13th of October 2026 | UNSW Lecture
What if the future of sustainable building begins with something that has been beneath our feet all along?
There is something deeply grounding about holding a piece of earth in your hands. It connects us to the landscape beneath our feet, to the people who have shaped it before us, and to the possibility of creating something meaningful from the materials around us.
At The Earthen Explorer, this relationship between earth, creativity and connection is at the heart of what makes working with natural materials so compelling. And it extends far beyond making beautiful objects or exploring the qualities of clay.
It invites us to ask bigger questions: How do we live with the land? How can we create more sustainable places? And what might change if we designed our homes and communities by listening more closely to the people and environments around us?
These questions were explored in a UNSW lecture: Designing with Connection: Communities of Resilience in a Changing Climate. Drawing on research into disaster recovery and hands-on experience with natural building, the lecture offered a powerful perspective on the relationship between community, place and the materials we use to build our world.
Resilience begins long before a disaster happens.
Across Australia and around the world, communities are experiencing floods, bushfires, cyclones and droughts. In many places, these events are becoming increasingly difficult to recover from, particularly when communities face repeated disasters.
But one of the most important ideas from the lecture was that a natural hazard does not automatically become a disaster as defined by UNDRR.
The impact of a flood or bushfire is shaped by much more than the event itself. Existing infrastructure, housing conditions, access to information, financial resources, social isolation and the effectiveness of recovery systems can all influence how severely people are affected.
For some communities, recovery from one event is barely underway before another arrives.
This changes how we need to think about resilience. It is not simply a matter of building stronger structures or responding after something goes wrong. It also means understanding the circumstances that make communities vulnerable in the first place and working together to address them.
Resilience begins long before a disaster happens.
It begins with the decisions we make about where and how we build, how we care for our landscapes, how we share knowledge and whether the people most affected are included in shaping solutions.
Listening to the people who know a place
Whilst working at the HowWeSurvive research initiative, I worked with firsthand accounts of disaster and recovery from Australia and several other countries. These stories offered insights into what people experienced, what helped them recover and where existing systems fell short.
A recurring theme was frustration when outside authorities or organisations made decisions without adequately considering local knowledge.
People who live in a place understand its rhythms and changes. They may know how water moves through a landscape, where roads become inaccessible, how bushfires have behaved in the past, or which community members may need additional support during an emergency.
This knowledge is valuable. Yet it can be overlooked when decisions are made from a distance.
The lecture highlighted the need to consider local experience alongside technical expertise, scientific research and effective planning. It also emphasised the importance of First Nations knowledge and the deep, long-standing relationships that First Nations peoples have with Country.
Every place has its own history, characteristics and needs. What works for one community may not work for another.
Good design therefore begins with listening, learning and understanding the specific context rather than applying the same solution everywhere.
Everything is connected
During the lecture, I shared a small piece of clay that had come from Coober Pedy. As it passed between people, it became a simple way of exploring a much bigger concept: relationality.
Relationality describes the interconnectedness of people, places, institutions and ecosystems. Nothing exists entirely on its own. Our actions affect the environments we inhabit, and those environments shape our lives in return. The impacts of a disaster have a ripple effect more than the immediate community, therefore, to ensure improved resiience, we must acknowledge and include all in decision making, preparation, and recovery.
Even a small piece of clay carries a much longer story.
Its formation began through geological processes unfolding over immense periods of time. Its location and discovery connect it to a particular landscape and the people who know that landscape. Once collected, shared and handled, and then transported across the country, it becomes part of new human relationships and experiences.
The material itself changes as it moves through the world, just as our understanding of it changes through contact and experience.
This is one of the things that makes working with earth so meaningful. Clay is not simply a substance to shape into an object. It offers an opportunity to pay attention to where something comes from, how it behaves and how we relate to the world around us.
When we recognise these connections, design becomes about more than the finished product. It becomes a way of thinking about our responsibilities to places, materials and one another.
What is natural building?
Natural building involves constructing with materials such as earth, clay, sand, stone, straw, timber, bamboo, lime and hemp. Many of these techniques have long histories across different cultures and regions.
The lecture shared examples from Australia, Tanzania, New Zealand and Morocco, demonstrating the remarkable variety of ways people have worked with the materials available to them.
Some earthen buildings have stood for centuries. Historic settlements in Morocco, including Aït Benhaddou, demonstrate how earth-based construction can form entire communities, with buildings that respond to their local environments and cultural traditions.
Despite these examples, natural building is often unfamiliar to people whose experience of construction is dominated by concrete, steel, plasterboard and manufactured finishes.
Yet earth-based techniques are not simply a relic of the past. They continue to be used, adapted, researched and developed for contemporary buildings.
There is no single method of natural building. Different techniques use materials in different ways, each with its own characteristics and requirements.
Rammed earth: Carefully selected earth is compacted in formwork to create dense walls.
Adobe and mudbrick: Earth mixtures are shaped into bricks, dried and assembled with compatible mortar.
Cob: A workable mixture of earth, sand, fibre and water is built up by hand to form walls and sculptural shapes.
Straw bale: Straw bales are used as insulation and, in appropriately designed systems, may form part of a building's structural system.
Hempcrete: Hemp shiv combined with a lime-based binder creates a lightweight material commonly used for insulation and enclosure rather than as a standalone load-bearing structure.
Natural plasters and finishes: Clay and lime can create beautiful surfaces with varied colours, textures and finishes.
Each technique responds differently to its environment. Material selection, moisture management, structural design, workmanship and ongoing maintenance all influence performance.
Natural building is not about finding one material that solves every problem. It is about understanding the properties of materials and using them thoughtfully in the right context.
Why build with earth?
One of the most exciting aspects of natural building is its potential to reconnect construction with local resources.
