The July PDC Course happened to intersect with our big flood. Some students got trapped in (for the two weeks) and some got trapped out, and so we had no choice but to run the course with ten of us here at Bandusia. We had no power from day one. So, no hot water, no lights, no toilet or water pumps, no phone and no heating in the depths of a wet winter. At a time like this nature’s resources come to the rescue, providing us with firewood for heating and some cooking and not having all our eggs in one basket we had a combination of wood, batteries, gas and a small generator. So, the course went on. We turned problems into solutions. We turned the situation in a learning experience and students gained first-hand experience of designing for catastrophe. We all pulled together with a special camaraderie. Whilst we couldn’t go anywhere, we were able to walk across the hill to our neighbour’s place who were delighted to have a property design of their place. This was undoubtedly the most difficult course I have ever conducted, so it was ironic that under such circumstances the outcomes from the course and the designs produced were some of the best.
