A Village of Earthen Houses in Vietnam

Nestled at the foot of a mountain range in the northern province of Ha Giang, Vietnam, Lo Lo Chai Village is comprised of mostly earthen houses. With their rammed-earth walls, tiled roofs and stone fences, the houses are typical architecture of the local Lo Lo ethnic community. Thanks to its charming culture and unique architecture, … Read more

Beach House in Oregon has Many Natural Features

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

The Forestiere Underground Gardens

Tucked underground in Fresno, California, is an amazing cavernous creation carved by one industrious Italian Immigrant named Baldassare Forestiere. Known as the Forestiere Underground Gardens, the estate is now open to the public to inspect, and is well worth the trip.Around 1900 Baldassare bought over 20 acres of land where he intended to cultivate a … Read more

House Without Shoes in Costa Rica

Located on a 2.5 acre permaculture farm in Costa Rica’s Diamante Valley, the “House Without Shoes” is a Superadobe earthbag complex made up of three interconnected domes, which are joined by an open-air deck that looks out over the stunning valley and ocean views. The main dome, which is approximately 22-feet high, houses the primary … Read more

Waldorf School in Germany Has Many Natural Features

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