Economic Growth United States Project #9854

6 Safe, Eco-Friendly Homes for Pine Ridge Lakota

by Altai Mir University

6 Safe, Eco-Friendly Homes for Pine Ridge Lakota

Project Report | Oct 27, 2015
Engineers Without Borders on board

By Carol Hiltner | President, Altai Mir University

Project Leader Christinia Eala at the build site

Following a very difficult year, which included triple bypass heart surgery for project leader Christinia Eala, followed by theft of virtually all of the project's tools and building materials, things are looking up again for our Wounded Knee home project. The Colorado State University Engineers Without Borders (EWB) chapter is ready to create a formal partnership. EWB has assisted informally for several years, but now CSU student Kristin Wells has been assigned as the EWB lead for the Wounded Knee project.

Tiyospaye Winyan Maka, our local nonprofit sponsor is restructuring to incorporate the EWB expertise as well as to replace the stolen tools and materials with help not only from GlobalGiving sponsors, but from churches, green building groups, businesses, and community organizations nationwide. We expect to be back at Joe Fast Horse's place in the spring, to continue work on their children's safe-house project.

Site for Joe Fast Horse's children's safe house

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Jul 17, 2015
Two Steps Forward, One Step Back. Yikes!

By Carol Hiltner | President, Altai Mir University

International volunteers building the walipini

Nobody said that building housing at Wounded Knee would be easy. But, by golly, the spirit is willing.

In early May, Christinia took a group of enthusiastic Engineers Without Borders student from Colorado State University to the site, along with supplies to build a battery house for the new solar power system that has been donated. Only to find that the building site had been pillaged. Approximately $7,000 worth of equipment had been stolen: our kitchen/supply tent, our trailer to haul things, even Christinia's project car(!) -- all gone. On top of that, the head gasket in the project truck blew. Then the rains came down and Christinia's other car got stuck in the mud and blew out the clutch. Time to re-group.

We're still short of money to fix the truck, but Bryan Deans of the Oglala Lakota Cultural Economic Revitalization Initiative rescued the car and has provided an alternative project for this summer's international volunteers. They are building a ‘walipini’ (an Aymara Indian word for a “place of warmth”) -- an underground greenhouse that can grow veggies through the bitter Dakota winters. When you dig down four feet, the temperature stays more constant. A glass lean-to captures and stores the daytime heat. It is built similarly to an earthship house, using tires in the foundation. Bryan has adapted several styles to create an original design for this greenhouse. We'd like to use Brian's design and include a walipini every place we build, not only to grow organic food, but also as a tornado shelter should the need arise.

But for this summer, starting over as we had to, we need to raise $1000 for materials for the walipini. And your continuing support is critical as we get the Fast Horse child sanctuary back on track for next year.

Bryan Deans backfilling on the build site

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Apr 16, 2015
This Summer's Lakota Build Is Underway! Woohoo!

By Carol Hiltner | President, Altai Mir University

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