Last summer we visited the Myvatn Nature Baths Project that I have been designing for almost ten years. The beginnings were very low key, but now with increasing number of visitors more buildings have been built, the last one opening last summer. This was a new restaurant wing.

Until recently, almost all business in Iceland was in fishing and industries related to it. It is not a good strategy to base an economy on one resource. Thus, the governmental policy has been in recent decades to support other businesses, especially by building large geo-thermal or hydroelectric power stations that sell the resulting power for the processing of raw materials like aluminium and alloys. The nation has been divided about this policy because it results in great environmental changes to the countryside that is world known for exceptional un-polluted nature. There is a strong opinion in the country that the resulting energy is not environmentally friendlier than energy that creates carbon dioxide. Furthermore, those that oppose this energy policy maintain that the processing of raw materials does not induce education; sophistication in technology except on a very limited scale and thus the nation will remain a community of workers with little education. This policy does not support to the need to create work for women. A large faction of the community wants to induce more environmentally friendly projects in conjunction with raising the level of education and increase the services for tourism that has been increasing during the recent decades. The Myvatn Nature Baths is a project that bases its promotion to the community on the assumption that it is such a project.

Here is a badly taken video of the project from last summer with explanatory commentary.