Education

Biochar Helps Lime-Based Building Materials Capture More Carbon While Gaining Strength

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A carefully optimized dose of fine biochar improves both carbon dioxide uptake and compressive strength in natural hydraulic lime, offering a promising low-carbon material for historic building restoration and sustainable construction. Natural hydraulic lime has been used for centuries in masonry and restoration because it is compatible with traditional building materials and can absorb carbon … Read more

The Women’s Natural Building Collective in Portugal

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The Women’s Natural Building Collective in Portugal is run by a core group of experienced natural builders. They organize workshops for people to learn how to build ecological houses with local natural materials like earth, straw and timber. They discovered that there was something undeniably magical about the way they work and communicate together when … Read more

Saudi Arabia Returns to Earthen Materials for Building

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Clay has shaped Saudi Arabia’s architecture for centuries. Now, as the Kingdom’s construction boom accelerates, the ancient material is making a comeback as developers seek healthier, lower-carbon building finishes. The renewed interest reflects a broader shift in Saudi Arabia’s construction sector, where sustainability has become as important as speed and scale. From the restoration of … Read more

A True Adobe Home in Los Angeles

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The Alice Lynch House in Los Angeles was built in 1922 and is a rare example of the true adobe building technique, made with traditional stacked sun-dried mud blocks. The house was built using Mexican craftsmen skilled in the old methods. This is a two-story, roughly 2,500-square-foot home organized in a U-shape around a central courtyard. … Read more

Student Dedicated to Sustainable Building

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“After my senior year of high school, I was living in Tanzania and noticed traditional building techniques were being replaced by foreign techniques that didn’t fit into the environment,” Ayodele Washington says. “So I learned about the traditional architecture of the Maasai house, which is basically a mud hut. They have been used for hundreds … Read more

A Couple Build a Cob House in Texas

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For most of her adult life, Arielle Crawford has focused on sustainability and holistic living. She taught sustainable manufacturing and made sure to eat organic foods and wear natural, breathable fibers whenever possible. Still, she didn’t give much thought to the apartment she lived in—until the COVID-19 pandemic hit. “I saw the walls and thought, … Read more