, and studying Natural Building together each day. You will also get to see living examples on-site of a completed cob building and straw-clay building. These are excellent examples that you can learn a lot from! After this workshop\, you will have the basic experience and confidence to design and build your own cob and straw constructions or buildings. \n \nHands-On Work Topics: \n– How to make cob (learn how to make cob with the tarp method and with machinery) \n– How to build cob walls using traditional hand-sculpting and using innovative slipforms (learn all the great advantages of building cob walls with forms) \n– How to make straw-clay (also known as light-straw-clay) \n– How to build highly insulating straw-clay walls (learn how to frame and pack the walls) \n– Selecting and testing soils for cob and straw-clay (learn several ways to test your soil composition) \n– Lime Plaster Finishing (learn how to mix and apply lime plaster finishes to your walls) \n– Creating window and door frames in cob walls (learn how to install frames into cob walls) \n  \nClassroom and Discussion Topics: \n– Site selection and design (includes Passive Solar design principles) \n– Materials and tools (covers traditional and modern cob building toolset and materials) \n– Building Solid Foundations (learn all about constructing proper building foundations) \n– Building codes and how to successfully get building permits for cob homes and straw homes. \n– Best practices for building a healthy\, non-toxic home. \n– Basic Electrical and Plumbing integration for cob homes and straw homes \n– Installing windows and doors \n– Roofing and Bond Beams. Proper roof ventilation practices! \n– Natural plasters and finishes (Vapor Permeable / “Breathable” finishes) \n– Overview of all Natural Building materials\, and how to hybridize them! \n \nThis workshop is a unique experience for people to learn about building cob homes and light-straw-clay homes\, and to get an overview of Natural Building. Not only are there plenty of hands-on lessons to learn from\, but we will also have ample discussion and informal classroom time. Most cob workshops and strawbale workshops don’t cover this many topics. But here\, you will learn all the core lessons needed to start building from this one workshop! \nPlus – there will be many hours of discussions about building cob homes and natural building throughout the workshop. Its a great way to get your questions answered and brainstorm your building ideas! \n \nThe workshop will be held at a private property in Greeneville\, Tennessee. \nEach day will begin at 9:00 AM\, and the days will include hands-on building\, classroom sessions\, discussions\, and learning activities related to cob\, straw\, and natural building topics. We will break for lunch between 12:00 to 1:00 PM\, and we will complete each day at around 4:00 PM. They will be full-packed days! Worth your every penny! \nTeacher \n \nThe workshop will be taught by Alex Sumerall\, an east coast Earth Building Mason who has a focus on creating earthen structures that are healthy\, aesthetically pleasing\, and functional for modern life. He is the owner of This Cob House\, which is dedicated to teaching people about cob and earthen building techniques. Alex has been practicing earthen building since 2011. He graduated from the Aprovecho School of Natural Building in 2013 in Cottage Grove\, Oregon\, and continues to teach\, present\, consult\, and construct. \n  \nFree Bonus! \nEveryone who signs up for the workshop will receive a printed copy of Alex’s book\, “Build a Cob House: A Step-By-Step Guide”\, and the downloadable PDF version\, FREE! We only make printed copies for workshop students\, so this is your chance to get one. We will be using the book as a lesson guide throughout the workshop too so you can follow along with your book in hand. \n \n  \nAlpaca Farm Tour! \nAs another added bonus to the workshop\, we also offer a free alpaca farm tour at our neighbor’s Two Roots Farm. They have over 50 friendly alpacas\, a fiber mill\, and a gift shop! We usually go on this tour Wednesday after class. \n \nListen to the great things that our workshop participants are saying! \n  \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n“The cob workshop was a life-changing experience. I learned a lot about natural building\, not only from Alex’s instruction\, experience and demonstrations\, but from interacting with people from different backgrounds who were a great source of collective knowledge. The hands-on experience was priceless!” \n\n\nTony Romo\, Texas \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n“The Cob Building Workshop was a great investment of my time! It was well organized\, extremely inspiring\, and FUN! Alex was able to explain construction basics to neophytes like