The Adventure Begins: All Green Learning Center

First stop on the journey: The All Green Learning Center

As a nice start to the trip, I had the incredibly good fortune to get in touch with the
All Green Learning Center and its parent company Grenzone. The AGLC is essentially an education facility that demonstrates the real possibility of renewable energy and sustainable living systems. Andrew
Beckett, the project manager for Grenzone, was kind enough to show me around the AGLC grounds.
It's pretty stunning. I will try to do their set-up justice while keeping it concise.

The tour started with the office- one of the most impressive structures on campus. First, the design
was smart. It’s built on stilts, allowing cool air to come up through the bottom and warm air to rise
through ceiling vents. They have planted a 'green wall' of native vines on the western side of the building to minimize heat coming from the afternoon sun. The building walls and foundation were built using mostly local
materials. Due to such a smart design they have eliminated the need for air conditioning.

The 'green wall' 

The unique V-shaped roof is a great example of integrated solar design which means the roof is a solar
array. The two solar arrays that make this roof are shaped in a V to collect rain water. The rain water
drains down into big ceramic tanks below the building to await filtration.

The AGLC office

Collected rainwater flows down to storage tanks

Next, we passed over to the naturally maintained and filtered swimming pool. The filtering process
starts with the simulated wetland pool behind the swimming pool. The plants work to soak up
any bacteria or heavy metals. From there it is pumped through a UV filter which kills any left over
nastiness. Finally, the water falls through 5 pans of rocks, gravel and charcoal before it’s released into
the swimming pool.

Natural filter using gravel and charcoal

Natural filtered swimming pool!

The Living Center is where the guests stay (myself included). The design is just as thoughtful as the
AGLC office but a little different. Made from nearly all natural materials from the local area, including
their own brick and mortar with only 15% of mixed concrete, the structure has a great cooling quality.
It has a central breezeway in the first and the second floor to facilitate more natural cooling. Finally,
the Living Center's roof is comprised of two massive solar arrays which largely contribute to the entire
electricity collected for the whole campus (more than 45 kilowatts). The entire campus generates a 70%
surplus of energy which is sold back to the local Thai electric utility.

The Living Center

We passed by the Pavilion where we ate our meals and the classroom where we had solar energy class.
These buildings were made in a similar fashion from local timber and brick. We moved on to the
creative corner where there were several interesting things on display. There was a model solar array
that students could come and practice installing and uninstalling. There was a mushroom room where
fungal spores are planted in plastic bottles with saw dust and kept for a couple of days until Shitake
mushrooms had matured. I had no idea how fast they grew. Ten feet down was a biogas digester mainly
for demonstration purposes, but impressive just the same. Essentially, a biogas digester burns methane
that is collected from animal wast and other decomposing organic material. It was very cool to see one
up close. A few yards away from the biogas station was a charcoal making oven. Through the slow
burning of wood with low oxygen, they are able to produce charcoal for energy and cooking uses.

AGLC does have a garden but it seemed that it is just getting started. They had a lot of leafy green
starts but no raised beds or much of a garden design from what I could tell. I did see where they plan
to have it and it looks like a great area. There are banana and papaya trees throughout the campus but it seems the garden/food forest will take some time to fully develop.

As you can imagine, I couldn't believe my good luck to stumble on a place that virtually has every
facet of sustainable living developed from energy to water to food as well as a group of motivated,
passionate community that believes in the work that Grenzone and AGLC do. I was touched by their
hospitality and environmental convictions.

If I could grasp one resounding theme throughout this first destination- it is to have no expectations.
Besides emails and websites, a week ago I didn't know anyone affiliated with Grenzone or AGLC
personally. It wasn't until Andrew was showing me around the campus that I fully realized that I had
stumbled upon an excellent example of sustainability.

Yesterday, we went to Khao Yai National Park with a group of students from Singapore who are also
taking classes about renewable energy at the AGLC. I was asked to be somewhat of a chaperogne for the
group and expected to just do a bit of hiking and then return to the campus. Later, I found myself doing
an impromptu wilderness training and teaching the students how to make a fire as part of the activities
of the day. It seemed the students learned a lot and I enjoyed teaching. Initially I was a little impatient
during the 'wilderness training' to start hiking but as soon as I realized there was a whole day planned
and I was just along for the ride I relaxed and watched the day unfold. We did eventually go hiking
and saw a fantastic view of the Khao Yai valley from a cliff side. We then went on a night safari and
spotted some nocturnal wildlife.

Checking out the Khao Yai Canyon 

When we have expectations we feel entitled to results and specific experiences. As soon as I tried to
abandon my expectations for the day, it turned out to be great. By not knowing what to expect from the
AGLC I was far more open and present for an introductory learning experience that I think is unique to
first times. I know that there will be many more great times to follow but it’s hard to comprehend just
how lucky I was to see the place and meet the great people of AGLC.

A big thanks goes to Andrew Beckett, Dr. Toh Peng Seng, Pi Ney, Pi Ran, Pi Nom, Pi Pet, Pi Peo,
Nong Mu and Nong Preo. Thank you for your kindness and hospitality!