The article, Green building meets Indigenous knowledge in Taos, New Mexico describes new building ideas based on ancient knowledge, such as passive solar heating and adobe construction. https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2024/06/25/green-building-new-mexico

From the article:

“It’s a reminder that while some of our technology might be new, what we now call sustainable design is at least as old as the ancient Pueblo in Taos.”

“We’ve got 14% of Americans who have no homes… Cement accounts for 8% of planetary pollution, all by itself.” –Anita Otilia Rodriguez.  Rodríguez points to her own floor. “This has no cement under it. It’s 35 years old, it’s completely waterproof, and it has subfloor heating underneath it. And that is one of the techniques passed on by the enjarradoras,” she says. “So we have not only the material, we have the technology, and women and children and elders can use this building material.”

Re-learning traditional building methods that rely on local materials — like adobe in the Southwest — could help cut climate pollution from the construction industry.