Appropriate, or intermediate, technology is a broad based term referring to technologies that can be produced and maintained by small communities. Most often it refers to technologies that attempt to keep in balance local natural resources while serving basic infrastructure needs such as water, electricity, cook fuel, heat, sanitation, and housing. Most appropriate technology discussions revolve around the understanding that much of the benefit of quality infrastructure can be gained without harming the environment, without using complex hard to manufacture systems, and without requiring the prohibitive level of financing needed for large infrastructure projects. With the proper tools and knowledge communities of limited means, often in very simple and elegant ways, can solve on their own problems which the industrialized world has relegated to expensive specialists.

The AIDG seeks out and refines appropriate technology designs, and works through education, outreach and business incubation, to see them implemented in communities. The technologies listed to the left are technologies that the AIDG is currently pursuing designs on and adapting for implementation. We use designs that are public domain and sometimes have been used by people in certain parts of the world for centuries. We seek to find elegant balanced solutions to people's problems, solutions that not only take into account immediate need but consider the impact of the solution on future generations. As the AIDG implements and tests its designs it will make plans for them available to the public on this website. In the mean time if you would like further information on any of our designs beyond what we provide in our descriptions please refer to our AIDG.NET Site or feel free to contact us.