# Off-Grid Self-Sufficient Island Homes Vollebak and Bjarke Ingels Design the Earth House in Canada By Amy Duong | Published 2023-06-09 | Art & Design Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/earth-house References: [dezeen](https://www.dezeen.com/2023/06/09/vollebak-island-bjarke-ingels-house-nova-socia/)  Danish architect Bjarke Ingles works in collaboration with Vollebak on the [Earth House](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/earth-villa), which is an entirely [self-sufficient island home](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/campos-studio) that is located in Nova Scotia, Canada. The house is meant to capture the values and ideals of the clothing brand and simultaneously capture the "philosophy of hedonistic sustainability" that is true to Ingels' studio [BIG](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/not-a-hotel). The sustainable retreat rests on an island with nine interconnected buildings that come together to form a central courtyard in the middle. Tidball explains the project to Dezeen, noting that "We've built clothing with everything from copper and algae to ceramics, minerals and graphene. But in clothing, there is a practical limit as everything you design has to work right next to a human body that's always moving. So when you move into architecture more possibilities open up. In this project, we are looking at materials that are both cutting-edge and ancient – from bedrock and thatch to seaweed and hempcrete. There's a shared belief between Vollebak and BIG in the power of using innovative materials to solve some of the biggest challenges." Image Credit: Bjarke Ingels, Vollebak ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 3.4/10 - Popularity: 52% | Activity: 34% | Freshness: 16% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Gen Z, Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Art & Design](https://www.trendhunter.com/artdesign) ## Key Themes ### What's Driving This Trend - **Island Home Sustainability:** Designing self-sufficient homes that are eco-friendly and utilize innovative materials on islands to promote sustainable living. - **Innovative Sustainable Materials:** Exploring the use of groundbreaking materials like seaweed and hempcrete in architecture as a means of promoting responsible use of resources. - **Hedonistic Sustainability:** Combining luxury and sustainability in construction to give homeowners a more environmentally-conscious quality of life. ### Who This Affects Most - **Green Construction:** The construction industry can leverage the usage of eco-friendly material and sustainable housing designs to promote a greener future. - **Luxury Real Estate:** The real estate industry can offer sustainable and eco-friendly island vacation homes as an upscale experience while also promoting sustainable living conditions. - **Innovative Material Production:** Companies that focus on creating or improving cutting-edge sustainable materials have a chance to collaborate with architects and companies looking to create more sustainable buildings and homes. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Sustainable Off-Grid Remote Retreats](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/daria-sheina.md) - [Water-Surrounded Summer Homes](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/whistling-wind-island.md) - [Japanese Island Holiday Villas](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/not-a-hotel.md) - [Organically Printed Homes](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/lib-earth-house.md) - [Green Roof-Topped Circular Villas](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/earth-villa.md) - [Shape‑shifting Retreats](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/modular-offgrid-house.md) - [Scattered Boulder-Inspired Homes](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/rockbound.md) - [Climate-Responsive Prefab Homes](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/drop-pod.md) - [Off-Grid Mountain Shelter Designs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/genius-show.md)