Monday, Apr 29 2013 2:21PM

Architecture students are relying on nontraditional materials to build homes for Native Americans.

Budding architects at universities in Colorado and Utah are participating in programs that allow them to construct modern, affordable housing for rural Native American members living in impoverished conditions with recycled materials, according to Indian Country Today Media Network.

Nonprofit organization DesignBuildBLUFF constructs homes for Navajo members who live in substandard conditions or whose homes are unable to sustain harsh weather conditions, the news source reports. For example, the agency notes that "more than 40 percent live in overcrowded or dilapidated housing with severely inadequate infrastructure services like water and sewer," and the projects allow architectural students to build solid, sustainable and affordable homes from discarded, but useful materials. 

Homes have been constructed for families facing a number of unique circumstances, such as one constructed for a single Navajo mother with five children, who were previously living in a tent and facing strong winds and degrees in the teens, the news source reports. 

Both the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provide affordable housing assistance programs to various groups, but recent funding cuts as a result of the sequester may endanger some of these programs. For example, low-income elderly and disabled individuals who rely on rural rental assistance programs offered by the USDA may see subsidies eliminated as a result of the cuts. 

For more information, check out this resource: The Indian Country Today Media Network