It was all there, and more: North Carolina, as I experienced it, was a study in contrast.

I hopped off the train in Durham, which is right smack in the middle of North Carolina and home to Duke University. Durham’s neighbor cities, Raleigh and Chapel Hill, are each within a few miles; locals call it “the Triangle,” and commute frequently between towns.

That’s where the area’s main problem lies: commuting. These towns, built on tobacco and once connected by fields, weren’t designed for the 21st century. But as they grew in concert, more and more roads were built: now, the Triangle is almost impossible to navigate without an automobile. Vast open spaces are bordered by wide roads. No sidewalks, few central areas… just a lot of cars.

It took me about five minutes to realize that Durham was a car town—and 45 more to procure a carton of milk and a little food for the night. To find eats, I had to hike down to the strip mall; cross a massive, empty parking lot; and wander through a ridiculously huge outlet store (which, luckily, was open late and had a grocery section).

Despite the hassle, I was undeniably happy. As I left my hotel, it started raining: a warm, fragrant rain that I’d rarely experienced out West. By the time I got to that gigantic parking lot, it was transformed: a river flowed across the sealed blacktop, lit orange by the streetlights, steaming gently. Frogs croaked, and the air was heavy with the odor of flowers and grass. It was beautiful, and it was new. I was in the South!

Kirsten and CJ

I’d stopped in Durham to visit Kirsten Hausman, who (aside from being Larry’s daughter and therefore a step-cousin of some sort) is an environmental crusader in her own right. She’s a Director at Green Plus, a program of the Institute for Sustainable Development. Their mission: to set standards for sustainability in business, and help people meet them.

One of the issues the Institute for Sustainable Development cares about is the same one that confronted me: getting around the Triangle without a car.

Kirsten told me that the area is at a crossroads both literally and figuratively. People are moving around more, and populations are growing; more and more locals commute from one town to another. But the infrastructure to support all those cars hasn’t been completed.

Without careful planning, this area could become just another mass of strip malls—or, it can be guided successfully into a more sustainable future. Right now, that’s all up to the civic planners.

For now, we poor folks and carless freaks have to ride the bus.

Lucky for me, there was a bus stop next to the Target. When I got there, a woman loaded down with grocery bags was standing near the door. I asked her if she was getting on the bus.

“No,” she said, “that bus costs two dollars and I only got a dollar. I’m waiting for the next one in a half hour.”

I, carrying exact change for my own bus ticket, shrugged and climbed aboard. But the driver stopped me.

“She gettin’ on?”

“I don’t think so,” I told him. I explained what she’d said.

As I sat down, the bus driver was unbuckling his seat belt; I watched through the window as he got off the bus and convinced that woman to come ride the bus for free. He even carried her bag for her.

That’s what it comes down to, in this part of the world: you might be poor, you might be carless, but you won’t be stranded. Not if someone is around to help.

I was to encounter this attitude more and more frequently as I moved through the South, but here it really shocked me. That just wouldn’t happen in my beloved San Francisco, where people are more in the habit of stepping over others than stopping to help. It gave me something to think about.

And I had plenty of time to think, riding the bus all over Creation.

Ultimately, the Triangle wasn’t for me. I had two delicious meals with Kirsten and the family, then hopped a bus to Asheville. See you there next.

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Post tags: community, design, Durham, ecotravel, green building, green living, green plus, North Carolina, sustainable, transportation, travel, weather

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On Monday, I started my month-long internship at Earthship Biotecture. Earthships are self-sufficient houses that use recycled materials in their construction, and that are equipped with systems for rainwater catchment, solar and wind power, water reuse, waste control, and food production. What does that mean? It means that once you build an Earthship, you never have to pay an electricity or water bill again. Ever.

Don’t believe me? Good, because I can’t explain it all in a single blog entry. Go read the Earthship website instead, and then watch Garbage Warrior.

I’ve been working on site at the visitor’s center, which was constructed in the 90s as a demonstration building. That’s the entrance in the first photo. Earthships don’t look like much on the outside, but on the inside they’re really lovely.

 
The main room is filled with posters & diagrams of the various Earthship models and systems, plus a demonstration video and press books.

Yes, the TV runs off solar power collected from the roof panels. There are computers running in here too, and an extension cord stretching over to the building site, where it powers all the tools. With enough panels, you can have as much power as you like, even in cloudy areas.

