As part of the Silver City Clay Festival, Jeff Leblanc conducted a three-day cob workshop on his property, introducing the attendees to the basics of building cob walls and plastering them. There were nine participants, most of them thinking that they might well utilize cob techniques in building a residence. Jeff has lived in the … Read more
An article entitled “Typical wildfire recovery is ‘rebuilding to burn’, but there’s another way” makes the point that instead of rebuilding burned houses with the same mainstream concepts that continue to be vulnerable to fires, people should look toward more naturally fire-resistant methods, such as strawbale, cob, adobe, stone, etc. Not only are these methods … Read more
“Permaculture uses systems thinking and design principles to consciously design ‘landscapes which mimic the patterns and relationships found in nature, while yielding an abundance of food, fibre and energy for provision of local needs’” (David Holmgren) but one might think it go beyond this definition. EDGE EFFECT is a feature length documentary by Ana Sany … Read more
As an engineering student in Cairo, Radwa Rostom realized that she wanted to improve the quality of life for the local residents, many of whom live in poverty. She trained with environmental engineering companies, seeking to acquire the technical skills to make her dreams a reality. She would later work for an environmental consultancy firm, … Read more
On the table in front of them is the lunch they’ve prepared, which includes chili made from road-kill deer, an egg-and-goat-cheese frittata from the goats and chickens in their yard, beets they received in a trade with their Amish neighbors, and some greens they stored through the winter in a root cellar made out of … Read more
Students at Colorado State University-Pueblo have found a natural and stylish way to keep cool. Under the tutelage of Maya Avina, a CSU-Pueblo art professor, they have constructed a cob bench. “It was a group of seven students – all women – and myself,” Avina said.“It’s a growing trend to use natural materials for building … Read more