EARTH CHATS welcomes Ian Dommisse, a gardener, Architect and Entrepreneur. He founded The EcoBrick Exchange (EBE) in 2013, a recycling non profit company which facilitates the building of early childhood development centres in townships using upcycled plastic waste.
Watch the Earth Chat with Ian Dommisse below:
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About Ian Dommisse
For a boy who found himself daydreaming about digging in the dirt, planting little plants, while resentfully standing like a lost soul, missing balls on a cricket field, it was inevitable that gardening would become his life.
As an architect, Ian has gained industry experience in the built environment.
However, it does not come as a surprise that his compelling love for gardening and nature has drawn him to this industry.
An opportunity to design a 60 x 60m vegetable Garden for Angama Mara, a Luxury Safari Resort situated in the Maasai Mara, Kenya has been a dream come true. Extraordinary Edible Gardens – More info here
Apart from designing and creating food gardens, Ian is committed to working within the Environmental and Social Impact Industry. He founded The EcoBrick Exchange (EBE) in 2013, a recycling non profit company which facilitates the building of early childhood development centres in townships using upcycled plastic waste.
WATCH – A Community UPLIFTMENT project breathing new life into unwanted waste materials
About EcoBrick Exchange
EcoBrick was established in 2013 and is an enterprise development agency centered around the green economy.
Upcycling skills + plastic waste = sustaining environmental impact and income opportunities.
Through the gathering of eco-bricks and other resources, we wish to build a wide community of givers. This network will collectively embody enthusiasm, effort and a positive attitude, and also stand by and support the school after construction is completed. We value collaboration; an open-source structure has been adopted inviting participation in related activities and the decision making moments. To put it another way, we want you to give of yourself in a way that suits your lifestyle. We will give without any expectation to receive, but as a fun, focused and enthusiastic group, we may just end up enjoying ourselves!
EcoBrick Exchange Awards
- Social Innovation Award by SAB Foundation 2014
- SEED Award for Innovation within Sustainable Development 2015
- People’s Choice Award within the Architecture for Social Gains 2015
- Ecological Award for Skills Development within the Green Economy (Bronze Award) 2018
- PETCO Public Campaign of the Year award 2018
The City of Cape Town sets a precedent
The City of Cape Town is constructing an Early Childhood Development Centre out of (almost entirely) reclaimed and natural materials. City architect Ashley Hemraj, convincing authorities to build with a wide range of alternative materials and this innovation sets the scene for a new type of government funded schools in South Africa.
The EcoBrick Exchange involvement was to create an environmental awareness campaign within the surrounding community in order to produce EcoBricks for parts of the building. The consultant team included a tyre expert from Guatemala, a natural building specialist from the Klein Karoon and a “bottom-up” social facilitator from the University of the Freestate.
