From November 1 to 3, math-loving grade 9 and 10 students departed for Kazabazua, a small town three hours north of Montreal, to help build a straw bale structure. We stayed at Solisterra, an eco-friendly community of straw bale buildings built by Frank Dutton and Dominique Tonetti. The boys stayed in Rosa, the main house, whereas the three girls (plus Ms. Saunders) stayed in Pinea across the lake. The group worked on a straw bale shed designed to house tools and solar panels, which provide energy for the buildings in Solisterra. Our job consisted of adding and preparing the straw bales for the shed, as well as parging the finished walls; this included placing and modifying bales, stapling chicken wire, and even sewing the bales! Our group was very productive, and by 5 pm Saturday, we had finished parging all but the second floor interior and one main level wall! This job required a tremendous amount of physical labour, but we had plenty of sustenance thanks to the delicious meals and snacks provided by our chef, Deb. After all of our hard work, we were rewarded with a trip to the town’s harvest dinner before the long drive back home.

This was my second trip to Solisterra, and I had a fantastic time once again. It was nice to be working with straw this time instead of wood, as I finally got the experience of putting together a straw bale structure. My favourite part of the construction process was sewing the bales together, which involved communication and teamwork. I want to congratulate everyone for putting in their best effort, and I highly encourage anyone offered to take the opportunity to travel to Kazabazua, and better yet, participate in building a straw bale structure. – Holly Faria ’15