This Cannon Beach house, built in 2005, has a green roof planted in sedum and wild strawberries and is clad with cedar shakes. Architect Nathan Good’s clients wanted a home “that would be healthy to live in with a dramatically reduced impact on the environment.” Almost all of the wood was salvaged, wind fallen or … Read more
A German architectural firm, Mono Architekten, designed this uniquely natural building extension to an existing concrete school in Germany, with a cluster of curving larch-clad forms topped with sloping green roofs. The extension houses an after-school care center for the Waldorf School, and the design was intended to mirror the ideals of Waldorf-Steiner schools, which … Read more
Jakarta-based design studio RAW Architecture completed the School of Alfa Omega in the Indonesian city of Tangerang. This new school emphasizes a connection with the outdoors and is set on a former rice paddy. The school caters to 300 students ranging from preschool to high school. The architects designed modular classrooms of equal size that … Read more
Alosha Lynov established the Bio Veda Academy as a way to disseminate his knowledge about building what he calls a Living Bio Shelter Organism, along with holistic water treatment and cooperative eco-villages. Alosha studied Superadobe construction at CalEarth Institute in California, and what he teaches is somewhat based on their approach. He has combined Superadobe … Read more
In 1996, Raghava inherited a coconut plantation from his grandfather. Unlike his ancestors who had practiced agriculture for seven generations, Raghava, then an undergraduate, had no connection with the soil. “I grew up on a healthy diet of inspiring stories of local and international entrepreneurs. This was one of the reasons that motivated me to … Read more
A week long straw bale workshop near Ann Arbor, Michigan had 43 participants. “Building a straw bale home isn’t much different than a conventional home,” said Andrew Morrison, who created the workshop. “It uses regular foundations and floor frames, with posts and beams, and from there, workers stuff straw bales into the walls instead of … Read more