Soaping and Stoning

This post was written by Spring 2018 intern, Callie Ochsner. Recent experiences call to mind the forces that are shaping our existence here, the build up and break down of ourselves and our surroundings. The focus on the build sites this week was all around Tadelakt, the traditional Moroccan lime plaster that lines the showers…

Permaculture Reflection

This post was written by current intern, Isaak Oliansky. A nearly 30 strong Community Rebuilds and friends delegation just returned from a 3 day stay at Hopi as guests of the Hopi Tutskwa Permaculture Institute. Permaculture education is often taught in several week or month long design courses that balance classroom time with experiential learning…

Plaster Run Down

This post was written by Spring 2018 intern, Carey Alcott. We’re now over half-way through the build and finished elements are starting to appear. We’ve got good boots (foundations), good hats (roofs with solar panels installed), guts (wood framing, straw-bales, light straw clay walls, a cob palette wall, plumbing and electrical wiring) all in place….

Solar for the Soul

This post was written by Spring 2018 intern Michele Deluca. Reading the past posts from my lovely fellow interns left me feeling all warm and fuzzy, but I’m here to interrupt the feel-good posts to drop some cold, hard knowledge about PHOTOVOLTAIC SYSTEMS!! We had the pleasure of welcoming Ken and Spencer last week, who…

What does it all mean!?

This post was written by Spring 2018 intern, Kelly Fuge. Looking through photos from this adventure, of this transcendent place and excellent people of CR,  I’m stuck deciding what to write about. Do I capture the build itself? The hard work that solidifies our bond as a group?  Or the communal life – my own…

Spring Days

This post was written by Spring 2018 intern, Jack Meyer. The days have been getting longer here and our natural building skills are getting Strawnger! Puns aside I am amazed at how comfortable I have become with angle grinders, table saws and my pockets having enough straw to construct a straw gazebo in the backyard….

Can we make this last a lifetime?

This post was written by Spring 2018 intern, Lauren van Vliet. The Community Rebuilds Interns are like Kevin Bacon, but with a better reputation.  If someone doesn’t know us, they have a friend with a home built in previous semesters or know one of the past interns. Even tourists who see us around know we…

First Weeks in the Book

I grew up in a cool temperate rainforest on the southeast coast of Australia, so it’s difficult to imagine a more alien environment than Moab, Utah; or a more welcoming one.   I’ve been living in the US almost a year, clinging to the west coast’s forests and rocky shores and liberal cities that feel like home.  I…