Growing abundantly in Nicaragua, bamboo is an untapped local and natural resource, with great potential to provide a sustainable alternative for conventional buildings methods. Since 2014 Bambú Social has been committed to develop this potential together with local communities. They designed and built a sustainable model house from bamboo with an integrated water collection and purification system together with local students and craftsmen in El Rama, Nicaragua. An improved and more economical social home based on this design has been explained step by step with drawings in a Spanish manual. In 2015 a team of students from the minor IE&D visited El Rama to realize a follow up project. They analyzed the social impact of the previous project, improved construction details of the model house and made new links with local students and young professionals.
The students should work on a Business plan for a Bamboo Factory, design and construction of treatment & drying facility, documentation in the form of a basic ‘manual’ as a base to replicate the factory model. The main challenge is to use the effects of passive ventilation, humidity control and thinking about the design in a way that people have to put in the least effort possible to carry, treat and dry bamboo. Low tech and high innovation skills are therefore needed as well as the ability to adapt and the willingness to have the time of your life.
Proficiency in speaking Spanish is required (at least of some members of the team).
Links:
http://www.stichtingsamenscholen.org
Impressions: