Women in Natural Building

No.095 — Read old posts on Tinyfarmlab.com
Reading Time 4 minutes

When we think of building,
many picture of bulky men lifting stones or
now, pouring concrete.

We often learn that men build houses.
Women only decorate and maintain them.

But if we scratch beneath the patriarchal surface, the story of shelter has always been intertwined with women’s hands, hearts, and knowledge.

Long ago, men often left home for trade or war.
Women stayed behind to care for children.
When men were gone or died, women built homes.
They mixed mud, raised walls, and fixed roofs.
They kept their families safe.

They also cared for the land and forests.
They kept traditional knowledge alive.

In many cultures, women did most of the hard work.
They carried water, dug foundations, mixed mortar, and thatched roofs.
But history books rarely mention them.

For thousands of years, women passed down building skills.
They taught others how to make adobe bricks, clay plasters, and natural paints.
They knew how to care for the forests, plants, and animals.

The first written record of women working on construction sites is from the 1200s in Navarre, Spain. They helped build stone and wooden structures.

In the 1600s, Lady Anne Clifford and Lady Elizabeth Wilbraham took active roles in building. Later, Emily Warren Roebling led the Brooklyn Bridge project.
During WWII, women built the Waterloo Bridge, also called the Ladies Bridge.

But after the wars ended, women were pushed out again.
Their work was forgotten.

Women in natural building today

Women are leading the return to natural building.
They lead workshops.
They build homes with earth, straw, bamboo, and lime.

Groups like the Mudgirls Natural Building Collective in Canada,
And the Women’s Natural Building Collective in Portugal,
support women builders and eco-friendly building practices.

Around the world, workshops see 70–80% women attending.
Many women want to reconnect with nature.
They want to build safe, beautiful, healthy homes.

Here are some women we admire who are leading this movement.

Shagun Singh, the founder of Geeli Mitti, an Indian natural builder and teacher.
She runs workshops and projects across India.
She helps people learn how to build with mud and natural materials.

Sigi Koko in the USA is a well-known natural building designer.
She creates cob and straw homes.
She teaches workshops that show people how to build beautiful, sustainable houses.

Yasmeen Lari is Pakistan’s first female architect.
She is known for her work in disaster relief and social justice.
She teaches how to build low-cost bamboo and mud homes.
She helps communities stay safe during floods and earthquakes.

Atulya is a writer and natural builder.
She built her own cob house alone on a Turkish mountain.
She shares her journey in her books and on her blog.
She inspires many to build with confidence and creativity.

Anna Heringer is a German architect known for earth buildings.
She designs award-winning projects using mud and bamboo.
She proves that natural building can be modern, strong, and beautiful.

These women are not just builders.
They prove that building can heal both people and nature.

Women built in the past.
Women build today.
They will build tomorrow.

They protect forests and keep old knowledge alive.
They lead us toward a future where homes and nature thrive together.

Natural building is not just a craft.
It is a way to heal our world.
And women are at the heart of it.

Love,
Raghav and Ansh

P.S.: If you still haven’t received our free guide, you can use this link.

What you can watch - The warmth and wisdom of mud buildings | Anna Heringer

What you can listen to - Live talk with Yasmeen Lari as part of Dezeen 15 | Dezeen

What You Can Read - How 350 women rebuilt London’s Waterloo Bridge under Nazi bombings

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