“First Steps Himalaya constructed an earthbag Education and Training Centre just prior to the massive earthquake that hit Nepal on 25th April 2015. The building was constructed using proven earthbag construction methods utilizing polypropylene sacks, barbed wire, steel rebar and earth. The building stood up to the 7.9 magnitude earthquake as well as a 6.5 magnitude local earthquake that followed soon after.
safe
Houses in Nepal: Gone in the Twinkling of an Eye
Imagine a builder who spent their whole life building houses in their town for family, friends and other people they know.
The Art and Science of Natural Plaster
“We just launched “The Art and Science of Natural Plaster” on Kickstarter. For the last months, Chris Magwood and I have been pouring our lives into this educational documentary. We want to help more people to know about Natural Plaster and all it’s beneficial effects on us and the environment. We want to empower you with a real practical how-to video.
EcoBatt Green Insulation
“Knauf EcoBatt™ Insulation doesn’t look like any insulation you’ve ever seen, but that’s because its natural brown color represents a level of sustainability never before achieved.
Re.source Household Toilets
“We’re designing an ultra-low-cost toilet around removable containers that make it easy to collect and transport wastes safely from the community. We know from many conversations with residents of Shada that a good toilet is a symbol of cleanliness and modernity. Beyond being odorless, hygienic, and vector-free, our toilet needs to be elegant, modern, and pleasant to use. And it needs to be cheap. To that end, our toilet combines a 20-L bucket, a liquid container, and a western-style toilet seat into a sealed, portable, urine-diverting toilet.
Where the Haiti Relief Money Did and Did Not Go
A lot of our time and effort goes toward helping relief efforts in Haiti and other countries in need, so excuse me if this sounds like a rant. The following article truly disgusted me. The article breaks down how only a tiny amount out of several billion dollars in donations ever made it to help Haitians. This is appalling and shameful, and shouldn’t be allowed to happen. There needs to be a giant uproar over this to correct the situation, otherwise donors may not help in future crises. The good news is I believe there’s a fairly simple solution that could prevent this from happening again. I’ve outlined my “power to the people” proposal below after an excerpt from the article.