Sawah Bali
or direct deposit
Account Name: Yayasan Konservasi Sawah Bali
Account Number: 034 426 2353 (IDR)
Bank: BNI
Branch: Denpasar
SWIFT Code: BNINIDJADPS
Conserving Bali's Rice Paddies and Creating New Markets for Farmers
TRAVELERS, TOURISTS + SEEKERS
Sawah Bali creates Awareness regarding Sawah (rice paddies) + Subak (900-year-
old water technology and underpinning for
Balinese Hinduism), so that YOU are able
to make better choices, in matters of healthy food and your accommodations.
SAWAH BALI IS BASED IN UBUD, BALI, INDONESIA
Our Team
Phiphi Kaplan
Founder & Executive Director
Wayan Dedik Rachman
Former External Relations & Resident Cultural Scholar
Chakra Widia
Director of
Transition & Permaculture
Made Suraja
Former Project & Business Manager
Kadek Suardika
Former Farmer Liason & Permaculture Site Manager
Annie Harold
Former Volunteer Coordinator + Special Projects
I Made Adhi Pratama
Translator + office administrator
Adhe Pradipta
Translator + Agrotourism Manual
Our Advisors
Darby Bradley
Former President of the
Vermont Land Trust
Alison Cohen
Matisse Management Consultants Inc.
Robert Klein
Director of Special Projects and
Former State Director of
The Nature Conservancy Vermont
Dr. Lee Koppelman
Master Planner & Director, Center for Regional Policy Studies at
State University of NY, Stony Brook
Patricia Pedreira
MA ATR
Kathryn Hipple
Noosphere Marketing
Marilyn Ryba
Project Manager at Shelter Planning and Development Inc.
Robert Woolmington, Esq.
Pengawas (Supervisory Board)
Jantuk Sudiana
Nila Wati
Pengurus (Executive Board)
Ketua (Head): Wayan Dedik Rachman
Wakil (Vice): Made Suraja
Bendahara (Treasurer)
Rita Dewi
Sekretaris (Secretary)
Wiwik Dharmiasih
Pembina (Advisory Board)
Phyllis (Phiphi) Kaplan
Our logo was designed by Kurniawana, from Java, Indonesia. He was chosen from over 20 Indonesian designers who competed to win the job as graphic designer from 99Designs.com for Sawah Bali.
Phiphi Kaplan
Founder & Interim Executive Director
After receiving her BA from Bennington College in Vermont, Phyllis moved to New York City and founded a design company that manufactured fabrics, wallcoverings, tableware and rugs; Ziba Designs Inc. Whereas the business was successful, Phyllis yearned to have what is now called a social-entrepreneurship but there were no models available in the 1970’s or 80’s. Yearning to do more, she spent the next 20 years in the non-profit sector.
By the mid-eighties, Vermont was at a crossroads. It was a state in the forefront of the conservation movement and instituted very innovative and progressive policies to protect its family farms and endangered working landscape. It was this challenge that galvanized Phyllis to participate in keeping Vermont’s “Sense of Place". She did this formally by sitting on the board of the Vermont chapter of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and by being a member of Town of Bennington’s Planning Commission. TNC is a science-driven conservation organization. In this capacity, she was involved in working with staff to monitor habitats conserved, raise capital campaign funds, and increase awareness of biodiversity and species loss. TNC often partnered with the Vermont Land Trust and Phyllis became an advocate for the working landscape as well.
As a member of the Town of Bennington Vermont Planning Commission, she was given the weekly task of upholding the town plan and zoning laws with her fellow members as developers and home owners sought permits and variances for their projects. She worked on the project to update and rewrite the town plan, encouraging best land use practices and zoning that emphasized keeping development near the community centers and protecting the outlying land and discouraging the wasteful land use of suburbanization that plagued America in the post World War II era. She was adamant in adhering to the Town Plan , and fighting against the oft-used “economic hardship” argument that special interests used as a default mechanism to ram their project through.