Earth is widely available, and in some projects suitable excavated material can be used rather than transported elsewhere. Depending on the material and construction method, this can reduce the need for manufactured products and associated transport.
Earthen walls can also provide thermal mass, helping moderate indoor temperature fluctuations when designed appropriately for the climate. Some natural materials can regulate moisture within indoor environments, while certain systems offer useful insulation.
These qualities can contribute to comfortable buildings and lower operational energy demand, although actual performance depends on the complete building design, climate, insulation, ventilation and occupant needs.
There are other benefits worth considering, too.
A closer relationship with materials. Natural building encourages us to understand what goes into the things we create, rather than seeing a wall as simply a finished surface assembled from separate products.
Considering end-of-life use. Some earthen materials can be reused or returned to the ground with relatively little processing, provided they have not been contaminated or combined with unsuitable additives.
Cultural continuity. Traditional building practices can carry important knowledge about local environments, materials, craftsmanship and ways of living. Supporting these practices can help keep skills alive while allowing them to evolve.
Opportunities for participation. Many natural building processes are tactile and collaborative. Workshops and community builds can give people opportunities to learn together, contribute to shared projects and develop a stronger connection with the spaces they help create.
These benefits are not automatic. Responsible sourcing, suitable design, careful construction and maintenance remain essential. But together, they point towards a more thoughtful relationship with the built environment.
Can natural building help communities prepare for climate change?
This is where the lecture's two themes, disaster resilience and natural building, come together.
Different natural building systems may be appropriate in different environments. Some can offer advantages in particular conditions, but no material or technique should be assumed to be disaster-proof.
Natural materials need to be assessed against the hazards and requirements of the particular place.
But resilience is not only about the physical performance of buildings.
A community building can also create a place to gather, share knowledge, organise support and maintain social connections. Spaces designed around local needs can help communities become better prepared and better connected.
This brings us back to the central message of the lecture: resilient places emerge when physical design and community knowledge work together.
Building together creates more than buildings
I shared seeing communities in Tanzania building homes for the first time, taking part in natural building workshops in New Zealand and Australia, and recently experiencing traditional earth construction in Morocco.
These projects showed how building can become a shared process rather than something people simply watch professionals do.
People can mix materials, shape bricks, build walls, apply plaster and contribute to the character of a place. Techniques vary, and safe participation requires appropriate guidance, but the process can open up opportunities for people to learn by doing.
The examples also challenged assumptions about who builds.
Women participated in construction, shared skills and contributed to buildings that reflected their families and communities. Other projects brought together volunteers, craftspeople, local organisations and people with different levels of experience.
The outcome was not just a physical structure. It was also the knowledge shared along the way, the relationships developed and the sense of collective achievement.
Genuine community-led design gives people meaningful influence over priorities and decisions. Community-centred approaches can also be collaborative, with professionals providing guidance while working closely with the people affected.
The right approach depends on the context, but both require respect, communication and a willingness to learn from others.
A local example: rebuilding connection after bushfire
The lecture also explored a community building associated with recovery from the 2019–2020 Australian bushfires: The Lithgow Area Women's Shed and Community Building.
The project brought together local interests and practical building experience to create a shared space using hempcrete construction.
Beyond everyday community use, the new building is intended to help provide a safe evacuation centre, in the case of a future bushfire emergency.
This example brings several ideas together.
The project responded to a locally identified need. It involved community participation. It explored natural materials in a contemporary building context. And it created a space with the potential to support both everyday connection and future preparedness.
It is a reminder that the value of a building cannot be measured only by its materials or construction cost. We also need to consider what it makes possible for the people who use it.
But the broader lesson remains powerful: when communities have a meaningful role in shaping their built environment, the result can respond more closely to their needs.
Bringing earth back into our everyday lives
Natural building might seem far removed from a small piece of clay held in the palm of your hand. Yet both begin with the same invitation: to slow down and pay attention to the material itself.
When we work with earth, we discover that it has its own qualities, limitations and possibilities. It may be gritty, smooth, sticky, crumbly or beautifully workable. It’s colour can reveal something about its origin, while its behaviour teaches us to adapt our approach.
This approach can extend beyond architecture into sculpture, creative workshops, making and learning with others.
At The Earthen Explorer, exploring earth-based creativity offers a way to experience these relationships directly. We can learn about the material, develop practical skills, share discoveries and begin to see the landscape around us with fresh eyes.
There is no need to be an architect or experienced builder to appreciate the value of these experiences. A small creative project can be an entry point into larger questions about resources, sustainability, place and belonging.
And when people learn together, the experience can become something more than an individual act of making.
It can become an opportunity to connect.
Designing a more connected future
The closing message was : the places we create in the future must take climate-related disasters seriously, listen to communities and make better use of sustainable building practices.
These are not separate challenges.
A building's environmental performance matters. So does its relationship with local materials, the knowledge used to design it, the people who helped shape it and the community it serves.
Natural building is not a universal solution, and traditional techniques should not be romanticised or separated from the technical knowledge needed to use them safely. But these practices offer valuable opportunities to rethink how we build and what we value in the process.
Perhaps the most important lesson is that sustainable design is not just about materials. It is about relationships.
Our relationship with the land. Our relationship with the resources we use. Our relationship with the people who share our communities. And our responsibility to the places we leave for future generations. That we are not separate.
Sometimes, reconnecting with these ideas can begin with something wonderfully simple: a little earth in your hands.
At The Earthen Explorer, that's an invitation worth exploring.
Whether through creative experimentation, learning about local materials or sharing a hands-on experience with others, working with earth gives us an opportunity to reconnect with the natural world, and to imagine different ways of living within it.
What could we create if we began by listening more closely to the land and to each other?
