BWB Accomplishments
• Navajo Project: In July, 2000 BWB organized
a pilot project in association with the National Indian Youth Leadership
Project (NIYLP). We coordinated a diverse group of volunteers at Sacred
Mountain Camp, near Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico, to build a straw-bale
hogan (a traditional Navajo home) in a week-long workshop.
• Mongolian Tour: In September of 2000, BWB welcomed
a Mongolian United Nations Development Program delegation on their Strawbale
Research Tour of the U.S. Southwest. BWB coordinated the itinerary,
provided logistical support, and supported the Mongolian team in making
personal and professional connections, thus helping to advance work
that may become a model project of global significance. All in all,
the team toured 37 sites in four states.
• Tierra Madre: In 2001 BWB was asked to facilitate
a strawbale wall raising at Tierra Madre, a “self-build”
community in Sunland Park, New Mexico, is sponsored by the Sisters of
Charity. This example of sustainable and affordable housing will include
an eventual 47 strawbale homes, which will incorporate permaculture
design, passive and active solar energy, water harvesting, and greywater
reclamation.
• Annunciation House: In Ciudad Juarez, in the
colonia of Anapra, BWB members consulted with the non-profit organization
Annunciation House to plaster the interior of a strawbale community
center. BWB led a successful workshop including volunteers from both
sides of the border.
• Jose Luis House: The successful collaboration
on the Annunciation house has led to BWB committing to work with the
lead builder of the community center to build an affordable strawbale
home for him and his family.
• Casas de la Cruz: BWB members led a workshop
with volunteers and locals to build a prototype strawbale house in Ciudad
Juarez, in 2001. Due to the success of this project, three additional
houses are planned during 2003.
• Flor y Canto: BWB members have consulted with
the Sisters of the Assumption to create a model home for low-income
residents of Chaparral in southern New Mexico.
• Educational Initiative: Through our Educational
Initiative, BWB has created an Educational Resources Fund that has donated
video, books and other resources to projects in China, Ethiopia, Chile,
Belarus, Israel, Afghanistan and several Native American communities.
Materials donated to the Adventist Development Relief Agency (ADRA)
has led to over 600 strawbale houses to date that have been constructed
in China.
• BWB Facilitator Training: Sustainable Construction
in Cross-cultural Contexts course in 2001, had over 25 participants
from around the world, including Uruguay, Honduras, Canada, France,
Colombia, Kyrgyzstan and all over the U.S.
• Afghanistan Housing Proposal: We recently submitted
a proposal to the U.S. Afghanistan Reconstruction Council (US-ARC) to
train Afghan builders in the use of natural building materials. BWB
would draw upon its international network of building professionals
to create a training program that “teaches the teachers”,
enabling Afghans to house themselves.
• Gallup Housing Initiative: BWB has been instrumental
in developing a coalition of housing organizations in Gallup, New Mexico
to address the housing shortage on the Navajo Reservation.
• Bustan L'Shalom Project: A strawbale medical
clinic in Wadi Na'am, Israel was recently completed through a collaboration
with BWB and about 30 other organizations. The clinic will be used to
provide medical care to the indigenous Bedouin population and also help
promote sustainable initiatives throughout the region.
BWB is an international network of ecological builders working together for a sustainable future.