INTERVIEW

INTERVIEW INTERVIEW WITH Crispin Caldicott

Tram Driver, timber enthusiast, journalist, organiser of multiple EBANZ conferences, and the editor of this magazine for over nine years; I sat down with Crispin to find out how he came to hold such an integral place in the Earth Building Association, his thoughts on the state of and future of EBANZ, and what advice he has for the new editor.

BY FAITH AROHA GOULD

Editor: You have been the only editor since I have been a member of EBANZ, how did you come to be Editor?

Crispin: I went to the Permaculture Hui in Turangi in 2012, which was a wonderful occasion. Graeme North was one of many outstanding personalities speaking there. I gave a lecture about the Austrian scientist Viktor Schauberger, whom I have admired for many years as his motto was ‘comprehend and copy nature!’ Graeme rang me shortly after, and said, ‘I have a job for you and you can pay yourself as much as you like! With your journalistic background it would be ideal for you’.

Editor: How familiar were you with earth building and EBANZ at the time?

Crispin: I did my permaculture design course in 1992, with Miriam and Jim Tyler in the Hokianga, which is where I first met Graeme and although EBANZ was on the periphery I wasn’t involved in any way until I became editor in 2012. I think there are strong crossovers between the values of permaculture and natural building.

Editor: How has the organisation changed since you joined?

Crispin: There is a greater awareness among the organisation that it needs to expand and spread its message as widely as possible. The standards have been a big part of this as they provide a council with a blueprint to help them understand what they are consenting. They are absolutely vital and will be under threat again as for peculiar reasons the corporate world sees ‘home builders’ as some kind of threat. I sent a link out not long ago with an article from Australia saying, ’these home builders need to be protected from themselves’. It’s just madness.

Editor: What do you see as the future for EBANZ? What should we be focusing on?

Crispin: Education. We must build peoples’ awareness of the possibilities. We must be consistent with events like Go Green and get our message out. We’ve had a wonderful series of superb conferences in the last few years and the real success there has been getting people who were not members to come along. That is an impetus I would love to see flourish.

Editor: How do you deal with the differences of opinion which arise when considering what goes into the magazine?

Crispin: I have only had a few instances to deal with. I would love EBANZ to be a forum for debate. We are an educational organisation to help empower people to build for themselves as economically as possible and as lightly footed as possible. I believe emphatically that people have a right to do what they want so long as they aren’t impinging on the rights of others - common law basically - but these rights are being eroded. Editor: I feel that - I believe we all have a right to warmth and shelter and earth building is one small but significant way we can fight for sovereignty.

Crispin: We need to educate and we need to empower, and we need to demonstrate that it is possible to build your own home using immediately available materials. Concrete is a topic that raises hackles and disagreements in the EBANZ community for very good reasons, but even those who loathe it agree it has its place under certain sets of circumstances. The Romans after all used it to good effect – their concrete really was built to last – but then their production would have been minute in comparison with today’s industrial demand. The purpose for humankind now is to strive for harmony, both interpersonally and with our environment.

Editor: What are doing now that you have some free time?

Crispin: I’m busier than ever! I’m working at Kaipara Coast Plant Centre in the mornings, and still doing plenty of writing; I’m working on a piece about the future of farming in Rodney and another on electric bikes. We have our own property to look after. There is always plenty to do.

Editor: Any advice to the new editor?

Crispin: Make it your own – do lots of new things and don’t feel constrained by any of your predecessors!