Alexandros Tsamis and Arta Yazdanseta Present at 13th Annual International Hemp Building Symposium
November 3rd, 2025
Last month, Director of CASE, Dr. Alexandros Tsamis and Assistant Professor Dr. Arta Yazdanseta presented their research at the 13th Annual International Hemp Building Symposium in the Lower Sioux Indian Community, Minnesota. Hosted by the International Hemp Building Association, the three day event brought together experts and innovators from around the world to share the latest ideas and projects in hemp construction. Dr. Tsamis and Dr. Yazdanseta joined over 25 other hemp construction leaders in to discuss important topics in this innovative industry spanning research and development, manufacturing, material science, commercialization and more.
At the symposium, Dr. Tsamis presented the Seed to City Initiative, which he co-directs with Dan Walczyk from Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at RPI. This initiative is a partnership between academia(1), industry(2), and government(3), aiming to establish a circular economy in New York State centered on industrial hemp and the construction sector. Alexandros showcased the RPI developed novel decortication technologies and highlighted RPI-led innovations in construction products and manufacturing processes, including the Hemp Retrofit Siding project, the Hemp Rebar project, and the Hemp-Based Minibar Reinforcement project.
He emphasized the urgent need to implement manufacturing infrastructure across the state to serve as a catalyst for this emerging circular economy. He also shared progress on the Next Generation Barn, a prototype we aim to construct in New York, alongside findings from our study on supply-demand balance within a distributed manufacturing network tailored to the state’s needs.
Dr. Yazdanseta spoke about her research on lived experience in hempcrete homes. While 78.9% of publications on the topic of hempcrete focus on lab performance, fewer than 3% address the human questions that stop adoption cold—Does it feel damp? Will it need constant maintenance? What happens after ten winters? To tackle these underacknowledged questions, she traveled to meet 12 people who've lived in hempcrete homes for 5+ years across France, the UK, and Netherlands. Not to assess their building performance, but to hear their stories. What emerged was striking: 100% would choose hempcrete again. Zero regrets about the material itself—only about installation methods or finish choices.
One occupant told Dr. Yazdnseta her asthma attacks stopped once she moved into her hempcrete building. A couple in France described their home staying 18°C even when outside temperatures hit 40°C. Others spoke about how the material "breathes" in ways they struggle to articulate but can feel daily. These aren't testimonials—they're systematic findings from phenomenological interviews revealing patterns across comfort, durability, acoustics, and social acceptance. This research feeds Habitat Atlas, an open platform turning individual experiences into searchable evidence that addresses the "what's it actually like?" questions blocking wider adoption.
The most energizing feedback for Dr. Yazdanseta’s presentation came off-stage: industry partners and researchers explaining how this kind of documented lived experience is exactly what they need but can't find. One developer said it directly: "Technical specs don't convince clients—stories from people like them do." This statement underlines the work that academic institutions can uniquely provide: rigorous documentation that translates lived experience into adoption-enabling evidence.
Both Dr. Tsamis and Dr. Yazdanseta noted the exceptional work presented by local and international entities—including companies, private research centers, and university labs. The event underlined and extensively demonstrated the significant strides of hemp-based materials, such as hemp-lime, in the construction industry, and are now officially recognized in the U.S. code of materials. Even with such immense progress, much remains to be done before we can claim a long-term, viable circular bioeconomy. Synthetic materials for construction will need to be replaced with bio-derived or waste-derived equivalents that can compete on equal footing in terms of cost, manufacturability, and performance.
A successful and thought-provoking event, the symposium reinforced the importance of research surrounding hemp construction and the passion and commitment of the professionals in the field working to make great strides in harnessing the power of this innovative material. Through their contributions to this important body of research, Dr. Tsamis and Dr. Yazdanseta are among an outstanding group of professionals who are paving the way to support sustainable development and local communities.
(1)Academic partners for the Seed to City Initiative include: Cornell College of and Agriculture and Life Sciences, SUNY Morrisville School of Agriculture, Business and Technology, SUNY ESF College of Environmental Science and Forestry and the Pratt Institute.
(2)Industry partners include: Durasip, Introba, Hempitecture, the Fort Miller Group.
(3)Work has been partially funded by New York State and the U.S. Department of Energy.
Media Contact:
Kathie Brill, Program Manager
Brillk@rpi.edu