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Here is another opportunity of viewing some rammed earth buildings. The small footprint initiative is a look into a different way of living on the 10th to 12 of September.

“It is a celebration of our community and the environment with a weekend of activities, information, and practical demonstrations of responsible building design, construction, land use management, permaculture, complimentary therapies and passive recreation opportunities in our area.”

Be sure to call into our own Justin and Megan Cooke’s house on the tour.

There is a timetable of events here as well as a map.

People passionate about buildings that sit comfortably in the natural environment might be interested in an upcoming lecture by Rick Joy in Sydney and Melbourne. Please read the press release below.

“Award winning American architect Rick Joy is renowned for this climate responsive and landscape sensitive work, based mostly in the desert region of Arizona. Using a robust palette of materials, including rammed earth, hardwoods and rusted steel, Joy’s work looks as much from the earth, as sitting within it. Joy’s practice predominantly includes residential work, with Tubac House being his most celebrated. Joy’s work has been both published and exhibited widely with a group of architectural experts recently choosing a Rick Joy house as one of five most influential and inspiring homes in recent times, alongside work by Rem Koolhaas and Shigeru Ban.”

Rick will be talking at the Eastern Avenue Auditorium, University of Sydney on Monday 19th July 2010 and at the BMW Edge, Federation Square, Melbourne on Thursday 22nd July 2010. The Melbourne talk will be presented in association with Architectural Review Australia.

A recent article about an exclusive earth resort in India, sums everything up nicely. Rammed Earth is “non-toxic, non-allergic, rot and termite proof, controls humidity and offers great sound isolation. These structures can balance fluctuations in temperature throughout the year.” Read more independant views about earth dwellings here.

Google Trends has a neat little tool that shows the search trends for rammed earth, and it reveals some interesting facts. Australia, is by far the leaders in Rammed Earth construction, followed by New Zealand and then South Africa. Must be something about the Southern Hemisphere….. And the top ten cities are as follows
1. Perth, Australia
2. Adelaide, Australia
3. Tucson, AZ, USA
4. Albuquerque, NM, USA
5. Melbourne, Australia
6. Victoria, Canada
7. Canberra, Australia
8. Brisbane, Australia
9. Vancouver, Canada

If you were buying a new car you would generally take it for a test drive, so if you were curious about rammed earth housing, the best thing to do is to stay in one. Below is a list of houses around Australia where you can stay in a rammed earth house. You will realise that there is something intangible about rammed earth house that you cannot see in pictures. It is not just the great temperature or excellent air quality, it is a beauty you cannot explain. Try one on your next holiday.

Sun Worship Crescent Head Eco Villas	Crescent Head, North Coast, NSW
Lot 11	Seal Rocks, Mid North Coast, NSW
Baird Bay Ocean Eco Apartments	Baird Bay, Eyre Peninsula, SA
Light Keepers Inn, Villas	Aireys Inlet, Great Ocean Road, Vic
Split Point Cottages, Villas	Aireys Inlet, Great Ocean Road, Vic
Chandlers Smiths Beach Villas	Yallingup, South West, WA
Eucalyptus House	Pemberton, South West, WA
Ferguson Farmstay	Bunbury, South West, WA
Hillview Retreat	Balingup, South West, WA
Jemelup Chalets	Dunsborough, South West, WA
Marima Cottages	Pemberton, South West, WA
Warren River Resort	Pemberton, South West, WA
Yayl Lodge	Hills, Perth, WA
Sky House	Kangaroo Island, SA

If you have a holiday rental and want to add your place to our list, please contact us.

Rammed earth is an amazing product, but even though it has been around for a million (give or take a million) years, people still have trouble believing what it is capable of. research.terra is a web site dedicated to the research of earth construction. It looks back to history of ancient earth building as well as modern engineering details. A much needed reference site.

David Suzuki has released a new video, “The Nature of Things: Visions of the Future”.
He discusses the place rammed earth houses have in an ideal future.