What’s great about this design, however, is how little energy is really being used. Natural light makes it so you don’t need lightbulbs in the daytime, and even in extreme weather the building maintains an even temperature through passive solar heat and thermal mass. Today was cold and windy outdoors, but totally comfortable inside.

Bottle walls are one of the coolest features of Earthship design. They’re literally trash stuck in mud, but they create this beautiful stained-glass effect. That’s the bathroom door, and in front of it is a demonstration water cistern.

Less glamorous but much more important is the Power Organizing Module, which processes all the incoming power and sends it out as DC or AC. Normally this wall would be plastered, but the tires and cans were left exposed so visitors can see the construction technique.

All Earthships have indoor greenhouse areas, which are used for growing flowers and food. The food production techniques are still being perfected, but the ultimate goal is to make it so that you don’t need to buy groceries. It’s pretty amazing to look out over this healthy garden and see how dry and desolate the outside world is.

By the way: look at that window again. See the wooden arch at the far left? That’s part of the new construction.

This structure, and the identical one next to it, are part of Mike Reynolds‘ new additions to the visitor center. You can see that the walls are made of tires stacked like bricks; tires are filled with rammed earth (aka “dirt”) to make them incredibly solid, strong, and temperature-resistant. Non-load-bearing walls are made of cans & bottles, stuck together with cement and adobe.

This wall is just getting started, but you can see the design taking shape. The cans will be plastered over, but bottles will have their ends exposed to let in the light.

Once the wall’s thickness is determined, the bottles are cut with a tile saw and the two fat ends taped together. Then you just cement them in.

But before you can get to the fancy stuff, the tires have to be pounded! That’s what we’re doing at the big building, which will eventually become the new visitor center.

That’s my fellow intern Andrew off to the right, showing how it’s done. Yep, a shovel and a sledgehammer and lots of elbow grease. These things are seriously labor-intensive; pounding one tire takes 15-20 minutes for experienced (and acclimated) workers, so for us green kids from lower elevations, it’s taking half an hour per tire.

That’s Tim, the crew member who’s been managing us, working out the levels. Technically, this is a decorative (non-structural) bottle wall so it doesn’t have to be perfect. But sometimes it’s nice—actually, necessary—to stop hammering for a minute, so we’ve been getting everything good and even.

Tim and the other crew members have been amazingly patient and supportive while Andrew and I learn the ropes and build our strength. Working at 7500 feet can be totally exhausting, and when the winds are high it’s hard to catch a deep breath. But we’re learning and getting stronger, and benefiting from all the knowledge around us. Everyone on the crew lives in an Earthship, and many of them built their own houses. They’re professional and creative, and easy to talk to. I feel lucky to be here, even despite the sore muscles.

On that note, it’s off to bed for me. Tomorrow is a full day of tire-pounding on a new site, with all six interns. I’m gonna sleep all weekend!

© jessicareeder for Uprooted, an eco/travel blog, 2010. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: alternative, art, biotecture, design, earthship, Earthship Biotecture, earthships, ecotourism, energy-efficient, featured posts, garbage, green building, New Mexico, recycling, reuse, sustainable, Taos, volunteer, voluntourism

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Architecture is a topic that can be fascinating and compelling but often turns out dangerously dull—and green architecture is often downright boring. Part of the problem is that sustainable architecture is only available to the super-rich, who invest in eco-mansions while the masses are stuck in the same old houses with (yawn) upgraded lightbulbs.

Or so I thought. But then I decided to tour Boston’s green-building scene, and guess what I found?

Green Housing Projects

That’s right, Boston is home to one of America’s first LEED-certified affordable housing developments, Maverick Landing. Completed in 2005, this 426-unit mixed development replaces an ugly, run-down 1940s “superblock” that was giving all its residents asthma and chronic depression.

Now the block gleams with happy little buildings, backyard lawns, bike paths, a meeting center, park, playground, and the hands-down best views in Boston. It’s subway-accessible and designed for 77% low-income residency, including Section 8. Solar panels run the elevators and lights; interiors use low-VOC paints and natural flooring; air is ventilated and filtered; and recycled/eco-friendly materials are used throughout.

