The Hands and Hearts that Built Arcosanti
Arcosanti Alumni are the 8,000+ people who have completed a 5-6 week apprenticeship-style workshop at Arcosanti and Cosanti since the first “Silt Pile Workshop” in 1963. Participants came from around the world, representing a variety of trades, disciplines, socio-economic backgrounds and education. Galvanized by a shared belief in finding a better way to build cities and communities while respecting the ecology of the plane, these volunteers helped to build Arcosanti.
We fondly refer to this special group of people in the history of our organization as alumni. Without them, Arcosanti would not have been built or been recognized in the history of architecture for its contributions to sustainable building practices. Many alumni have stayed on – or returned – to volunteer their time and talents to Arcosanti, which in the parlance of Arcosanti Alumni is sometimes called simply, “The Project.” Still others went on to apply their experiences and knowledge gleaned during their Workshop into their lives and their work. The hard work and time that Arcosanti’s alumni gave in the service of the Urban Laboratory continues to impress and astonish us and all those who visit Arcosanti.