Phyllis has been a life long advocate and activist for justice, whether it has been environmental, economic or anti-war. She has traveled to over 40 countries, but it is those that continue as traditional societies that she has been most enamored with and fascinated by. As her daughter took off for college, Phyllis too “birthed a new life” and traveled the globe volunteering. In Bali, she immediately recognized the need for a Land Trust to save the sawah, but at that time there was a “selling frenzy “ and people only wanted to cash in. In the last year, dire predictions of water shortages in 2015 have finally roused the political realm to the reality of overdevelopment. She founded Sawah Bali in 2013.
It’s the least she can do; the Balinese have put a permanent smile on her face.
Special thanks to a life time of mentors, Dr. Lee Koppelman, Rob Woolmington, Esq, Robert Klein, + Darby Bradley.
Wayan Dedik Rachman
Conductor of Conservation and External Affairs
Dedik is an ethnomusicologist that was presented with opportunities at a young age and ran with them. Sponsored and educated in the International School in Bali as a child he then studied in America for 9 years, earning both a BS in Anthropology from Gettysburg College and then his MM in Music and Literature from University of Illinois at Urbana. He has taught, lectured and conducted workshops in gamelan and other forms of music throughout the U.S. as well as Turkey and Indonesia.
After returning to his beloved island and village in 2010, he and his wife Ketut, a professional dancer began an after school program for children 7-17 . The Jaladara program teaches the children in depth cultural exploration in dance, music and the accompanying religious rituals. Dedik and Ketut are committed to offering this generation an identity to withstand the globalization that has wrought this island. Community work has always been present in Dedik’s life; for example after the Bali bombing in 2002 he was Team Coordinator, Bali Relief Ubud Program, Bali Hati Foundation. All of these experiences and skills have prepared Dedik to join the team of Sawah Bali.
Currently, Dedik also leads groups of students from abroad for cultural and musical immersion here in Bali. He is a renowned conductor and composer and if often found playing temple ceremonies and concerts throughout Bali. He is the gamelan leader in his village for both the youth orchestra as well as the adult. He also leads the Sudiana gamelan group made up of Bali’s finest musicians and composers. www.drumelan.com is where you can find Dedik's original and handcrafted instruments.
Chakra Widia
Director of Permaculture
I Made Chakra was born in 1973 to a rice farming family near Ubud, Bali . Coincidentally, this was the same year the so called “Green Revolution” introduced chemical farming to Bali . Fortunately the Balinese love of nature and trust of their traditions slowed down the inroads of this new, less sustainable agriculture. Chakra was able to grow up in a time where the people didn’t need money for food; edible vegetation, fish, eels, and birds all thrived together in the rice fields. Now that chemical farming has destroyed so much of this sustainable eco system, Chakra’s wish is that that his own children will be to able experience what he knew in his childhood; with the land restored to its abundant heritage. He knows he can’t do this alone, so he works to build connections with others on the same path, working for a healthy environment, healthy people and a healthy future.After completing his study on sustainable development , 4 years pioneering green tourism in UK , and gaining commercial experience in his hometown, Chakra has devoted himself to developing sustainable agriculture and technology across Indonesia ; from tsunami-ravaged Aceh, to the rice fields of Bali , where he has pioneered an effective organic Intensification System for nutritious, heritage red rice. Chakra’s knowledge and practical skills range from appropriate technology and permaculture design, training and project management to consultancy for international NGOs.
Sawah Bali is proud to partner with Chakra's foundation TriHitaKarana: " using permaculture principles, we educate, advocate & act for a sustainable Bali "
Made Suraja
Project + Business Manager
Made Suraja is a qualified Architect and Project Manager at Three Line’s Architect and Expert trainer for Community Program at Biosphere Foundation. He is also qualified as an eco designer for permaculture systems and wastewater management. He has done design, planning and project management in many eco projects and supports farming communities with training on permaculture and waste & wastewater management.
