Natural Food-

The Organic Consumers Association-Campaigning for Food Safety, Organic Agriculture, Fair Trade & Sustainability, News

Heritage Seed Library- U.K. seed library to conserve and make available rare native original seed varietieslegislation

Native Seeds/SEARCH- Non-profit org seeking to preserve crop seeds that connect Native American cultures to their lands

The Seed Exchange- A fun place to go if you have seeds to trade

Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Green Building-

A structural unit integrated into the building design specifically for the purpose of storing solar heat. Trombe walls can be either large dense masonry forms or contained bodies of fluid (typically water). The trombe wall is designed to absorb direct sunlight through a transparent facing wall. Trombe walls are typically painted a dark color to increase heat absorbption. Heat absorption and delivery can be regulated with the addition of light control devices to the window wall and integrated ventilating systems.

Most homes built today are not designed to efficiently utilize natural convection currents for cooling. Essential elements of convection cooling design are floor air entry ports and ceiling exhaust. Using the natural process of rising heat, air can be effectively drawn in at floor level, where it is coolest, and exhausted from a fan vent in the ceiling. This process can be extended further using ducting to draw air from an underground network of pipes.

Another example of the use of thermal mass to heat a home is the heat pump system. The heat pump is typically composed of a similar system to the one mentioned previously in convection cooling using underground ducting. The temperature of the earth at depth during winter months is still quite warm with regards to outside air temperature and can provide significant heating. The addition of heat exchange devices using expansive heating can boost gains and cut costs. Average ground temperature even in Canada is 50°F; (10° C) in the winter.

Links

Green Home Building- a fairly comprehensive site giving a broad, albeit basic, overview of many "primative" alternatives to conventional construction techniques. Readers seeking more information are directed to available publications and a plethora of linked sites.

Straw Bale Central- offers a broad range of books and videos on the subject of straw bale homebuilding, cordwood homebuilding, composting toilets, other green living alternatives.

Shelter Publications Online- Books About Shelter, Building, Architecture, and the Home Arts. Home of the classic "Shelter" book.

Tipis-Tepees-Teepees- A great Tipi website with research and many photos. Developed by Linda Holley and dedicated to the Laubins, who spent their lives studying Native American culture.