Rural Studio Farm

Abstract

Rural Studio Farm was established in 2010 to raise the question: “How should we eat in rural settings?” The project is the brainchild of Rural Studio, an off-campus design and build architecture program, part of Auburn University School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Architecture, in Alabama. Located in Newbern, a village 150 km north-west of Montgomery, Rural Studio initiated its activity in Hale County, one of the poorest regions in the United States. The focus is set on students’ education, while assisting the underserved local community, suggesting that everyone, deserves the benefit of good architecture, sustainable design and permaculture. By designing, building and working at the farm, students learn to be critical architects and educated consumers, while giving the local community an alternative vision to the large-scale American food system. The idea is to plant a philosophy, beyond planting food.