Check out this link. It is about building a house from mud and straw.I think it is simple and practical and would suit the Muslim village in more than one way.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/norfolk/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_8376000/8376295.stm

Mashallah very interesting; thanx for posting this: it does raise questions for us though; how many of us [partuclarly those raised int he West like myself] know anything at all about;-

-cultivating land/farming?

-making your own house?

-living without attached toilets/baths?

et etc

Its easy for someone like me to start writing that we will do this and that and that but do i know what it will take? it will take considerable sacrifice & commitment to make the transition to the better village life.

Technology is debatable but there is plenty we can do without because it has ill side-effects: if we do use technology it will have to be somehow in a controlled atmoshphere. 

Best Wishes

Khan