Hobbit Houses of the Real World: Welcome to the Shire?

This guy and his father in law built a hobbit house in Wales. They say they built it to be mindful of the environment and to live closer to nature, but obviously they built it in order to live more like hobbits in Lord of the Rings.

The house is nestled into a hillside. Stone and mud (and magic) were the basic construction materials. Water pipes in by gravity feed from a nearby spring. They use a compost toilet–so that’s how hobbits do their business. Their refrigerator is cooled by air coming in from the underground foundations. More pictures:

Link to our pictures on Facebook

Link to our pictures on Flickr

Students at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale have visualized a very unique application of PV. They have a new way to pay for it also as the students have overwhelmingly voted to implement a “Green Fee” to pay for sustainable projects. More information at their website.

Solar Panel Installation and Knowledge Courses

---

Click here for the beautiful full color flier (please post)
The Continuing Education Department at John A Logan College is once again pleased to offer Solar Knowledge and Installation Courses at the College! These courses are designed for those looking to increase their employability skills in the workforce or for those just wanting to enhance their “reservoir of knowledge”. We have three courses this spring–Solar Knowledge for Beginners, a one day introductory type coure (two sections, one on March 6 and one on May 1). Our more advanced courses-Solar Electric Design and Installation (Levels I and II) will be offered later this spring. For more detailed information, please click here Solar Installation/Knowledge Classes. To register go to Continuing Education Department at John A Logan College.For our calendar of events go here.  For our very nice flyer for all the spring classes at John A Logan go here (may take a moment to download)