movement become? Is it a harbinger of future sustainable building or a faddish hippie subculture doomed forever to the margins? Only time can answer these questions definitively, but if we refer to the principles of ecological design emphasized throughout this dissertation, I believe we must recognize, at very least, that the natural building movement is playing an important role in actualizing these principles. There can be no doubt that real sustainability depends upon much greater integration of formal and informal sectors; on more emphasis on resource- than on labour-intensity; on greater use of regionally-available resources of low embodied energy; on decreasing use of toxic petrochemical-based synthetic materials; and on greater participation of people in designing and adapting their built-environments. Like other social movements concerned with creating alternatives, the practices of the natural building movement might seem so fringy and exotic only because mainstream building practices have become so removed from sensible ecological practice. If this is the case, then we can expect to see a growing convergence of natural building and mainstream green building. If we look closely, we will, I believe, find that such a convergence is already taking place. Certain kinds of natural building systems like straw bale are being found in more conventional settings, and natural building systems are slowly being accepted by local building officials. Natural materials, like bamboo flooring and strawboard, are also being found in conventional housing. If our own economies are to survive, they will increasingly have to incorporate full costs into market prices. If this really happens, it will undoubtedly begin to transform the labour/materials intensity balance, making labour-intensive building forms more attractive, while forcing greater use of local materials. Already there are some