our mission

Picture by Walter de Winter

Our mission is to promote and advance the practice of natural building and construction, specifically focusing on the use of cob and earth as sustainable materials.

We are dedicated to implementing highly ecological, sustainable, and creative methods in all our endeavors. Through our workshops, we empower individuals by imparting them with the skills and self-confidence needed to construct their own unique, eco-friendly structures. These structures are designed to seamlessly integrate with the surrounding environment and cater to the specific needs of their communities.

Our workshops go beyond mere education; they are transformative journeys of self-exploration and profound bonding. By collaborating together to build sustainable structures using natural materials, participants not only gain practical skills but also develop deep connections with their fellow builders, the environment, and themselves.

We firmly believe that the process of creating together fosters a strong sense of community and purpose, extending far beyond the workshop itself. It has the potential to create a positive impact on individuals and communities, promoting a more sustainable and harmonious way of living.

If you are interested in participating in our workshops, hosting one, or exploring other collaborative opportunities, we warmly invite you to get in touch with us. Let’s embark on this incredible journey of natural building and community empowerment together!

 

The crew

Picture taken in a CruzinCobGlobal workshop in 2018

 

Lea Zdarsky

As a child, I unknowingly ventured into the world of natural building, creating my first cob wall using broken bricks, sandbox sand, and sticky earth found in the garden. Throughout that entire summer, my best friend and I admired our creation until the rains washed it away.

While my recklessness has evolved since then, my journey has been filled with invaluable knowledge and skills gained along the way.

Leaving Germany in a camper-van after high school, I embarked on an adventurous path into the unknown. Along this unconventional, self-educational journey, I discovered a vibrant international community encompassing eco-villages, activist squats, spiritual and secular retreats, and permaculture plots.

Life in these diverse settings resonated deeply with me and felt innately natural.

Within this context, I found my passion for natural building. I yearned to create a space where I could live sustainably, fostering a healthy symbiosis with nature, all while being supported by a creative community that shared the same ideals.

I began volunteering and assisting friends in constructing their off-grid hideaways. However, my true immersion in natural building commenced when I enrolled in an advanced cob-building course with Claudine Desiree, founder of CruzinCobGlobal, in Portugal, in 2018.

Since then, I have undertaken numerous projects worldwide, spanning different climate zones. As a builder and teacher, I have shared various natural building techniques with others.

The learning journey within the realm of natural building is perpetual, and my goal is to make this knowledge accessible to more individuals, empowering them to create sustainable, harmonious living spaces.

Raoul Janmahomed

I originally studied medicine and bio-medical science following a “normal career path”. During this I started feeling disassociate from the conventional way of living, thinking and learning. I didn’t feel in the right place anymore and from there, a need to look for answers and alternatives was born.

I decided to seek them by traveling the world and looking at the diversity life has to offer. This journey, which is ongoing for 9 years now, has changed my life and my outlook on myself, my values and beliefs profoundly. Living a lot of time in nature sparked a dream to live in a more self-sufficient manner, more connected to myself and my environment.

In order to realize this dream certain skills and knowledge needed to be attained.  One of these has been natural building. The past few years I have been studying different types of bio-construction and worked on various building sites in Italy, Portugal and Nicaragua.