Intrepid earthbag researcher and advocate Patti Stouter sent me this remarkable photo taken in Nepal. She says, “I just got this photo from someone who helped build about 500 earthbag houses in Nepal after the quakes. This heavy truck had an accident and rolled off an adjacent mountain road and onto the roof of this … Read more
The origins of the Priory Palace located in Gatchina near St. Petersburg, Russia are linked to the history of the Order of Malta, one of the oldest chivalric orders of the Roman Catholic Church. Around 1800 AD the Priory Palace was designed by the architect and engineer Nikolay Lvov, who also supervised the construction. To … 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
The pavilion at the Luum Zamá development in Tulum, Mexico, will host a variety of programs, such as yoga, meditations, workshops and other community gatherings. The open-air structure was created by CO-LAB Design Studio with bamboo chosen for its sustainability credentials as well as its ability to resist hurricane forces. “Due to the carbon bamboo sequesters … Read more
China is sometimes called the “Kingdom of Bamboo,” because it is the world’s largest producer of the woody grass. But modern architecture has relegated bamboo to the “poor man’s timber.” Now, however, bamboo is being recognized as a superior building material for sustainable reasons. As environmental issues climb to the top of headlines, bamboo is … Read more
While this is far from being an example of natural building, it does demonstrate an interesting concept for habitat that automatically responds to weather. Professor Weiguo Xu of Tsinghua University and his team have built a tourist reception center in China that opens and closes in response to the weather.The structure is used as an … Read more