People often say of green building projects that they aren’t affordable. This is true if you’re shooting to live in a glittering LEED certified urban high rise in Dubai or Saudi Arabia, but if you belong to the 99% of the population who wants a relatively simple, soulful home in which to hang a few plants, grow some herbs and vegetables, tap into the sun, and live in peace without wondering if the electricity is going to get shut off, then this post is for you. Here are six sustainably-built structures that cost very little to build. Some have been around for hundreds of years and a couple of them are new, but in each case they are accessible to everyone.   

1. Syria’s Beehives

Starting with the oldest first, it doesn’t get much more affordable than these awesome beehived-shaped buildings in Syria that require no air conditioning in order to stay cool. Granted, few people in the 21st century are going to sign up for a home that looks like this, although Earth Architecture claims that 50% of the world’s population already lives in something similar, but the fact that they have survived 3,700BC despite being constructed purely out of mud bricks that are almost free if you don’t count the labor required to make and stack them.

2. Yemen’s Manhattan

This UNESCO World Heritage Site in Yemen has survived hundreds of years. Known as the “Manhattan of the desert” and located in the Shibam district of Hadramaut province, it consists of 437 tall clay towers, of which 400 are still habitable. Although it is uncertain when most of these buildings were originally built, evidence suggests that one of the mosques was constructed during the reign of Abbasid Caliph Harun al Rashid (786-809). Efforts are underway to fix up the buildings that have succumbed to nature’s wrath, but given that they are constructed of locally-sourced earth, they cost significantly less to build than their concrete, steel, or glass equivalent.

3. Nader Khalili’s Earth Bags

Not only are Nader Khalili’s earth bag homes cheap to build, but they’re also fit for space! The Iranian architect spent many years researching a building method that would be suitable for space, but that are also perfectly great on our own planet too. Like the Syrian beehive homes, they are slightly conical in shape except instead of using mud bricks, Khalili promoted building with sacks filled with earth and held together with barbed wire. Finished off with earth-friendly lime, these homes are still incredibly affordable and don’t require an arsenal of architects to get off the ground.

4. Off-Grid Earth Bags

Perhaps taking her cue from Khalili, a British writer decided to build her dream home on a 6,500 square foot plot of land in Turkey using earth bag construction techniques. She did it, including solar power and rainwater harvesting in the plan, for only $3,761. Now this is still a lot of money for some of the world’s most unfortunate, but something like this is definitely within just about everyone’s realm of possibility if they have the patience to do it slowly over time.

5. Earth Architecture

The link to this last post actually leads to a story about David Sheen, a Canadian-Israeli who set out to make a free film about earth architecture projects all over the world. It was an incredibly ambitious undertaking that demonstrates just how widely used this method of building really is. But the first image – and the place that Sheen first nurtured his passion for earth-friendly building techniques – depicts a beautiful home on Kibbutz Lotan in Israel – one of the foremost leaders in all things “eco.”

6. Recycled Guesthouse

This building isn’t the sexiest of them all, but in some ways, it is the most groundbreaking. A former science teacher concerned about how he would survive his retirement built a guesthouse out of scrap materials that he collected at local construction sites. And instead of hiring a pile of East Asian workers to do the elbow greasing, he taught himself how to install the electric and plumbing infrastructure. It took him 7 years, but he built this guesthouse for half of what it costs most people and now he rents it out for over $500 a day!

Now that you’ve seen that it’s possible, are you inspired to build your own home without breaking the bank?

The post 6 Green Buildings That Won’t Break the Bank appeared first on Green Prophet.

Through his free movie First Earth David Sheen is passing on the positive transformation that occurred in his life after learning about ecological architecture.  

When David Sheen first decided to make a film that depicts the history, necessity, and straight-up sensibility of ecological architecture, he had no idea what a massive task he had set for himself. It took four years to scout out both ancient and contemporary natural homes on four continents and hundreds of hours of footage to create First Earth – Uncompromising Ecological Architecture.

Remarkably, the Canadian-born Israeli designer and reporter has never sought fame or fortune. Instead, he hopes to pass on to everyone, regardless of their demographic, the positive transformation that learning about healthy homes has created in his life. First Earth has been translated into 12 different languages and costs absolutely nothing to watch. This is not a trick – we promise.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFTwnTbLPBU[/youtube]

Pursuing a more meaningful life

Sheen explained in a Skype interview with Green Prophet that he moved to Tel Aviv from Canada in 1999 and worked as a Graphic Designer. In time the conventional consumer lifestyle in Tel Aviv lost its meaning and he sought out a new place to pursue a healthier, more natural lifestyle.

“Kibbutz Lotan really appealed to me on a gut level,” he said.

A decade ago, Kibbutz Lotan in Israel’s Negev desert – now a world-famous center for all things ecological – was just beginning to experiment with green building projects. Sheen was lucky to be among the first on this exciting new scene.

