Innovative Earthship project provides Six Nations with housing solution

An “Earthship” is currently being constructed on the Six Nations Reserve for a community member living in a crowded, rundown trailer. Fran “Flower” Doxtador has been on the Ontario reserve’s wait list for housing for over a decade, a reality faced by many Indigenous people.

By the end of July, however, she’ll be living in an Earthship – an off-grid, “radically sustainable” form of housing partially made from recycled materials such as bottles and tires. An Earthship generates its own electricity through wind and solar, catches rain or snow for potable water, and treats sewage onsite. Heating and cooling are provided by natural solar and thermal dynamics, which also allows occupants to grow their own food, according to Earthship creator Michael Reynolds.

The housing units do this “using the biology and physics of the planet, which is what Indigenous people have always done,” Reynolds said.

The concept is being touted as a solution to chronic housing woes faced by First Nations communities. According to a study by the Assembly of First Nations, 94% of them have housing waiting lists. The same study also found that 37% of households require major repairs, 23% of adults live in overcrowded situations, and nearly 32% of households don’t have safe drinking water. Meanwhile, 10% have no electricity, and 31% have unsatisfactory heating systems.        

But it takes a community to build one. There are 70 people – many from outside Canada – working on Flower’s Earthship, said Reynolds. “We’re creating a situation that brings people together,” he noted. “They’re certainly not all being paid. In fact, many of them are paying to be here.”

Students of the Earthship organization pay tuition of $1000 to get hands-on training.

“It’s a global community that has come together to help,” said Flower. “I see the people in the community coming together too. It’s given me faith, it’s showed me that there are people who care.”

Of the 10 from Six Nations, most are youth. The goal is to provide them with hands-on experience and have them pay it forward. “It’s just something humanity needs. People need food, water and shelter,” said Reynolds. “They’re simple to build and it puts housing back into the hands of the people.”

“This experience will certainly be a seed of change for our community,” said organizer Terrylynn Brant, who helped fundraise for the project. “I believe some of the youth on the build will move forward in creating housing that speaks to our responsibilities.”

 

The price tag is comparable to conventional housing. The community and Earthship Organization raised $70,000 to build Flower’s home, much of which goes to transportation, labour and accommodation for the crew.

According to Reynolds, an Earthship can be built in 14 days – when it’s done correctly. At the time of the interview, Reynolds and Flower were in the process of putting the roof on the new home. The coming days were to be dedicated to the interior of the ship.

Flower was on the verge of tears. “I can’t seem to describe how I’m feeling,” she said. “It seems like ‘thankful’ and ‘grateful’ aren’t enough.”

The Nation will check in to see how Flower’s Earthship holds up in the severe Ontario winter. For now, she’s proud of her new home: “Mother Earth is kind. I want to save a little bit of her for the generations still to come.”