Novid Parsi is a St. Louis-based freelance writer who covers a wide range of industries, including construction and technology.

Credit: Essential Homes
Essential Homes affordable housing prototype

A Sustainable Home for Displaced People

Holcim and the Norman Foster Foundation have created a scalable prototype for affordable housing. The structure is covered in a rollable canvas containing low-carbon cement
Oct. 14, 2024
Credit: Automated Architecture
Shipping container homebuilding robots by Automated Architecture

These AI Robots Can Help Build Homes

Automated Architecture, a London-based construction tech startup, has developed what it calls a robotic micro-factory to build high-quality sustainable homes at affordable prices...
Oct. 2, 2024
Photo © Edlinger/Timberland
Pictured: 222 Hog Mountain Circle Fleischmanns, N.Y.

The LEED Homes Awards’ Single-Family Winners

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGC), the developer of the LEED rating system, has announced the winners of its annual LEED Homes Awards, which recognize some of the world’s...
Sept. 23, 2024
Credit: Louisiana State University College of Engineering
LSU Civil Engineering Professor Hai 'Thomas' Lin

How Mud Dauber Wasps Inspired 3D-Printed Homes

A professor of civil and environmental engineering drew inspiration from mud daubers to imagine earthen buildings made of soil and the root-like structure of mushrooms
Sept. 13, 2024
Credit: Healthy Communities
The Ridge In Williamsburg, Va, Winner Of The 2024 Housing Innovation Awards

Award-Winning Healthy Homes With Clean Air and Energy

A perennial winner of the Housing Innovation Awards, Virginia-based Healthy Communities looks to the DOE’s new definition of zero emissions buildings to boost construction of ...
Aug. 19, 2024
Credit: NASA
Bricks produced using mycelium, yard waste and wood chips as a part of the myco-architecture project. Similar materials could be used to build habitats on the Moon or Mars.

Sustainable Housing: Growing Homes From Fungi

To create off-planet housing, a NASA project grows fungi’s root-like structure so that it fills lightweight inflatables. The idea can work on Earth, too
July 29, 2024
Photo courtesy Adobe Stock
Adobe Stock 330369089

To Target Older Home Buyers and Sellers, Consider Their Emotions

A recent survey by Opendoor reveals that home buyers and sellers ages 55 and over are emotionally attached to their current homes—but enthusiastic about purchasing their new ones...
July 15, 2024
Credit: Housing Production Fund
The Laureate affordable housing project in Derwood, Md.

An Innovative Financing Model for Affordable Housing

Maryland’s Montgomery County approved a $100 million fund to finance and speed the production of affordable housing
July 1, 2024