Paula and Bill Lishman used to spend winters in a cabin that didn’t keep the heat well. They decided to build a house underground to stay warmer using the earth’s natural heat.
They removed the top of a hill, placed dome-shaped structures made of strong cement, and then covered them with soil again. Their underground home is bright inside thanks to skylights in each dome and walls covered with white marble powder.
This design keeps their home well-lit and warm, even below the ground where it’s normally cold. Underground, about fifteen feet down, the soil stays about as warm or cool as the air’s average temperature above ground throughout the year.
This helps homes built into the earth, known as earth-sheltered homes, stay warm in winter and cool in summer. Bill Lishman thought we should change not only how our homes look but also how we live in them.
In 1986, Bill Lishman started training Canada Geese to follow his light aircraft. He taught the birds migration routes to help prevent their extinction. His project, called “Operation Migration,” became well-known through the 1996 movie “Fly Away Home,” which starred Jeff Daniels.
