Ecovillage @ Chitubu/ Exaphozini

SCOPE Zimbabwe Lifestyles Learning & Demo Centre

SCOPE's core work is in assisting schools to redesign and rationalize land use for sustainable resource use. SCOPE’s work is about: land care, creating a favorable learning environment in schools, nutrition enhancement, connecting schools to their communities and the knowledge and resources that lie therein.

The Centre

We are an off-grid permaculture centre that runs on 100% renewable energy. Located on the edge of the city, the centre is suitable for hosting conferences and events while providing a refreshing and enriching experience. The centre was named Chitubu/ Exaphozini which means ‘spring’ in our native languages (Shona and Ndebele respectively). We strive for the centre to be a resilient spring of hope, growth, knowledge and togetherness!

We aim to be a model in sustainable living and we take pride in advocating for holistic health and providing environmental education.

Activities taking place at Chitubu/ Exaphozini

Many activities take place at Chitubu/ Exaphozini. Our team and staff work hard at in carrying out various duties in and around our space. They carry out many tasks among the various activities that we carry out at Chitubu. These include but not limited to:

Animal husbandry – free-range chickens, rabbits, ducks and fish.
Small scale farming of crops for seed multiplication
Herbal garden
Production of ointments and creams from all-natural herbs and ingredients sourced at the centre
Vegetable garden
Nursery for plant propagation

Amenities

Chitubu/ Exaphosini offers a very comfortable off-grid environment for both the young and the old. We are able of hosting both large and small groups of people. Here are more of our amenities:

Self-catering chalets
In-door and out-door conference spaces
Catering available on request
Equipped with solar energy
Safe borehole water
Camping sites
Out-door recreational spaces
Wi-Fi
Friendly team!

Dry Composting Toilets

There are several dry composting toilets around the centre. Dry composting toilets are an efficient, cyclical way of dealing with human waste without using freshwater. Please read the instructions in the toilets before use.

Urine harvesting toilets

The centre has flushing toilets and urinals that are reserved for urination only. Valuable nutrients are collected from the flushed toilet and urinal water and used as fertilizer. Urine is a bona fide gold-mine of nutrients that plants love – like nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium

Reduce, Re-Use, and Recycle

To conserve water we reuse grey water from washing hands, the kitchen and bathroom for watering plants. All litter at the centre is separated using appropriate recycle bins and composts. After eating fruits, seeds are placed in a collection tin and kept for planting.

Solar energy

The centre’s primary source of electric power is from solar energy. To ensure that the solar system has enough energy to last through the whole day and night we recommend that our guests should take short showers, switch of all lights during the day and when leaving a room etc.