NEW COLONY
Mr Jon's house has a door and window but the only thing that divides the living area is a piece of fabric.
He started living on his land with no water or electricity supplies. He doesn't have savings but has plenty of plants, vegetables and fruit. While money is unstable and can go any time, plants and trees will always be there and continue to grow.
After four years of living his sustainable lifestyle, some people came to ask him about adobe houses. He saw this as an opportunity to educate people about how easy it is to have a house without having to rely on sophisticated engineering or expensive materials. He searched for books to study different techniques.
He learned that an adobe house's walls can be built free form with just clay or they can be built by clay bricks using wet clay as cement to glue them together. He was invited to many places as a guest speaker to talk about sustainable living and adobe houses.
Mr Jon didn't accept money as a guest speaker. He just asked for transportation money to get him to different places. As he became well known locally and internationally, many foreigners came to see him and asked him to teach them how to build an adobe house.
More than 70% of people who asked him for help were foreigners. He helped them and demonstrated how to build a house. Some even built houses on his plot of land and remain in the area.
The colony kept growing. About 20 people now live in the same compound with him. He practises equality by having no community leader. Everyone eats the same food at the same time after it is prepared by a family at the central canteen.
"We have both Thais and foreigners living with us as one big family. We have no fights over who is better. We are all equal. Kids here don't go to school and are home-schooled by their parents. They may not be academically smart but they do know how to survive in the real world," Mr Jon said.