Corn’s scientific name, Zea mays, draws from the Taino word “mahiz” meaning the “Bringer of Life”. Indigenous names for maize reflect its importance as a source of life and sustenance. For the Mayan people, this relationship is so foundational that their creation stories describe the first humans being formed from maize dough. 

Corn is the second largest crop cultivated on Earth, yet its potential extends far beyond the pantry or the fuel tank. After harvest, large quantities of agricultural residues known as “corn stover”—including the stalks, leaves, husks, and tassels—remain in the field. Often treated as waste or low-quality livestock feed, these by-products are an underutilized biological resource with significant potential for the biobased building materials industry.

Corncob (CC), a primary by-product of the corn industry, has shown promise as a sustainable and versatile building material. It can serve as thermal and acoustic insulation, soil stabilizer, filler and aggregate, and as an ingredient in particleboard, fiberboard and mycocomposites. When processed into fly ash, it can replace 5–30% of cement by weight. In traditional Portuguese “tabique” construction, corncobs have been used as wall fill, with properties similar to those of conventional insulation materials such as extruded polystyrene (XPS).

Fibers from corn husks and stalks are also being studied for their lignocellulosic properties. These fibers can be used to make high-performance biomaterials that replace non-biodegradable, petrochemical-based products. Using these fibers in technical applications represents a pathway towards a circular economy, reducing the harmful environmental impacts of waste while sequestering carbon within building materials.

MARGARET E. SMITH is a corn farmer and plant scientist.  Formerly a maize breeder in Latin America, she is Professor at the School of Integrative Plant Science at Cornell University, whose research is primarily focused on field corn. Margaret has had extensive experience in the academic research setting as well as in the field, growing and understanding corn with her bare hands. Her research program emphasizes breeding for productivity and adaptation to New York’s local growing conditions, improving insect and disease resistance, and breeding for organic systems.  

LANE SEGERSTROM is CEO and founder of CornBoard Manufacturing, a company pioneering the use of corn stover (the stalks and leaves left after harvest) to create renewable composite materials. Drawing from his roots in midwestern farming and a background in product innovation, Lane has spent more than two decades developing applications for agricultural byproducts. CornBoard transforms corn residue into durable alternatives to conventional wood-based products, from building materials to consumer goods. His work demonstrates how agricultural byproducts from the corn industry can be reimagined as a valuable, scalable resource for manufacturing and design.

FERNANDO LAPOSSE is a Mexican designer whose material-driven practice explores the cultural, ecological, and economic potential of plant-based materials. He works extensively with overlooked plant species indigenous to Mexico, including sisal, loofah, and corn leaves. After graduating from Central Saint Martins, Fernando became known for Totomoxtle, a veneer crafted from the colorful husks of heirloom Mexican corn. His creations stem from thorough research, resulting in objects that highlight the materials and their deep historical and cultural connections to specific places and communities. Laposse frequently collaborates with local indigenous groups and explores issues such as environmental crises, biodiversity loss, and migration through the transformative power of design.

MAE-LING LOKKO is an architectural scientist, designer, and educator whose research focuses on transforming agricultural waste into high-performance building materials. Originally from Ghana and the Philippines, Lokko works at the intersection of architecture, ecology, and material science. Her work investigates how crop residues, fungi, and other plant-based resources can be upcycled into low-carbon construction systems while supporting more equitable material supply chains. Through research, teaching, and design, Lokko explores how agricultural materials, often treated as waste, can become a foundation for regenerative building practices.

PAUL LEWIS is a principal at LTL Architects, currently focused on the architectural potentials of plant and earth-based materials. LTL Architects published the Manual of Biogenic House Sections in 2022. Paul is also professor at Princeton University School of Architecture and former president of the board at The Architectural League of NY.

JONSARA RUTH is co-founder and co-executive director of the Healthy Materials Lab (HML), working with a dedicated research team to rapidly advance healthier living spaces by understanding how human and planetary health are affected by the materials that surround us. She is also an associate professor of interior design at Parsons and founder of Salty Labs design collective experimenting with circular, healthy, regenerative materials and strategies.

Join us for a conversation with plant geneticists, material researchers, and innovative architects as we reframe our relationship with this ancient, revered plant and its descendants. We will explore how the vast “by-products” from agricultural sector can represent a critical opportunity  to serve  as new feedstocks for design, architecture, and construction. 

This event is part of an ongoing series co-hosted by Healthy Materials Lab and The Architectural League of New York that investigates the architectural possibilities of plant- and earth-based materials.

Register here. 

The New School students and staff can use code ParsonsCorn26. 

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Recordings from past events in this series are available here: Events on Demand.