this work. As there are so many unknowns at this stage, the exact form of occupation cannot be determined with certainty. One attractive feature is the very low cost of living in this environment. This is possible because many of the standard expenses are replaced by labor. Consider the following project highlights: No motorized vehicle to buy, maintain, insure or feed. Energy is drawn from local renewable resources. There are no profits taken for wholesale and retail. Food is locally produced – again, no wholesale or retail, just involvement. Cottages are cheap, compact, and portable. They are built by the owner, and paid for as they are built. No rent or house payments. The low cost makes life possible for low-income lifestyles. Many artists would be able to live off their craft. Students could survive on part-time minimum-wage jobs. Homeless could live safely and comfortably on their recycling. Sustainable infrastructural components could be fabricated onsite and marketed and installed in nearby homes, etc. A group of friends, a church or a business could establish a community at a more distant location. Infrastructural packages could be shipped to disaster areas, or fabricated within the areas themselves. This would encourage such communities to rebuild along sustainable lines. Optimally, it would be occupied as an ongoing laboratory for further refinement and development of sustainable systems, while serving as a local educational resource that strengthens civic cooperation.

Describe the critical need your solution addresses.

Current status comprises the development of appropriate technology components. These include various types of building structures, high-efficiency wood-fired appliances for cooking, ceramics and other thermal processes, high-density gardening, and solar cookers.
These achievements have been accomplished via “love equity” from the personal resources of an incorrigible problem-solver with a dedicated interest in a sustainable future.
Implementation would begin with a rough draft of a conference-ground style community, designed to service about 20 people. A “parts list” of the physical components required would then be compiled, with minimum specifications assigned to each. Local sustainability would of course be an underlying requirement. Additional criteria would include economy, low environmental impact and ability to assemble and disassemble fairly quickly with little trace left behind.
Research would locate versions of the various solutions most likely to meet the requirements of service and scale. Additional development would be required to modify and integrate the available technologies into the desired package. At least two projects come to mind for this category: A Stirling-cycle power plant, and a suitable long-term sanitation system.
With a complete set of the components and tooling required, a suitable location would then be identified and acquired.
A comprehensive instruction package would be created to detail assembly, usage, and integration of every component.
An initial staff of volunteers, students, and/or potential long-term residents would be assembled with what they choose to carry, and then given verbal directions to the site and crated components a mile or more distant. The adventure begins.
Anticipated approximate usage of funds is as follows:
Legal services 5%
Public relations, permit fees, etc. 10%
Use of land 20%
Design services as required 20%
Research and writing 30%
Materials and components 15%

Explain your initiative in more depth and its stage of development.

SIS addresses “key social, economic, environmental, and cultural issues.”
Many, if not most, of the “solutions” we hear about represent incremental improvements to an obese and destructive infrastructure and lifestyle. Our approach reinvents infrastructure per an entirely different paradigm. This project is intended as a seed that can “grow” a future of sustainability and environmental responsibility in a well-integrated and balanced manner.
A locally sustainable infrastructure would be a stabilizing influence and example in a surrounding world of economic and political turmoil – independent of culture, language and geography.
SIS is an achievable pioneering enterprise whose demonstration and results will benefit communities with a feasible and viable response for progressive development as well as disaster response.

How does your strategy and approach respond creatively and comprehensively to key issues?

As a dedicated thinker and “hobbyist”, Bill Huff has produced many practical and experimental products that have proven capable of meeting the criteria of the project proposed. A couple of years ago during a visit to Guatemala, Huff designed a cistern pump that cost only 40% of that which they were currently using. Although it incorporated leather from an old boot, a child's marble, and pieces cut from tire tread, that community has continued to use his design ever since. Huff also built a high-efficiency cook stove that does not smoke, uses less firewood, and outperforms the new modern gas range in his home. A geodesic dome frame he designed in the 1970s has been used as a form for concrete structures that exist today in Baja California. Huff also has built a wood-fired kiln of approximately 10 cubic feet that has successfully fired batches of good-quality ceramics.
Additional projects include solar heaters (water and air), solar cookers, wood-fired water heaters, structural designs, workshops, and the creation of plans for some of these projects.