After six months of building healthy homes at the Kibbutz, he then decided to return to Canada to deepen his knowledge and pursue a Masters in Architecture at the University of Toronto.

Learning the ropes in the United States

But it became apparent very quickly that Sheen’s ideas were too unconventional for the University’s industrial architecture curriculum, so he enrolled at the North American School of Natural Building in the United States instead.

“It was amazing,” he said. But it wasn’t easy. Sheen had to adjust to living in Oregon’s dense, wet forests and to building with his own hands and feet. Then he did an apprenticeship with a leading ecological building firm called TSUI Design.

It was while he was traveling up and down the west coast to visit other natural homes that Sheen began to document what he was learning. “Most people who were involved with natural building didn’t know how to disseminate their knowledge using modern technology,” he explained. So he decided to bridge the gap between these two worlds – seemingly at odds with each other.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoSdnMEhRa0[/youtube]

Telling the whole story

He traveled to Ghana, Ethiopia, England, Europe, and Yemen, where he witnessed first hand the incredible “Manhattan of the Desert” mud towers that have survived hundreds of year, among other places, to gather material for his film.

“I’m a perfectionist,” he said. “I wanted to tell the whole story.” And that is exactly what he has done in the most comprehensive cinematic overview of earth architecture – from its origins to its future – that we have seen.

Sheen is not independently wealthy and had very little funding to make this incredible resource available to the wider public. But he did receive a lot of help from friends and others – a little bit of money here, a few airline miles there, and time.

“They believed in what I was doing,” he said.

First Earth demonstrates that using local, renewable building materials with a low carbon footprint and intelligent design to reduce energy requirements is not only good for “eco-freakos” – everyone can benefit from this knowledge. And we have done for thousands of years.

12 Chapters from the heart

There are 12 chapters, beginning with What’s Wrong With Architecture. Sheen unravels the evolution of architecture from the ancient, sustainable model to the contemporary industrial model that usurps far too many natural resources.

He then moves on to depict examples of African and American natural buildings before proceeding to European, Arabian, Urban, and International earth projects. There are several other chapters in between that are very easy to follow thanks to handy sub titles.

Anyone interested in earth bag construction, building with cob, or any other kind of natural building materials and methods should visit David Sheen’s website and enjoy – one chapter at a time – a project that was compiled with a whole lot of heart.

:: David Sheen

More on Ecological Architecture From the Middle East:

13 Principles of Sustainable Architecture From Nader Khalili Student

Iranian Architect Nader Khalili Built Earth Architecture Fit for Space

Woman Builds Off-Grid Earth Bag Home for Just $3,761

The post Free Movie: First Earth – Uncompromising Ecological Architecture appeared first on Green Prophet.

Anyone who is interested to transition to a more sustainable way of life will benefit from Kibbutz Lotan’s comprehensive eco-guide app.

Many socially and environmentally conscious citizens dream about leaving the grid for good and getting back in touch with nature, but the general lack of sustainable infrastructure and available information in the Middle East – especially compared to the United States and Europe – makes that task seem completely insurmountable.

In response to this problem, Kibbutz Lotan’s Center for Creative Ecology in Israel, which is recognized as one of the world’s most advanced pioneers in all aspects of sustainable living, recently launched a fantastic eco-guide that covers everything from composting to earth architecture and how to get along in an ecologically-minded community.

Best of all, the techniques described in the application have all been put into practice in the Middle East, so instead of being an imported solution that has no relevance to our climate or circumstances, this is an exceptional homegrown resource created by and for ecologically-minded people in the Middle East – like our very own Green Sheikh. And did we mention that it’s free?

Some of the topics covered in this guide include:

• Permaculture
• Organic Gardening
• Earth Building
• Minimum to Zero Impact Cooking
• Water Conservation
• Compost Toilets
• Passive Design Techniques
• Community and Ecology

The app – which is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad and requires an iOS of 4.3 or later – was designed by a Kibbutz Lotan intern named Eli Gregory, who according to the Director of Research and Development Alex Cicelsky is “minded and talented”  and “combined [Lotan’s] work and Permaculture/ Sustainable Communities curriculum into this free resource.”

(As of 2025 the app was discontinued but we are keeping this article up for the archives).

Within each chapter are subchapters devoted to all of the small details of sustainable living. For example, under the organic gardening section, readers can learn about composting, vermicomposting (with worms), natural liquid fertilizer, seed balls, mulching and more. It’s possible to find recipes for earth plasters, straw bale construction, and other natural materials.

This is an extremely accessible and practical resource which demonstrates that living the good life – what’s good for both humans and the earth – is less out of reach than most people would believe. There’s only one snag… even though the app is free, you have to have iTunes in order to make it yours.

The post Kibbutz Lotan’s Free Eco-Guide App Makes Getting Back to Nature a Breeze appeared first on Green Prophet.