Made holds a degree in Architecture from Bina Wahana University (class of 2002). He trained at IDEP Foundation and Green School on Permaculture Design Course Training. Within Sawah Bali, Made is the Project Manager and is responsible for field activity planning, training farmers in permaculture methods, and managing accounting and budgeting for the organization.
Kadek Suardika
Farmer Liason & Permaculture Assistant
In his youth, Kadek worked alongside his grandparents on their small farm when he wasn’t in school. To pay for his education, Kadek worked on construction sites, took odd jobs wherever he could find them, and learned sculpture.
In 2004, he got married. His wife’s parents had no farmland, but made a good living buying and selling rice from farmers. Kadek began to think about how he could make his land more productive, and began consulting other farmers about how to cultivate his property. Meanwhile, he worked as a driver and tourist guide. He would work in the rice paddy for an hour in the morning, go work, and return in the evening.
In 2010 he harvested his first rice crop, which was startlingly large for the size of his land. Since then, he has encouraged people to farm part-time and earn profits from their land. Due to his achievements, he was elected to serve as the Pekaseh - the head of the subak - in his village of Petulu.
Rice is the staple food of Bali, and Kadek would like to work to make Bali self-sufficient in food. He is dedicated to learning more about farming and organic systems, and about how to improve farmers’ efficiency and results. Kadek is a new type of farmer in Bali, integrating permaculture and new business ideas with traditional farming techniques and concepts.
Annie Harold
Program Manager
Annie graduated in 2012 from Macalester College with a degree of her own invention titled Environmental Justice. Her curriculum brought diverse subjects together with the goal of creating a framework for building a more holistic, inclusive and accessible environmental movement.
After graduating, she moved to Maine, where she worked as a sustainability consultant for a structural engineering company and volunteered teaching gardening, cooking, nutrition and environmental education in underserved schools.
Annie is responsible for delegating tasks and tracking progress on their completion, responding to inquiries, finding local partners, and leading outreach initiatives. She developed and oversees our volunteer program, which places people of all ages in homestays with farming families and offers participants an immersive education in tropical permaculture while they help out on our demonstration farm. Annie brings her dedication to sustainability, technological savvy and love for good fresh food to the team.
Made Adhi Pratama
Translator
Adhi Pratama is a student majoring International Relations. Mostly focusing his study on US Foreign Policy and Pop Culture, Adhi also has a lot of interest in Culture in International Relations. He has had broad experiences as Liaison Officer for foreign dignitaries on several international meetings, such as Bali Democracy Forum, High Level Panel on Post MDGs Agenda, and lastly APEC SME meetings where he was assisting Under-Secretary Francisco Sanchez.
He was also a translator for the UNESCO World Heritage Booklet Plans. Currently, he is the Co-founder and Director of Technology & Operations in the newly-established The EDGEline Student Publication.
Adhe Pradipta
Translator
Adhe Pradipta was born in Malang, Indonesia in 1992. He studied in President University majoring in accounting for a year in 2009. Adhe continued his studying in Udayana University in 2010 majoring in international relations. The issue of economics, Europe, and security had been his focus of study.
As a Balinese, Adhe is deeply concerned about ecological issues in Bali. Especially, the issue of rice field conversion and water supply in Bali. He had participated as research assistant in multiple studies about Subak, land conversion, and forest conservation.
Darby has retired as President and now holds a position as Special Assistant for Donor and Government Relations. His experience with land conservation spans four decades, with much of that time spent as staff to the Vermont Land Trust where he served as General Counsel and President.
Darby's experience includes serving on the Board of the Land Trust Alliance and numerous state advisory roles. He is widely considered a leader in the land trust movement.
Darby Bradley
Former President of the Vermont Land Trust
Alison Cohen has over 25 years corporate and consulting experience as an organizational development practitioner, facilitator, project leader, mentor, instructor and coach. She has worked internationally with corporate, government and not-for-profit clients, where she helps organizations turn strategy into reality through practical change management.