me\, yet he could also answer the complex questions asked by the more experienced workshop attendees. I can’t wait until the next workshop!” \n\n\nMarybeth Babos\, Tennessee \n\n\n\n\n \nLodging \nThere are two options for lodging: free camping on site\, or making reservations at one of the local hotels or AirBnBs. Hotels are available in the neighboring towns of Greeneville\, Newport\, Parrottsville\, and Hot Springs. \nNearby is the Briggs Brother’s Ranch in Parrottsville\, TN (highly recommended)\, and the Hot Springs Resort in Hot Springs\, North Caolina. \nCampers will have access to a private portable toilet and a private outdoor shower. \nThe workshop location has running water available\, and an electrical hookup to charge phones and small devices. \n \nFood \nMeals will not be included in this workshop so participants will need to provide their own food and drinks. There are several local restaurants and grocery stores nearby the workshop site. We even have an amazing corner-store within a walkable distance from the workshop site! \nEach student is responsible for their own meal preparation. An hour for lunch is provided\, allowing adequate time for food\, a quick nap\, or trip into town. There is no official kitchen on site yet. Coolers are welcome and encouraged! \nRecreation & Surroundings \nGreeneville is located near the edge of the Appalachian Mountains in eastern Tennessee. It is a beautiful area\, and there are many scenic places to visit nearby. You can also travel to places like Gatlinburg\, TN or Asheville\, NC within a one hour driving time from the workshop site. \nFamily & Group 10% Discounts \nAsk about the 10% discount. We encourage group & family activities because it enhances learning among your support group. Email me at alex@thiscobhouse.com for custom group/family invoice. \nChildren/young people of any age are welcome to join in and learn. Please be aware that some areas are under construction\, as is the purpose of this workshop\, but it is generally child-safe. \nPrices \nPrice: $499\n \n\n \nAdditional Discounts: 10% for family and friends participating together.  \nTeens accompanying a parent/guardian are half price. Children under 13 accompanying a parent/guardian are free.\n \nPlease email me to register with the group/family discount. For normal registration\, please click the “Sign Up Now” button above.\n \nIf you have any other questions about the workshop\, please feel free to email me at alex@thiscobhouse.com \nIf you have a large party of people registering\, they can all register separately\, or contact me for a custom invoice.
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/intro-to-cob-and-straw-workshop-east-tennessee-3/
LOCATION:Greeneville\, Tennessee\, Greeneville\, TN\, 37743\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/intro-to-cob-and-straw-workshop-2024-5.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Alex%20Sumerall":MAILTO:alex@thiscobhouse.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250628
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250630
DTSTAMP:20260403T175231
CREATED:20250311T131920Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250311T132329Z
UID:9675-1751068800-1751241599@cobworkshops.org
SUMMARY:2-Day Intro to Natural Building: Cob\, Straw\, Natural Plasters
DESCRIPTION:Join us on Cape Cod to experience the world of natural building through cob\, straw wall systems\, and natural plasters! We’ll combine discussion with plenty of embodied hands-on time for an inspiring and grounding weekend in the mud. Most of the days will be filled with direct hands-on interaction with the materials\, building and working with model structures. We will also discuss the science behind why these materials work\, how they interact with the environment\, how to maintain them\, building codes\, and more!\n\nWorkshop fee includes 5 meals\, shower and bathroom access\, and free tent camping sites (indoor shared dorm rooms available at a small fee). We’ll also take care of our bodies with optional morning meditation and yoga. Plus\, the beach is just a 4-minute walk away! We can’t wait to share our passion for natural building with you.\n\n\n\n\nDATES & TIMES: 6/28/25 – 6/29/25. Workshop runs 8:30am – 5:30pm on Saturday\, 8:30am-3:00pm on SundayEARLY ARRIVAL OPTION: 6:00pm – 9:00pm on Friday 6/27\, for those staying overnightLOCATION: Brewster\, MAFACILITATORS: Carl and EmilySTUDENT #: 12 (maximum)COST (includes 5 meals): Sliding scale of $300 – $450
URL:https://cobworkshops.org/event/2-day-intro-to-natural-building-cob-straw-natural-plasters/
LOCATION:Brewster\, MA\, Brewster\, MA\, 02631\, United States
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://cobworkshops.org/wp-content/uploads/Intro-to-NB-flyer.png
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR