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Popular Posts...

  • The Persian ice house, or how to make ice in the desert
    April 4, 2016

    The Persian ice house, or how to make ice in the desert

  • Build with Gambia Earth Architecture Workshop: Experimenting with local materials in rural Gambia
    August 18, 2019

    Build with Gambia Earth Architecture Workshop: Experimenting with local materials in rural Gambia

  • Earthbag domes of Dome Lombok: From ecotourism to earthquake-resistant housing
    November 17, 2019

    Earthbag domes of Dome Lombok: From ecotourism to earthquake-resistant housing

  • Architecture, sustainability, travel and this blog
    November 23, 2015

    Architecture, sustainability, travel and this blog

  • Bridge building with Toni Rüttimann and rural communities of Myanmar
    December 17, 2019

    Bridge building with Toni Rüttimann and rural communities of Myanmar

  • Floating villages and gardens of Inle Lake
    January 4, 2016

    Floating villages and gardens of Inle Lake

  • Traditional earth lodges of the Great Plains
    July 7, 2016

    Traditional earth lodges of the Great Plains

  • Searching for windcatchers in Hyderabad
    February 15, 2016

    Searching for windcatchers in Hyderabad

  • Providing clean drinking water to the people of Lake Atitlan
    June 19, 2017

    Providing clean drinking water to the people of Lake Atitlan

  • Ganvie, Africa’s largest lake village
    September 2, 2019

    Ganvie, Africa’s largest lake village

poverty

Contrasts and challenges of Lagos, Africa’s largest city
Cities, Communities, Social sustainability September 17, 2022

Contrasts and challenges of Lagos, Africa’s largest city

2,160 Views 0 by Erika

Lagos, Africa’s largest and soon the world’s largest city, is a city of inequality that faces a multitude of challenges.

Ganvie, Africa’s largest lake village
Communities, Environment, Vernacular architecture September 2, 2019

Ganvie, Africa’s largest lake village

2,652 Views 3 by Erika

Ganvie village is a 400-year-old settlement that is built in the middle of a lake in Benin.

Senegalese villages fight desertification and poverty by becoming ecovillages
Agriculture, Communities, Environment, Social sustainability, Volunteering August 19, 2018

Senegalese villages fight desertification and poverty by becoming ecovillages

2,153 Views 2 by Erika

Rural communities in Senegal are turning to permaculture and the global ecovillage movement in an effort to fight desertification while improving food security and quality of life.

Providing clean drinking water to the people of Lake Atitlan
Volunteering, Water June 19, 2017

Providing clean drinking water to the people of Lake Atitlan

407 Views 3 by Erika

Water Works is a project in Guatemala that is improving access to clean drinking water in impoverished rural areas with ceramic filters.

Silent challenges of Indian reservations
Communities, Social sustainability, Volunteering June 23, 2016

Silent challenges of Indian reservations

1,874 Views 0 by Erika

I recently volunteered at an Indian reservation and learned a lot about the problems of Native Americans and reservations – and something about solutions.

About

Welcome to my blog! My name is Erika Alatalo and I’m a world traveler and humanitarian architect writing about sustainable development, architecture and travel. Check out this page for more information.

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