An Earthship is a type of off grid home that is made from natural and recycled materials. This means that they can be a combination of discarded items, reclaimed materials, and natural materials like mud bricks, straw, or any number of nature based sources. They have been around since the 1970’s and due to the increasing interest in off grid living, and finding ways to minimize our own impact on the environment, there has been a renewed interest in the concept. Due to the use of reclaimed, recycled, and resourced materials, many Earthships can take on an artistic look to them.
Traditionally an Earthship has 6 primary features in their construction, which include being designed to use thermal/solar for heating and cooling (which includes cross ventilation designs to maximize natural air flow), having solar or wind based electricity, self contained sewage treatment (composting toilets or other systems), using natural and recycled materials, utilizing water harvesting and storage, and having some sort of food production capacity. These attributes allow Earthships to be entirely off grid ready with little to no reliance on local utilities.
Just outside of Taos, New Mexico, there is an Earthship community which sits on over 600 acres. The Greater World Community has private lots, and plenty of communal space as well as rentals and tours.