Alison applies her extensive business abilities to numerous community development programs on an international basis, by advising, developing, leading and implementing humanitarian programs. She has led/ developed/advised and/or lead education, community development and literacy programs in Guyana; Sri Lanka (post tsunami); Haiti (post earthquake) South Africa; Nepal, and worked with disadvantaged refugee youth in Canada.
Alison is a founding member of Facilitators without Borders where she worked with the Somali and Zimbabwe refugees in Toronto to address issues facing their communities.
She holds a graduate business degree focused on Human Resources Management. Alison’s interest in multi-cultural issues has been enhanced by her cycling trips though 16 countries in South East Asia; an Outward Bound experience in Lesotho and her formative life experiences growing up in South Africa. Her permanent home is in Toronto, Canada, but she can be found travelling the globe on a regular basis.
Alison Cohen
Matisse Management Consultants Inc.
Robert has been with the Vermont Chapter since it first hired staff in 1979. Bob has at one time or another handled all of the jobs currently being done by the Vermont staff, and he has extensive contacts with landowners, government agency directors, donors, and conservationists in Vermont and the region.
In April 2013 Bob stepped down as the longest serving State Director in the Conservancy, a post he held for 34 years, and is now focusing on donor relations and board development in his final year with the Conservancy.
In his free time, which he hopes to have more of soon, Bob pursues photography, videography, hiking, motorcycling, and other outdoor interests.
Robert Klein
Director of Special Projects / Former State Director of
The Nature Conservancy Vermont
Dr. Lee Koppelman
Master Planner & Director, Center for Regional Policy Studies at
State University of NY, Stony Brook
Dr. Lee Koppelman has been a pioneer in land conservation for over 55 years. In public service he was the Director of the Suffolk County Planning Department (1960-1988) and concurrently he was the Executive Director of the Nassau-Suffolk County Regional Planning Board (1965-2006).
He had a particular challenge for the post-war burgeoning of Long Island's population, rapid development, transportation needs, existing rich agricultural lands and managing water resources. His innovative and ground breaking land use tools, policies and master plans shaped a lot of how conservation is still executed today.
He has long been a proponent to preserve wetlands and this led to the now accepted thinking that wetlands are more than just waste land. In 1972, this groundbreaking idea led to the creation of New York State's Tidal and Wetland Act.
His concern for the environment can be traced to the necessity for providing clean and potable drinking water for Long Island. His policies were built around the reduction of environmental contamination, including landfills, fertilizer and pesticide use and storage of gas and oil. This led directly to preserving the Pine Barrens region to further protect the ground water (1971) in perpetuity . All of his preservation plans emerged from rigorous scientific data. This research provided the political arena the will to support his planning projects.
The development threat to the fertile Long Island farmland was staggering. Long Island feeds all of New York State with its coastal micro - climate. Food security as well as a "sense of place" propelled Dr. Koppelman to devise new land use tools, namely covenants (restriction on development) These tools became the vocabulary and working strategies for agricultural land conservation entities, known today as Land Trusts.
Dr. Koppelman's doctoral thesis focused on Coastal Zone Management making him a unique fit for Long Island as well as for Sawah Bali.
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Patricia Pedreira
MA ATR
Patricia Pedreira received her B.A. in painting from Marlboro College and her M.A. from Lesley College in Expressive Arts Therapy. As an art therapist in the Boston area, she created multi-disciplinary arts programming for several community mental health agencies as well as established an arts-in-therapy program for an outpatient clinic in Newton, Mass.
