The city of Jaisalmer is in the desert of Rajasthan, India, near the Pakistan border. Jaisalmer Fort is a UNESCO World Heritage Site where thousands of people live and hundreds of thousands of tourists visit each year. King Rawal Jaisal built the fabled fort in 1156. With exterior walls that span some 1,500 feet, the … Read more
Young communards in the backwoods of Vermont and high plains of Taos knew that surviving in frigid climes meant something better than teepees and log huts. With well-worn Whole Earth catalogues as guides, they began figuring it out. Back then “Save the Trees” was a mantra uniting the movement. Northern New Mexico’s earthen homes were … Read more
Starting in 2024, new homes in England will have to make sure their projects deliver at least a 10% biodiversity net gain. Helen Nyul, group biodiversity manager for one developer, describes what has been done at one recent development. “We’ve got the house marten nesting cups which are on the side of the front end … Read more
After selling his company for eight figures to a competitor, Marcel LeBrun is using his profit to build a community of tiny homes for those who need it most. In Fredericton, Canada, his factory is churning out 1 tiny home every 4 business days in order to create the 12 Neighbors gated community of 99 … Read more
The Imagina cultural center on the outskirts of León, Mexico, is housed in a big, multistory facility, constructed mostly from locally dug adobe soil; it is engineered using bioconstruction techniques, a holistic building technique that aims to achieve a circular economy, minimizing waste and benefiting people. In fact, all 3,500 square meters (about 37,700 square … Read more
Maison Melba is a unique architectural project that involves the renovation of a rural building nestled in the heart of the meadows and orchards of the Village of Frelighsburg in southern Quebec. The former 1970s automobile garage has been transformed into a living space that is open to the community and the development of collaborative … Read more