Traditionally, architects have contributed little to housing for the Third World urban poor. Those who opt to work for the poor need to rethink their roles; the numbers are overwhelming, the issues complex and the resources are very limited. One solution is to use land as a resource to produce housing for the urban poor, by allowing them access to it to build their homes. A study was conducted of such initiatives in a case study in India: The Aranya Housing Project, completed in 1988 and considered a model project.
Kelly Hart
Top Architecture Prize Goes to Low-Cost Housing Pioneer From India
Balkrishna Doshi, the winner of this year’s Pritzker Prize for architecture doesn’t talk just about his buildings. This architect, urban planner and educator talks about how his buildings aim to foster a sense of community, how space can promote inner peace, how cities can contribute to the health of a society.
Migrating Culture Earthbag Chalet
Sometimes I go back and research previous projects to see if there’s any news. I was pleasantly surprised to see the NGO Migrating Culture making excellent progress in Ghana. Earlier we profiled their Mahali Project. Since then they’re gone on to build other projects include this very nice modern earthbag home called the Aseseeso Project. You can see a slideshow of the entire build.
Swale Paths for Permaculture Gardens
“A swale is a ditch dug on contour. This means that water is not draining in one direction — instead it spreads evenly across the slope and sinks into the soil. Traditionally, the earth that is dug out is placed on the downhill side and planted out with a mixture of perennial and annual crops (but always perennial to ensure that the earth is stabilized with good long-term root structure).”
Replace Old Yurt with Strawbale Roundhouse
Question from Kristen, one of our readers: Any tips or pointers for building a strawbale roundhouse on post and piers?? I have a yurt with a permanent post and pier foundation with concrete piers going 2 feet down and 1.5 feet wide. I want to take down the yurt and build a strawbale house, and since the floor is already round use the layout I have…Thanks for any direction as my husband and I will be doing this ourselves and enlisting our 16 year old son and any friends we can have come help.
Superior Natural House
For rent: We are offering three Superior Natural Houses, each one has a large space with one King size bed and one or two additional single beds. They have many special features such as a wooden lounge chair, a very efficient and silent ceiling fan, and a complete tiled bathroom with hot and cold shower.