Inspired by how birds build their nests, Jack Becker and Andrew Linn wove the partition walls of their Grass House out of willows and built the structure from bamboo. As the first code-compliant bamboo home in the US, the tall and thin ADU feels different. When you enter the space, it smells of drying grasses, … Read more
Daniel and Katherine Ray first came across cob houses when they were in college. “We stumbled across a photo of a cob house in Wales and we got really interested, so we started collecting lots of pictures of other people’s cob houses. It was a pot-shot dream that we really wanted to do,” Ray said. … Read more
Freya’s House is an off-grid green building that showcases multiple natural building techniques from straw bale, cob, and rammed earth walls, to earthen floors, a green roof, and reclaimed, salvaged and locally sourced materials. It uses solar power for electricity, a legal composting toilet, and on-site greywater filtration. The house is located at O.U.R Ecovillage … Read more
Earthbag construction is gaining traction in Kenya as an alternative to traditional building materials such as wood, iron sheets, or stones. Real estate investors are increasingly embracing this technique. By utilizing earthbags, developers can easily access the necessary resources and construct structures affordably. Earthbag construction begins by utilizing on-site fill materials, which typically consist of … Read more
On a back alley in Washington DC where only a few weed trees grew between derelict cars, Andrew and Hannah Linn erected a totally compostable house of bamboo, cork, wool and wood as a healthy, and affordable, home for their growing family. “For over a century, people lived in hundreds of wooden homes in DC’s … Read more
Just outside of Taos, NM at the Veterans Off- Grid property, Mark Goldman, the coordinator for the UNM-Taos Construction Technology program, shares his views about sustainable building practices and the transformative power it holds for both aspiring builders and the environment. Goldman wants to see more affordable, hybrid and natural building methods used, while preparing … Read more