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Read the rest of Green Living Gets Real (435 words)

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Post tags: architecture, design, energy-efficient, featured posts, green building, green living, recycling, sustainable

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This is the Waterpod™.

If you live in New York—or if you’re a sustainability geek—you probably heard about this highly ambitious project: 5 artists living on a barge on the waterways of New York, creating their own food, water and shelter in a demonstration of sustainable technology. The Waterpod visited each borough of New York, hosting events and offering free demonstrations and information to all visitors.

Cool stuff, at least in theory. Apocalypse enthusiasts and Kevin Costner fans alike have long toyed with the idea of living on the water; finally, somebody (one Mary Mattingly) got up the gumption to try it. And as it prepared to launch this spring, everyone from Discover to Inhabitat was singing its praises.

However, by the time I arrived in NY, the project had gotten some mixed press. Questions of the barge’s true sustainability were rampant—and my interest was piqued.

I tried to find information on the technical details via the project’s website, but only found a lot of artist-speak and a long James Joyce quote about water. What was the Waterpod exactly, and was it actually a viable living space—or just a high-concept artpiece created by ambitious amateurs?

The answer, not surprisingly, was a little of both. What I found at the Waterpod was not so much a fully-functioning project as a demonstration of possibility. Maybe it doesn’t work perfectly, but it offers fantastic food for thought and a lot of inspiration.

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Read the rest of The Waterpod: life on a New York boat (883 words)

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Post tags: agritourism, alternative, art, biotecture, chickens, citizen science, design, diy, ecotourism, education, energy, energy-efficient, environment, experimental, farming, featured posts, gardening, green building, green living, habitat, New York, organic, permaculture, radical, recycling, reuse, river, solar, starving artists, sustainable, teaching, water

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I was going to write a post on the art of the underground bike scene, but these photos tell the story better themselves. So, for your Wednesday-morning consideration: the art, the fire, the fury and the girls of the bike world. Enjoy!

So you know what you’re looking at: the people in these photos have created everything you see with their own hands. They made their own bikes, costumes, hairdos, jackets, flamethrowers, circus rides and just about everything else they could think of. DIY, eat your heart out.

Big love to my friends pictured here, including Hollis, Eliza, Moses, Doyle, Big Daddy, Katy Bell, Cyclecide, Rat Patrol, Black Label, and oh Johnny Payphone do I see a bike or two of yours in there?

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Post tags: adventure, alternative, art, bicycle, biking, buy nothing, citizen science, community, counterculture, design, diy, fire, freegan, garbage, green living, outsider art, photography, radical, recycling, reuse, robots, starving artists, superhero, transportation

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Most places I visit, I stay a while; Chicago, however, was an exception. I would’ve liked to stay longer: the July sun was high and the neighborhood gardens were flourishing, and it seemed like the perfect time to run around a town I’d heard tons about. Plus, I wanted to hang out with some of my friends from the Rat Patrol. But we had places to go and people to see, and unfortunately they were all to our east.

Still, on my dash through the Windy City, I managed to get a glimpse of some of the things that make it unique. For example: did you know that Chicago’s City Hall has a green roof? I’d heard about it on e2, and been very impressed that a government office would be among the first to adopt such a forward-thinking technology.

Going to downtown Chicago made me realize something more: this is a city packed with incredible architecture. Here, the form of a building can be a cultural statement. City Hall’s roof, then, has a more-than-ecological impact: it’s Chicago’s way of showing support to the cause of sustainability, setting an example for other cities.

I couldn’t see the green roof in person, because there are no visitors allowed (a good idea to protect its ecosystem). So I concentrated more on what normal-folks are doing. I met Dorothee and Mark, from OrganicNation, to talk about our respective projects and future plans. I asked my host Evelina to show off her homegrown sprouts. I visited a couple of urban gardens, and drove out to see the Angelic Organics farm.

Since it was my first time in Chicago, I took a little time out for tourism too. Namely, a cheesy behemoth of a deep-dish pizza that took days to eat and wrecked my stomach and was completely delicious in every way.

All this happened in a couple of short, sunny days, and it’ll be the material for this week’s entries (well, maybe not the pizza). Come back soon to hear about how Chicago does Green.

