Inspired by the cultural processes that established cathedrals, an eco-cathedral is a place where people, plants and animals work together over many generations. The site, which could be a public park or privately owned land, is developed with the help of free energy in the form of muscle power rather than machinery and sustainable renewable building materials. At the moment most of the building material is stone, but the use of wood and glass is also envisaged in due course. The stones are piled up without mortar, so plants can grow and animals can nest in the spaces in between. The site is developed without plans being drawn up in advance.Â
The first eco-cathedral project was launched in the village of Mildam near Heerenveen in 1965 and is still being developed. The concept was conceived and implemented by Dutch eco-landscape pioneer Louis Le Roy (1924 - 2012) who turned hundreds of trucks of clinker, tiles and kerb stones into a complex structure that is equally determined by the processes of nature. Eight new builders are currently working on the project, mostly on Tuesday mornings. As usual, there are no detailed plans: the outcome depends on the building materials supplied. These are deposited on a regular basis and piled up by the new builders. Stichting TIJD, the foundation set up to guarantee the development of the eco-cathedral for future generations,
will work to ensure that the work can continue without an end date. The foundation is also available to advise on the development of other eco-cathedrals in the Netherlands and other countries. The Le Roy Garden on Europalaan and Kennedylaan in the Heerenveen-Midden district is a city park that is being developed in accordance with the principles of the eco-cathedral process. In 2005, the municipality of Heerenveen signed a letter of intent to allow the site to be developed as an eco-cathedral for the next 100 years. In the Lewenborg district in Groningen another Le Roy site has been developed as an eco-cathedral since the 1970s. The project is being supervised by Stichting LeRoy Groningen, which signed a similar agreement with the city of Groningen in 2008.
