Earthship Burundi
Tropical Earthship in Africa
Earthship Burundi: Pioneering Sustainable Living in Africa
Earthship Burundi is the visionary project of Peter Hemmings, a passionate advocate for sustainable living from Adelaide, South Australia. His mission? To bring Earthship Eco Homes to Africa, starting with Burundi—a small East African nation with a tropical climate and a pressing need for sustainable housing solutions.
This groundbreaking initiative is more than just architecture—it’s about empowerment, resilience, and regeneration. The Earthship Burundi project will deliver six eco-tourism cabins, a restaurant, and a homestead, providing much-needed investment and employment opportunities for the local community.
A Tropical Earthship Reimagined
Traditional Earthships thrive in arid and temperate climates, but designing for hot, humid conditions and monsoonal rains required innovation. This new modular design builds on Earthship principles while adapting to the realities of Burundi’s environment:
✔ Scalable & Flexible – A modular system where tiny house-style cabins form the foundation. These can be linked together to create larger structures like the restaurant and homestead.
✔ Water Collection - The steep thatched roof, inspired by ancient, time-tested tropical construction, quickly sheds heavy rain into plumbed garden beds that direct water into downhill storage tanks.
✔ Naturally Cool & Comfortable – Unlike traditional Earthships, which rely on heavy thermal mass, these buildings prioritise insulation and airflow to prevent nighttime overheating.
✔ Minimal Energy Use – Smart passive design reduces energy demand, while renewable energy systems provide the little power required.
✔ Regenerative Waste Systems – Composting toilets turn waste into rich organic "humanure", while greywater from showers and basins irrigates food gardens.
✔ Eco-Friendly Materials – Staying true to Earthship principles, these homes incorporate 200 waste car tyres per cabin, locally sourced sustainable timber, and earth floors instead of carbon-intensive concrete.
Building a Sustainable Future for Burundi
This project is just the beginning. As locals learn the Earthship building techniques, they’ll gain the skills to replicate and expand this model across the country—creating homes that are low-cost, self-sufficient, and resilient. By combining eco-tourism, sustainable construction, and community empowerment, Earthship Burundi is evolving regenerative design in Africa: honouring traditional local methods and materials, and blending them with Earthship design and construction principles.
Earthship Burundi is the visionary project of Peter Hemmings, a passionate advocate for sustainable living from Adelaide, South Australia. His mission? To bring Earthship Eco Homes to Africa, starting with Burundi—a small East African nation with a tropical climate and a pressing need for sustainable housing solutions.
This groundbreaking initiative is more than just architecture—it’s about empowerment, resilience, and regeneration. The Earthship Burundi project will deliver six eco-tourism cabins, a restaurant, and a homestead, providing much-needed investment and employment opportunities for the local community.
A Tropical Earthship Reimagined
Traditional Earthships thrive in arid and temperate climates, but designing for hot, humid conditions and monsoonal rains required innovation. This new modular design builds on Earthship principles while adapting to the realities of Burundi’s environment:
✔ Scalable & Flexible – A modular system where tiny house-style cabins form the foundation. These can be linked together to create larger structures like the restaurant and homestead.
✔ Water Collection - The steep thatched roof, inspired by ancient, time-tested tropical construction, quickly sheds heavy rain into plumbed garden beds that direct water into downhill storage tanks.
✔ Naturally Cool & Comfortable – Unlike traditional Earthships, which rely on heavy thermal mass, these buildings prioritise insulation and airflow to prevent nighttime overheating.
✔ Minimal Energy Use – Smart passive design reduces energy demand, while renewable energy systems provide the little power required.
✔ Regenerative Waste Systems – Composting toilets turn waste into rich organic "humanure", while greywater from showers and basins irrigates food gardens.
✔ Eco-Friendly Materials – Staying true to Earthship principles, these homes incorporate 200 waste car tyres per cabin, locally sourced sustainable timber, and earth floors instead of carbon-intensive concrete.
Building a Sustainable Future for Burundi
This project is just the beginning. As locals learn the Earthship building techniques, they’ll gain the skills to replicate and expand this model across the country—creating homes that are low-cost, self-sufficient, and resilient. By combining eco-tourism, sustainable construction, and community empowerment, Earthship Burundi is evolving regenerative design in Africa: honouring traditional local methods and materials, and blending them with Earthship design and construction principles.