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If ever there was someone who fit the description of bold, outrageous and original, it would be architect Mike Reynolds, creator of Earthships, and affectionately called the "Garbage Warrior" in a recently released documentary film about his life and his mission.  The name "Garbage Warrior" refers to the fact that his totally self-sustaining homes are made with natural and recycled materials, in particular, discarded tires, plastic, and glass bottles.

With an intensity of focus and a wild mind that stretches out into the far reaches of thought, Reynolds has for over 30 years, walked a path of invention, creation and evolution, making a profound impact on sustainable living and architectural form. His footprints are huge, his energy tireless, and his genuine humanity inspiring.

According to Reynolds, Earthships can be built in any environment with materials that are indigenous to the area, require no infrastructure, and include 6 key elements: power generation; harvesting of water; heating and cooling without fuel; containing and treating sewage on site; in home food production, and building with recycled materials. He refers to this "integrated system" as Biotecture. This is true sovereign living that empowers people to be able to take care of themselves.

Reynolds' unconventional ideas found expression in a number of homes and communities built throughout the northern New Mexico landscape until the pencil pushers and the red tape of codes, rules and regulations came down on him--hard. The film gives us an inside look at the cumbersome, labyrinth like beast of politics and how it  can suck the life force out of solution driven invention, originality and passion.

Capturing one's attention right from the start, the film covers a lot of ground, from Reynolds' early creations to their popularity in the 80's, through the 90's when his architect's license was taken away, the ensuing dark night of the soul journey when his world fell apart, the evolution of his ideas to the present time, and his dreams for the future.  

While his passion for designing self-contained earthen structures began years ago as a quality of life choice, Reynolds is now being fueled by a sense of urgency as he witnesses the planet's dramatic gestures of inevitable change. "I was almost getting casual. It's an emergency, and we don't have enough time!. We're talking survival now. And that's a powerful force!" Reynolds holds that Earthships offer a solution to these changes and the problems of sewage contamination, lack of affordable housing, and dwindling energy and water resources.

I loved this film. It is genuine, personal and up close. It's as if you were right there walking with Reynolds as he shows you different Earthship sites, or takes you to the Andaman Islands where he and his crew build an Earthship structure with people whose lives and homes were devastated by the 2005 tsunami. He is a man comfortable with change and experimentation, and intimately understands the necessity of both as he continues to learn from every structure he builds. "Each project causes us to gain new knowledge....it opens our eyes, and then we can evolve Earthships further. After 30+ years, I'm just beginning to scratch the surface." 

Put this film at the top of your list. It could even light your fire to do greater things.