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ENERGY CONSERVATION
http://strawbalebuilders.wetpaint.com/page/ENERGY+CONSERVATION
Buildings for People Who Live in Them
Today, most buildings are designed and built not for the homeowner, not for the community, but for the industry - the bottom line of the development corporations and the banks that finance them. This influence extends from the materials selected, to the layout of the floor plan, to the orientation on the site, to the size of the structure. Ultimately, and quite ironically, it is the end user, the home owner, that gets the short end of the stick, living in toxic, inefficient, built-to-fail, impractical shelters - and paying through the nose for the privilege. Natural building seeks to turn this on its head - it is building not only with the home owner in mind, but quite often by the home owner her- or himself. The benefits of this strategy are many - homes that are beautiful, functional, practical, more efficient, and more durable.
Building Homes, Building Community
One of the most unique features of natural building is its accessibility to huge segments of the population. Many processes of natural building are low-skill and labor-intensive, which lends itself well to having large groups of people with various levels of experience being involved. This is powerful on a number of levels; on one level, individuals normally disenfranchised from the building process are given the opportunity to create shelter for themselves. On another, people who can afford more of an investment in time and sweat equity then in cash or debt are able to develop healthy habitat for themselves without having to sign a thirty-year note, or make do with substandard housing. And on another level, there is terrific community development potential from both bringing a group of friends, family, and neighbors together to build one's home, as well as to have a community of people who have empowered themselves and each other to be involved with the process of building.
Building the New Paradigm
Working off this idea of a community of people empowered to develop their own building infrastructure, one begins to see the potential for great social change. As the population becomes more self-reliant and self-confident, as well as inter-dependent and community-referencing, and as the shackles of debt and limitations of the industrial housing market are left in favor of other alternatives, a different path is taken, an alternative to the business as usual that has kept so many of us from reaching our potential as individuals and communities becomes clear, a new paradigm is built. And building houses is just one part of this: local economy, sustainable agriculture, appropriate development patterns, renewable energy, alternative transportation - there are so many related fields that are involved with providing for the most basic of human needs. As the control for providing for these needs comes back into the hands of those on the local and individual level, we reclaim the power to create the reality in which we choose to live
Natural Builders Northeast: http://www.nbne.org/natbuild/natbuild.php
Buildings for People Who Live in Them
Today, most buildings are designed and built not for the homeowner, not for the community, but for the industry - the bottom line of the development corporations and the banks that finance them. This influence extends from the materials selected, to the layout of the floor plan, to the orientation on the site, to the size of the structure. Ultimately, and quite ironically, it is the end user, the home owner, that gets the short end of the stick, living in toxic, inefficient, built-to-fail, impractical shelters - and paying through the nose for the privilege. Natural building seeks to turn this on its head - it is building not only with the home owner in mind, but quite often by the home owner her- or himself. The benefits of this strategy are many - homes that are beautiful, functional, practical, more efficient, and more durable.
Building Homes, Building Community
One of the most unique features of natural building is its accessibility to huge segments of the population. Many processes of natural building are low-skill and labor-intensive, which lends itself well to having large groups of people with various levels of experience being involved. This is powerful on a number of levels; on one level, individuals normally disenfranchised from the building process are given the opportunity to create shelter for themselves. On another, people who can afford more of an investment in time and sweat equity then in cash or debt are able to develop healthy habitat for themselves without having to sign a thirty-year note, or make do with substandard housing. And on another level, there is terrific community development potential from both bringing a group of friends, family, and neighbors together to build one's home, as well as to have a community of people who have empowered themselves and each other to be involved with the process of building.
Building the New Paradigm
Working off this idea of a community of people empowered to develop their own building infrastructure, one begins to see the potential for great social change. As the population becomes more self-reliant and self-confident, as well as inter-dependent and community-referencing, and as the shackles of debt and limitations of the industrial housing market are left in favor of other alternatives, a different path is taken, an alternative to the business as usual that has kept so many of us from reaching our potential as individuals and communities becomes clear, a new paradigm is built. And building houses is just one part of this: local economy, sustainable agriculture, appropriate development patterns, renewable energy, alternative transportation - there are so many related fields that are involved with providing for the most basic of human needs. As the control for providing for these needs comes back into the hands of those on the local and individual level, we reclaim the power to create the reality in which we choose to live
Natural Builders Northeast: http://www.nbne.org/natbuild/natbuild.php
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Latest page update: made by jimmiller5417@gmail
, Jan 18 2009, 12:28 PM EST
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