Uprooted, an eco/travel blog

How a group of artists created a sustainable life on the waterways of New York–and what we can learn from their shortcomings.

Hostels, done right, are some of my favorite places to stay. They aren’t always awesome (see Abominable Snow Mansion), but the ones that have their act together are great places to meet people, live (and eat!) for cheap, and generally get the most out of whatever town you’re passing through.
I’d heard that the Austin hostel [...]

It’s always sunny in Colorado. Bright future, too: Denver was recently ranked 2nd in America for clean technology opportunities. The Governor’s Energy Office has submitted a plan to allocate $49.2 million for clean energy jobs and reductions in energy usage; $47.2 million for energy efficiency and conservation grants; and $79.5 million for low-income weatherization. And [...]

Even the best ideas can be taken too far. The story of a beautiful home, and how it was lost.

So, in my last entry I showed you what a viga run looks like. But there’s plenty I didn’t show you! Including the fact that the entire escapade took place at R.E.A.C.H., the original Earthship community founded in 1989.

R.E.A.C.H. (or “Rural Earthship Alternative Community Habitat” if you favor flavor over brevity) is a PRIVATE community, [...]

After two full weeks of hard work and some pretty rough weather on the Earthship job site, we were all feeling kinda beat. But things are changing! There’s still snow on the mountaintops, but down here in Taos it’s a sunny day; spring is officially around the corner, and it really feels like the change [...]

My arrival at Earthship Biotecture kicks off a green-building adventure in the snowy desert springtime of Taos, New Mexico.

611 street view

Yep, it’s possible, and 611 EcoVillage is the proof: you can live sustainably, and artfully, and even happily, all in the middle of a city.
Of course, it helps if you’ve got founder/builder Dan Antonioli’s temperament: love for life and a passion for creative construction. And it helps even more that he’s done it [...]