At DesignBuildBLUFF we teach the architects of tomorrow more than just how to design a structure. We teach them how to use their hands, hearts and heads to create a home that is both at one with the landscape and also challenges the preconceived notions of what a building can and should be.

Each year a select group of architecture graduate students design and construct a new home for a deserving member of the Navajo Nation, with a focus on sustainability and respect for the unique social, cultural and environmental needs of the region.

Projects begin when the students work with the Navajo to select a deserving family, wishing for a home incorporating innovative design. Recipient families are involved from start to finish, ensuring comfort, sustainability and project success. Once a final design is chosen, the students move to Bluff, located in southeastern Utah near Four Corners, to build the home themselves during the semester.

We are currently taking applications for the 2012/2013 season.

To learn more, please contact Hank Louis at (435) 649-7080; hank@designbuildbluff.org.

CU Denver students, please contact Rick Sommerfeld at erik.sommerfeld@ucdenver.edu.