Highland Hemp House

02/08/2025

Hearts

Bellingham is coming together to provide critical support for those experiencing homelessness. In spring 2025, the Way Station will open, offering 17 medical respite beds where unhoused individuals can access health care, hygiene services, and a safe place to heal. As Greg Winter from the Opportunity Council says, “Wraparound services help people build the skills and income needed to live on their own.”

Local initiatives like Mission for Missy, founded by Hanah Warthan to honor her late friend Danayale Wilson, are making a tangible difference. Volunteers provide naloxone and help people in encampments, offering care during the fentanyl crisis. With 846 people experiencing homelessness in Whatcom County, these efforts are vital in addressing both immediate needs and long-term solutions. As Winter reminds us, “There simply aren’t enough homes available for everyone.” Bellingham is working to ensure no one is left behind.

Read the full article by Catharine Skrzypinski to learn about Bellingham locals. Link in bio.

10/05/2024

Looking forward to this.

The biggest strides in h**pcrete construction are going down on one of the smallest Native American reservations.

08/01/2024

https://mymodernmet.com/african-village-burkina-faso/
What do you think of when you see this village?

The Tiébélé African village is made up of a series of small clay houses that are hand-painted in different geometric patterns and symbols.

07/15/2024

https://sahanjournal.com/housing/lower-sioux-indian-community-h**p-h**pcrete-housing/

The Lower Sioux Indian Community in Minnesota is growing h**p to create h**pcrete, which is used to build eco-friendly houses.

07/14/2024

Yes!!!

Grist takes a closer look at how the Lower Sioux reservation will soon have the only facility to create h**pcrete in the country.

05/01/2024

I haven’t posted for a while. Here’s a little paragraph I wrote to promote a workshop and a photo from inside my h**pctete (and glass:) greenhouse:

Shortage of affordable housing, environmental degradation, and social inequities are intersectional problems that affect everyone today. Is there hope for the future? The North West Living & Learning Community Collaborative is offering a tangible tool to accelerate hopeful alternatives to these cross paralyzed conventions. The simple building materials of h**p and lime, often called “h**pcrete”, offer an array of physical properties that could be a wellspring for the social and economic transformation. It may sound like a bold claim that a building material can nourish so many aspects of human life, but think of how central to living are the places we occupy as home. If, instead of toxic, energy wasteful, industry-produced materials, our homes are made of a simple plant and mineral blend that is resistant to fire, mold, heat loss, that is carbon capturing, and most of all—is accessible and regenerative, worldwide. Think of how empowered communities could be by knowing how to build with these materials.