Freyr’s Bamboo Sky-Kubu is intended to be a place where Freyr, my daughter who has special needs, can live, work and play – and where her friends (of all abilities) can come and be part of co-creating activities and events progressing towards the development of an inclusive community social enterprise model and supportive learning spaces for skills and cultural exchange… We understand the challenges that parents of special needs children face, and we aim to alleviate some of the “care burden” by providing a range of activities and services which provide access to inclusive activities that cater to a variety of interests and abilities.
We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to be included, to explore and learn new things. From participatory workshops and interactive sessions; our programs are designed to promote growth, self-expression, and social interaction.
At Bamboo Creative, our mission is to create inclusive village environments that empower individuals with disabilities to actively participate in daily activities and have meaningful life experiences. We are dedicated to building strong relationships with our local community, neighbors & staff, foundations, and international helpers, including artists, skilled professionals, therapists, and international families. Together, we aim to develop a nurturing village environment where our “kids” can truly experience social inclusion with the assistance of local staff. We believe in holistic engagement with local culture and the value of being part of a living community (see our Vital Light Manifesto).
We rely on others sharing their knowledge with us; We rely in/on good-will; We are encouraged to have a spirit of gratitude within ourselves; We believe in paying it forward, balancing the feminine and masculine outlooks to gain peace and prosperity. More than anything, we want to nurture people who genuinely care and are prepared to commit the time to learn a skill and work together with other humans in a harmonious way and help to share these skills and knowledge that can make our world TRULY Sustainable… and that means helping 70-80% of the world’s population who live on less than $10/day access what has been termed “The Sustainable Building Material of the Future”.
Our Story…
Prior to living here in Bali my daughter and I lived in the Philippines (Palawan) where we stayed with several families for nearly a year… Living in Palawan, I witnessed local living conditions and wondered why bamboo wasn’t being used more by local people. When helping a family to build a small homestay house in Palawan (Salacot area), termites were a huge issue and wreakers of mass destruction without heavy chemical treatment. Also bringing water to homes from nearby water sources to save time and energy manually carrying water was an issue (no electricity in this area). When I came to Bali in mid-2016 I met Djuka Montenero (Farmers Yard Hostel founder) through HelpX and became fascinated with Indoneisan bamboo building techniques.
I realised that Bali was the place to learn about bamboo and helped Djuka build a Lumbung (traditional rice barn)-style room from bamboo which later became the basis for this “Sky-Kubu” design. I returned again in 2017 and started this bamboo project with local craftsmen and volunteers and started cottoning on to local skills and knowledge…
I progressed to bamboo after realising that living INSIDE Earthships may not be so desirable in tropical environments (due to insufficient ventilation and high humidity) and having started my dreaming for disability community design back in 2013/14, with the intention of having an Earthship base and then a bamboo structure (main living space) above which could be evacuated in the case of a cyclone… However I couldn’t quite convince the locals here on the car tyres aspect … So decided to just focus on the bamboo structure and learn Everything I could about this material and to keep sharing along this journey.
It’s not the skills themselves… it’s the Environment we create practicing them… maybe not quite like a knitting circle (I don’t know I’ve never been to one… but those crocheting circles in Australia seem quite dangerous and all with those Anti-Coal Seam Gas Nanas going around crocheting trees and pushbikes). But it’s this “Being” state, and Being together which nourishes me, bringing me out of my “isolation”… and being welcomed into a sense of connection and in working with others which feels like family (familyful – my new word for the day)…
It’s not rocket-science raising a special-needs child/person, but in the society I came from living in in Australia, opportunities to live and work this way are/were rare. In Asia, there just seems to be more people around and a more natural inclination for people to offer to help each other and more of a sense of “ease” in general. The term REVIVEMENT is a concept that for me, means an environment where we can Revive and feel supported… and I hope that through our cross-cultural projects, we can create spaces and places where we CAN come back to life 🙂
I hope to return to Palawan again and stay with the families in the beautiful and relatively unspoilt area of the hillsides behind Napsan (probably now like Bali was 30 years or so ago) and bring what I have learned and support their ability to access sustainable renewable technologies which can help improve living standards/ ease/access to things we take for granted in
Bali Inclusive Family Time-Out Nature-based Activity Program
We offer support for families to have time-out together… Whether as parents/carers you’d like to participate in our natural building programs, a meditation/yoga program or just time to go for walks and relax – we can support you to have the time out you need and to also spend time together as a family. Your special needs family member/ person with a disability can be supported to participate in our natural learning program with activities like gardening, craft, music and tailored classes and workshops with our Bamboo Programs; while you can come and go as you need… Become part of our family village with support to live more naturally and inclusively!
We offer a sliding-scale contribution approach to make this learning accessible to the everyone (Please communicate whatever way you feel you can pay/contribute). We are committed to finding ways to collaborate which are mutually beneficial for everyone… offering support for special needs families also to be included and experience a supportive family environment. Programs are tailored to individual needs and requests – so get in touch to discuss your needs and ideas.
Small Business Mentorship/Disability Post School Program
Would you like your family member with special needs to have their own small business? They could develop a product to sell online or at local markets, especially if it’s something they are passionate about or a product that helps others. Our post-school program supports adults with special needs/disabilities to find fulfilling activities and work with support workers to actively engage in their community through creativity and commerce. We provide mentoring and practical activities, offering individual and group programs alongside our Bamboo and Natural Building Workshops in a supportive community setting.
Our aim is to create a network of families and an inclusive community environments where children and adults with disabilities can have quality of life and meaningful connection and participation, and parents can have supported time-out.
To discuss individual needs and requirements or fill out this form.
Past Kids Workshops
Working with bamboo, making toys and up-cycling materials; in our Kids Workshops we offer programs and topics suited to age groups: 3-6 and 7-12 years and above. We are not actually focusing on kids workshops at present, but during Covid, this was our main activity – Presently, I’m focusing on the overall village project and funding and operations for that,
We hope to enable a new Vision of our collective and individual experiences of living in an supportive environment… One which reconnects us as humans with our divine purposes and Essence – One of working together as a family… co-creating places where people can thrive… share cultures, share time, traditions, skills and experience.
We aim to move away from the Capitalistic mindset… towards a feeling of working together for the common good… to create spaces and relationships which are mutually beneficial and inclusive, opportunities to heal; time to be Human.
Our current programs contribute towards building the infrastructure of the greater village project and on creating a framework for special needs families to have a community and place of belonging and ease in Bali.
Our Outreach Programs are aimed at contributing to a more in-depth study and practice of making technologies available and to promote sustainable practices in developing regions – to assist in disseminating knowledge and skills which can help make our world more sustainable. See our Outreach Projects page for more info.
Bamboo has been an outlet for me to unravel my mind and let go into just Being “IN” Experience. I find the bamboo soothing. I’m not the kind of person who can just sit and “meditate for hours” (though having a special needs child and the demands of this means i definitely SHOULD)… Bamboo is like an active meditation that engages my physical, mental and emotional bodies… And at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter that i produce a physical product or result (though that is nice for sure)… it’s more about being engaged in the Moment… feeling a relaxed momentum… and knowing that my daughter is safe and happy.To be able to offer other parents and siblings of special needs children an environment which is nurturing and supportive, through self-expression, inclusion and opportunities to play/work/craft together, connect with their own creative source and share in this community-building experience … that’s my dream.Natalie Davenport, Founder.
Bamboo courses
We also offer bamboo courses/workshops if you’re interested to come and work with us and learn about building with bamboo and natural/recycled materials in a comprehensive way.
