Bamboo Building Course

Come to EcoMaste and experience the abundance of life in the jungle. Here you will have an opportunity to commune with nature, ground yourself, enjoy our nature trails, cascading river, harvest fresh foods from the property, vibrant delicious plant based meals, and learn the skills you need to build with bamboo as well as natural materials.

Our goal is to give students a transformational and regenerative education so that they can be empowered to create a lifestyle rooted in sustainability and collaboration with nature. Learn from world renown Bamboo Master, artisan craftsman, with over 35 years of experience and founder of Bamboo School CR, Rodolfo Saenz. Architect and Professor Wyly Brown will be joining "Rodo" in this course.

Bamboo construction course. 

“ We are called to be the architects of the future, not it victims” – R. Buckminster Fuller

Decades ahead of his time, R. Buckminster Fuller considered the amount of materials used to create spaces we live in and the impact these buildings have on the natural environment. He is most know for popularizing the Geodesic dome, a simple construction that can easily be scaled, replicated, and assembled using a minimal amount of materials to create a highly structural form. In this Bamboo construction course, we will follow Buckminster Fuller’s vision and consider how a fast growing material such as bamboo could be employed to further explore low impact, sustainable building systems. 

Architect and professor Wyly Brown has designed a modified geodesic dome and will work with bamboo construction expert Rodolfo Saenz to explore how bamboo can be used to make a 35’ free spanning dome. We will experiment with different joining methods, bending methods, and with different construction strategies to investigate and construct an efficient yet dynamic space in the beautiful cloud forest near Tinamastes, Costa Rica. 

Come join in this exploration that combines modern design with simple traditional construction. Perhaps together we will design a new future!

 The Flow & Highlights:

• Instruction from expert master craftsman with more than 35 years of experience. Rodolfo Saenz.
• Design concept, Architect and professor Wyly Brown. 
• Suitable for any level. From no experience to expert.
• Meditation and Yoga daily
• You must be over 18 years old.
• Fresh fruit through out the day from the property and surrounding area plus 3 meals plant based food. 
• Reiki, body massage or a guided personal healing session, at additional cost.
• Access to river and pond.
• Opportunity to become an apprentice and learn from a Bamboo Master, (3-12 month program).
• Hiking trails on property. 

 Bambú: 

• Learn about bamboo varieties for adobe walls
• Harvesting, processing, treatment and curing methods.
• Demonstration of tools and how to make a special knife
• Proper use of manual and electrical tools
• Splitting of bamboo, bending, drilling, pegging, lashing, fish mouths and other joinery techniques.
• How to make a fish mouth
• Make bamboo nails.
• Make a bamboo blanket
• Prepare walls before application of adobe

*Limited space available*

*Accomodations vary according to room and privacy

$795 BYOT | $895 shared room (1 left)* | $995 private room (1 left)*

**Costa Ricans receive a 40% discount. Locals 10%**

***Course and workshop (Model making) receive a 20% discount***

Must be 18 or older. Please make sure you bring your own yoga mat, gloves, goggles and water bottle. We will send you an email with a list of prefered tools to have upon request.

Nos vemos en la jungla!