As some of you have heard in my recent presentations, I find wisdom for our current challenges from one of my most admired futurists, R. Buckminster Fuller. Bucky said, “You never leave a sinking ship until you see the lights of another ship approaching.”
I would like to offer a no regrets strategy for Humboldt, our tribes and our region. A tale of two futures, if you will.
We are facing a housing crisis. We are also faced with rapidly increasing energy bills and, in some reports, a 500% increase in insurance for fire if you can even get it.
Indigenous Habitat Institute (IHI) and College of the Redwoods (CR), have partnered with Oregon State University’s Global Hemp Innovation Center as sub-recipients of a $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
With this grant, we are about to bring proven fire-retardant and extremely energy-efficient housing to our community as early as this year. The current building industry contributes 40% of carbon emissions. My biggest regret is that we will continue to build conventionally instead of adopting carbon-negative, renewable, locally produced housing that is also mold-resistant and will age much longer. We would create a generational future: workforce development jobs, keep dollars local, and provide a sustainable path for younger generations who are already engaged with our projects (we constructed our first wall at Cal Poly Humboldt).
Hempcrete is the name for this building technology and over the past 40 years, France has created a hempcrete industry that is now being adopted by fire-prone governments like Australia which transferred this panel technology because it does not burn. (Before approving this material, the European Union conducted a successful four-hour, high-temperature test burn). Hempcrete has also tested out at 70% energy efficiency and since this technology is prefabricated panels made locally, houses can be assembled with a small crew in less than a day. A 14-story hempcrete high rise is just being completed by IHI’s European partners in Paris.
We are also bringing a new hempcrete spray technology to Humboldt which could immediately create jobs to add this hempcrete fire-retardant and insulating material to existing structures in our community.
This alternative future would secure our own means of manufacturing, utilize local supplies and partners, and provide a curriculum to train future builders locally on a proven and sustainable housing model that is not only more economical but would make us the North American market leaders.
CR and IHI are part of a five-year effort to build an economy around hemp and its many applications (high-end fiber for clothing, bioplastics, high protein food, animal bedding). 13 Pacific Northwest Native American Tribes across six states will also be involved with this five-year program to develop methods for “processors to analyze the physical properties of materials and to set standards for their use in construction, biopolymer composites, packaging and textiles” according to Dr. Jeffrey Steiner, the director of OSU’s Global Hemp Innovation Center.
This grant kicks off the knowledge and technology transfer from France, and additional funds will be raised to create a bio-based panel manufacturing facility. Our plan is to train a local workforce and create new careers with CR’s involvement.
“This grant represents a long-sought innovative collaboration between College of the Redwoods, Oregon State University, and our tribal partners. CR is very excited to play a role in launching a partnership that will harness the potential of hemp-derived materials to reshape industries and foster a sustainable future for Tribal nations and rural communities,” said Dr. Keith Flamer, CR president.
IHI founder, Lisa Sundberg (Tribal Leader, Trinidad Rancheria), said, “As we develop hemp economies, IHI will bring the hempcrete segment of those economies under professional rules, standards and provide scalable solutions to tribes and communitues.”
Rising construction costs, labor shortages, more landfill and brittle supply chains are already wreaking havoc on building projects. These trends are expected to continue. But if we invest in this regenerative technology together as a community, we own our own destiny.
It is the tale of two futures.
If you wish to know more or be a part of this, please go to www.IndigenousHabitatInstitute.com.
Ken Hamik is a managing partner at Indigenous Habitat Institute, board president for the Humboldt County Visitors Bureau, a member of the College of the Redwoods President’s Council, an operating partner at the Ganjery, member of Cal Poly Humboldt’s Recreation Administration Industry Advisory Council.
