Kuthumba Eco Village’s Ethos
Founded in 1993 on the ethics of care for the nature that surrounds it, Kuthumba encompasses a vision of a healthy lifestyle and the opportunity for people to co-create an environment that allows each individual to harbour a sense of peace and growth. The homes of which Kuthumba is comprised are built using green principles to ensure the inclusion of sustainable practices in our lives. With this in mind, the community hopes to serve as a model for how others can contribute to the protection of the environment and foster environmental wisdom.
More recently an influx of community-minded members has seen an increasing cohesion among the people on the land, looking at ways to live together in a more connected manner. Those living permanently at Kuthumba have a diverse range of passions, which include spiritual exploration and personal growth, permaculture, self-directed education, ‘alternative’ health and a form of eco-tourism that is educational.
Kuthumba’s Mission Statement: We honour the interrelationship of all life, embracing individuality, diversity and the sanctity of the Land we all call our home. It is our shared intention to develop sustainable systems that promote responsibility and sensitivity, thus integrating our essence with that of the Land. We aim to increase awareness through forging uplifting relationships with each other and our neighbours.
WHERE IS KUTHUMBA
Kuthumba is located in The Crags, a rural area just beyond the town of Plettenberg Bay on South Africa’s famous Garden Route coast. Turning off the N2 towards the popular animal sanctuaries and tourism destination of The Crags area, you will find the world renowned Birds of Eden, Monkey land and the Elephant Sanctuary. A little further along this road winding through fynbos and farmland, a corner is turned where you suddenly enter forest.
The gravel road meanders on towards the historical estate of Forest Hall at the road’s end. Before Forest Hall, tucked away in the forest and fynbos, lies the Eco-Village and Forest Reserve of Kuthumba, directly abutting the Tsitsikamma National Park.
Kuthumba has an elevated position with every building site commanding unsurpassed views of the local forest and the mountains of the Tsitsikamma. Although the property boasts no sea-views the sound of the ocean at night drifts over the neighbouring property of Forest Hall. Kuthumba is uniquely located for direct access into the neighbouring national park, and one of the area’s most beautiful walking routes leads all the way through the forest and across the Salt River onwards to Natures Valley beach. The property boasts exceptional birdlife and animals ranging from bushpigs, badgers and leopard in the forest to otters, seals, dolphins and whales in the sea. Kuthumba has spectacular views of Formosa Peak across forest gorges.
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
The Kuthumba development has been unfolding since 1993.
It is founded on ethics of care for the living system that hosts it, which is predominantly indigenous forest skirted by Cape Fynbos. Homes are built according to Green Principles guided by the Kuthumba Eco-Village Land Stewards Manual, that encourages the development of a more sustainable lifestyle.
History and Vision of Kuthumba
Kuthumba is a project encompassing a vision of a unique model for a healthy lifestyle, an opportunity for people to co-create an environment that offers each individual the anchoring and sense of peace that encourages and facilitates expansion and growth on all levels.