In 1992, Patricia moved to North Bennington, VT and co-founded The Vermont Arts Exchange (VAE), an arts and community development organization that provides studio-based arts education, performances and exhibit opportunities for people of all ages and incomes. Located at The Sage Street Mill in North Bennington, VAE is dedicated to bringing arts programming to people of all ages, incomes, and ability levels. A catalyst for the historic preservation of the Mill, and a community wide clean-up of Paran Creek, the Vermont Arts Exchange has become known throughout the State for its community development initiatives that place the arts at the center of economic development, historic preservation, and neighborhood revitalization efforts through private and public partnerships.
In 1996, Patricia's leadership was recognized with an arts fellowship award from the NEFA Building Community Through Culture Initiative. Patricia has served on the board of the Vermont Arts Council, as a committee member of the New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) Culture in Community Fund and as an advisor to the Massachusetts Cultural Council's Cultural Economic Development program.
In 2004, Patricia organized a consortium of arts and healthcare organizations and developed The Healing Arts: New Pathways To Health, a regional arts and healing partnership project that utilizes the arts as a key tool to improve the health of people living with chronic psychiatric and physical illnesses and disabilities at hub healthcare sites throughout New England.
Her work has been recognized with awards from groups that include: The New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA), The Better Bennington Corporation, The Preservation Trust of Vermont and the Sunrise Family Resource Center.
Patricia is inspired by opportunities to work with people from different disciplines and sectors to include the arts in projects that have a positive impact on people, places, and neighborhoods. "My most rewarding work has been on local and regional projects that engage citizens and youth, and bring together varied partners from the arts, housing, community development, finance and healthcare fields to improve community health."
Kathryn Hipple
Noosphere Marketing
Kathy, a graduate of Marlboro’s Sustainability MBA, is a founding partner of Noosphere Marketing: visionary marketing for visionary organizations. She helps organizations and throughout the world market their efforts to improve the world.
She is a founding member of the Generative Council, a group of women leaders. She has an extensive background on Wall Street, where she worked with international institutional clients at Merrill Lynch, and in local media, where she served on the national board of the Local Search Association.
Her current professional work focuses on how finance can promote social and environmental good.
Marilyn Ryba
Project Manager at Shelter Planning and Development Inc.
Marilyn’s defining life path choice evolved during the 1970’s crucial awakening of the need for environmental conservation in the United States. The first in her family to attend college, she was encouraged by her mother to select course work that would challenge her and allow her to grow in this yet to be firmly established movement. Course work choices for land use planning and environmental studies were somewhat limited at that time, yet “geography” encompassed the cultural, natural sciences, and sociological aspects of the world that was opening up to her through travel and study. She continued her studies after a ten year period of dedicated work as regional land use planner, graduating from Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute with a Master’s Degree in Urban and Environmental Studies.
Over the past four decades, Marilyn has worked as a land use planner, community developer, nonprofit organizer, college adjunct faculty member, and grant writer. Her volunteer time has been assisting the Queensbury Land Conservancy, and serving as a board member for several affordable housing .
Her business motto, “Combining the vision of planning with the reality of funding to help communities grow,” was created as a result of her success in obtaining grant assistance to implement the duly created and recognized planning efforts of the various organizations that truly wanted to achieve their goals.
She has always believed that environmental conservation and economic development are not polarized choices, but can be joined as a commitment to people and the places in which they live.
Ms. Ryba is a project manager with Shelter Planning & Development, Inc., a small yet long-time established business working with municipalities throughout New York State. She is proud of her success in helping communities with funding for needs as diverse as sewer upgrades, modifications to homes for handicapped accessibility, and obtaining just one of 26 nationwide U.S. Housing & Urban Development Regional Sustainable Planning Grants to address the present and future needs in the area in which she currently resides.
shelterplanning3@albany.twcbc.com
Robert Woolmington, Esq.
Robert Woolmington is a land-use attorney in the State of Vermont, USA. He has extensive experience in conservation planning. His work includes representing landowners, conservation organizations and public bodies in structuring legal arrangements to preserve agricultural use of land. Mr. Woolmington has provided consulting advice to Sawah Bali.