Project Overview

Earthship Backstage is the second site InfoArc has produced for Earthship Biotecture, which is a membership site / web application that consolidates much of the technical data, conceptual drawings and ideas, historical information and architectural drawings that have sprung from the Earthship Movement and Michael Reynolds.

It incorporates an ongoing question/answer dialog and library of vital information as well as a user forum. This site has it all, and is an ever-growing repository of eco-building knowledge.

Design Philosophy

The specification requested by Michael Reynolds was to be a consolidated application for disseminating the drawing sets, vital question and answer interface, historical data, key facts and studies about the Earthship architectural systems. Essentially, a “backstage pass” to the construction details of these fascinating homes.

Key Features

Media Repository

• Downloadable architectural drawings for most Earthship models
• Books and writings from the extensive Earthship history
• Support data and legal documentation
• Webinars on various processes for building Earthships
• Videos and Animations

Q&A and Forum

• Directly asking questions of Michael Reynolds through a question-submission interface
• Answers are posted in video streaming format
• Forum built on Mattermost for potential connections to other students and Earthship builders
• FAQ for the usual questions regarding anything in Earthshipland

Extras

• Earthships around the World interactive map
• Earthship Types, covering the currently in-production styles/price tiers
• Calendar of events
• Walkthru videos of current builds or recently built Earthships
• Subscription model on 6-month auto-renewal

Tech Stack

• Astro
• Sanity
• Airtable
• AWS Cloudfront
• Stripe
• Leaflet maps

Impact & Recognition

Earthship Biotecture has been building off-grid, experimental, net-zero buildings for 50 years. This website represents the largest, continually-expanding collection of accessible drawings and documentation, video presentations and technical assistance from the company.