© jessicareeder for Uprooted, an eco/travel blog, 2009. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: agritourism, biotecture, Chicago, design, ecotourism, energy-efficient, environment, green building, green roof, Illinois, photography, sustainable, tourism, travel

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It’s beautiful in Austin: Texas hill country, with low rolling treebanks as far as the eye can see. The Colorado River rambles through the middle of town, and scores of springs bring forth cool water even in the hottest months. You can hear great music wherever you go, and there’s art on every corner. But despite all this, Austin is TROUBLE.

This town, you see, is both too easy and too hard. Too easy, with its air conditioning and its liberal, anything-goes attitude; too hard, with the oppressive heat and the vast distances between things.

What I mean to say is that I didn’t get much done in Austin. I had the time of my life, but it was not a productive time. Whenever I stepped outdoors I started sweating; when I wanted to go someplace, I had to find a ride. Too hot to ride a bike, too far to walk. And it was so comfortable indoors, with my fascinating friends and their A/C units and big houses with extra rooms for me to stay in. So, aside from cold-chillin, not much was achieved.

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Read the rest of The Trouble With Austin (617 words)

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Post tags: Austin, bus, community, design, environment, farm, green building, nature, organic, river, Texas, tourism, transportation, travel, volunteer, weather

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Ah, the Angel’s Nest. Arguably the most famous “Earthship” in existence, this peach-and-mint confection of modern organic architecture sits close to the highway in the Greater World Community, beckoning visitors with its flashing windmills, bevy of solar panels, turrets, hydrogen/biodiesel Hummer and fire engine parked in the driveway…

Well, it used to anyway.

Nautilus floor plan from earthship.net

This house started out as the Nautilus, a one-bedroom Earthship with a design based on the Fibonnaci spiral. It was small, but beautiful— or so they say. You can see what remains of the Nautilus in the above photo: it’s the round bit at the right side of the house.

Sometime around 2001, the Nautilus was bought by Robert Plarr and Victoria Peters, two self-described idealists who are dedicated to furthering the cause of sustainability. They decided to turn the Nautilus into a showcase of sustainable and eco-friendly technologies, and renamed it Angel’s Nest.

This is generally where the story ends, when you’re talking to an Earthship community member. The Angel’s Nest involved some crew labor, and shares land with the Greater World; people in the community are reluctant to be overly critical of their neighbors. But from what I can piece together, Mr. Plarr and Ms. Peters may not have been playing with a full deck of cards.

photos from angels-nest.org

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Read the rest of The Fallen Angel’s Nest (466 words)

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Post tags: art, biotecture, design, earthship, earthships, energy-efficient, environment, featured posts, green building, New Mexico, photography, solar, sustainable, Taos, touristry

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R.E.A.C.H. (or “Rural Earthship Alternative Community Habitat” if you favor flavor over brevity) is a PRIVATE community, so don’t just go traipsing up here uninvited— but realistically, you probably couldn’t make it if you wanted to. The roads are only accessible with a 4×4, and then only when the snow isn’t too thick.

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Read the rest of R.E.A.C.H. Earthship Community, a pictorial (661 words)

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Post tags: adventure, art, biotecture, design, earthship, earthships, ecovillage, energy-efficient, environment, green building, hiking, nature, New Mexico, outdoors, photography, solar, superhero, sustainable, Taos, volunteer, voluntourism, wood

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Bottle Brick Bathroom, originally uploaded by Earthship Kirsten

If you’ve been following my Earthships adventure, you know that it is actually possible to build houses using garbage. Can and bottle walls—literally walls made out of mud or cement, with cans or bottles set like bricks—are one of Mike Reynolds‘ time-tested innovations, a building technique that can have amazingly artistic results.

Can/bottle walls look and act like normal walls, except that they can’t bear heavy loads. They’re much, MUCH faster to build than tire walls, but don’t have the benefit of thermal mass. In Earthships, they’re used for room dividers, garden walls, and other non-load-bearing verticals. You can literally learn how to make one in five minutes; they’re cheap as free and extremely easy to put up. So, here’s how!

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Read the rest of Things I Learned: Can/Bottle Walls (873 words)

© jessicareeder for Uprooted, an eco/travel blog, 2009. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: art, biotecture, buy nothing, design, earthships, garbage, green building, how-to, New Mexico, recycling, reuse, sustainable, Taos, volunteer, voluntourism

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