Swentzell created Flowering Tree Permaculture Institute in 1987, Flowering Tree is a non-profit organization that teaches and prompts different techniques and methods of a sustainable life style. I conducted a quick interview with my Aunt Roxanne's at her house in Santa Clara Pueblo. I asked her why she began her non-profit organization her statement was, " Growing up and living in Santa Clara, knowing and researching how our ancestors lived for hundreds of years gave me the perfect backdrop to implement how we can utilize their sustainable living into our modern lifestyle. If they could do it, there should be no reason we can't live a nearly sustainable life ." (Swentzell, 11/22/14).
Swentzell built her own house at the age of 23 out of adobe and other eco friendly materials. She borrowed much of the housing techniques from pueblo ancestors. Pueblo people built their homes with low profiles and thick walls, by doing this the house protected the occupants and regulated indoor temperature in the harsh desert surroundings. The main material to build a pueblo house is adobe. Adobe is made out of clay and straw compacted into a brick form. The roof of the pueblo house is generally flat across. The flat roof was used to protect from scavengers and dry a verity of foods from harvested and hunted vegetables, fruit, meat, and even to collect rainwater. Swentzell made sure her house is solar and well insulated in footings, floor, and roof. The walls are made completely out of adobe, the adobe is laid thick ways to help insulate. However Swentzell excluded the flat top roof for pitched tin roof. .
In reality it is an extremely useful and genius was to have your home function in multiple ways. But this was normal for ancestor Pueblo people, they lived liked this for hundreds of years building their own housing and designing it in away to assist them in daily life. My Aunt Rox brought up a funny point, " The men, women, and children didn't come out of the fields to go home to piles of bills.