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me > Specials > Sunday MiD-Day > Building blocks of change

ding blocks of change

D'mello Date: 2011-07-10 Place: Mumbai

s from around the world are collaborating with their Indian counterparts ck to the community while sticking to what they are good at. Moving ools deep inside sand dunes and bamboo homes that come up in 20 days but last 20 years eir altruistic innovations, says Yolande D'mello

dary school in Hyderabad wanted to add a few more classrooms, the management decided to consult 50,000 architects. The New Jiya C pated in the Open Architecture Network challenge, an online initiative by Architecture for Humanity, an organisation that brings together he world. The network works on a simple principle pool expertise to help those who are otherwise unable to afford their services. It a n design, construction and development services, while bringing about real-life changes in cities globally.

nd Shefali Balwani of Architecture Brio. pic/Atul Kamble

has an extended list of challenges, and a longer list of proposals to solve each of them. Every year, 25,000 individuals directly benefit igned by Architecture for Humanity.

he World Bank, educating children worldwide will require the construction of 10 million new classrooms in more than 100 countries by 2 Humanity reiterates it all begins with a bright idea. The Better Classroom Design challenge is their latest initiative.

und the world, and in our own backyards, are contributing their skill, knowledge and imagination to reach out and do their good deed fo cash but doing what they do best build.

le climbing a platform hefali Balwani and Robert Verrijt, Mumbai

e for Learning at Karjat conducts activity-based learning a view to teach them about leadership and livelihood.

i and Robert Verrijt have been spending a large part of their day in playgrounds. But it's not all fun and games. The Mumbai architect a arted Architecture BRIO in 2006 are drawing up plans for an open-learning centre for Magic Bus, a not-for-profit organisation that work nderprivileged children through sport.

works with the Magic Bus Centre for Learning & Development in Karjat, at a 20-acre outdoor campus that plays host to their programm activity, to design a play area that will educate through sport.

eviously worked in Sri Lanka now works out of BRIO's Khar office.

ay morning we meet them, they are busy working on how to incorporate a Jacob's ladder and a jungle bridge in a plan that will connect the pavilion. "We wanted the design to have an open theme. So the structure cannot have closed rooms. We need open platforms that ays Verrijt.

cks will be connected with a jungle bridge and swings. These will become a part of the activities that include moving from point A to po hysical hurdles along the way. In the discussion that follows, children are asked to identify real life difficulties that would arise while try n their circumstances -- these would include family pressure to work, etc. The deck will be sheltered with a plexiglass roof. The brief giv he need for a space that would reflect the play element, while allowing kids to explore their creativity.

Bus, that set up its Mumbai chapter nine years ago, starts off with setting goals for the kids. A song sets off a chain of activities that t ng through a series of games, and winding up with a discussion with a mentor-volunteer.

me aims to teach children aged seven to 18 leadership and livelihood. It's activity-based learning that's different from conventional clas s Pratik Kumar, COO, who oversees the NGO's functioning in Maharashtra, New Delhi and Andhra Pradesh.

be sheltered with plexiglass. "We intentionally didn't create a building with walls like one would usually do for a school building. We look cally required for the building," says Verrijt.

avoided building walls and windows and yet build a structure that is ventilated naturally.

nded by UK-based Laureus, a foundation that promotes learning through sport, will see completion next month. "The limited budget m with innovative ways to reduce cost without compromising on quality," explains Verrijt, adding, "We have a timber deck with a demoun orting a roof of a high quality material which can last over 30 years. This way the NGO can save on maintenance costs."

rio has also been nominated in 2009 for the Zumtobel Group Award for Sustainability and Humanity for their design for a staff dormitor gn of a cage built from bamboo, and will take shape in the coming months.

rse or building plan?

avillion that Architecture Brio built for children at Magic Bus, stands at the centre and can be used to hold workshops, organise games a Jacob's ladder and zip lines form part of the structure, incorporating an obstacle course into the building design.

el columns and plexiglass, the open structure allows easy wind flow, and an unrestricted view of the surroundings. The structure uses lo te.

m another activity zone connected to each other via a jungle bridge that the kids can clamber on to and cross. From the second deck, k ugh a ramp into the river. Architect: Scott Gerald Shall, Philadelphia

rofessor at Temple University, Philadelphia, Scott Gerald Shall is the founder of International Design Clinic (IDC) that works with design with aid and humanitarian organisations.

ects brought Shall to Mumbai in 2008 to work with Mumbai Mobile Cr ches, that educates children of migrant construction workers at b f design students, Shall's project was a response to the need for clean water and shelter while the kids sat for daily class. His team inclu Community College, and Apurva Deshpande from DY Patil College, Navi Mumbai.

week of their stay, the team noticed how the children were susceptible to an alarming range of illnesses brought on by airborne polluta research and discovered several indigenous plants that could remove contaminants from the air. As this line of inquiry progressed, our f construction, hypothesising that it might be possible to create a green wall that would help clean the air within its confines," says Shal

rk of the NGO that is required to hop from one construction site to another, the wall would have to be a portable one. Two parts of the ructure, and the infill that goes into the wall was variable. Once the building was built, and the school had to be moved to a fresh const ould drain the earth from the wall.

was a hypothetical solution, the team assessed that it could be constructed using common plastic tarps, and various forms of earth and em of construction that eliminated the need to purchase full blocks, and minimised the amount of waste typically created during constr

unding from the American Institute of Architects (AIA), teamed up with local labourers to build experimental versions of the wall.

all however remained a project that wasn't replicated once Shall's trip ended. Extensive notes for this simplistic design still keep the ho

n sack on her head is actually a Rs 99 water filter figure how the Rs 99 water filter works, the IDC created a pocket-sized graphic manual describing its construction process. To address hall and his team turned to the sun. Using a standard sweater bag, a reclaimed tarp and four grommets, the team proposed creating a ater that could unfold and expose its contents to the sun rays. Their study revealed that six to eight hours of exposure to the sun could nt of contaminants in the water. Testing was carried out, and only locally available materials were used to build it.

ovement bhav Kaley, Bengaluru

is sticking to what he's most familiar with bamboo. He has even named his four year-old architecture firm after it. His company Won ely with bamboo, using it as principal material. "While traditionally, bamboo was used for roofing, we also use it to build walls. My fathe . He was known as Bamboo Man, since he worked closely with the material," says Kaley, who sources his bamboo from Nagpur.

n as poor man's timber but Kaley isn't fighting to uplift its social status. "India is the largest producer of bamboo. It grows fast and wid Besides, it holds tremendous potential as a building material. India also has an acute housing shortage. Over 25 million people are hom elp build affordable housing at low costs."

ntly working on a housing complex for factory workers of steel manufacturing firm, AB Rolling Mills Pvt. Ltd. at Vapi, an industrial area t om Mumbai. Each 350-square feet home is made with bamboo-mesh walls covered with plaster, and costs a modest Rs 1.25 lakh to bui nitation and water harvesting systems make each housing unit a green home. "We have started with 25 houses that the residents will te months. Following this, we will continue to build the remaining 100 houses," says the architect who is working with builder Rohit Gada of on the project.

eel, we use bamboo and cement to fortify the houses. Each house takes 20 days to complete, with eight people working on it. The skill r uctures is simple, with basic carpentry mixed with some innovation," explains Gada over the phone in between business meetings in Ch

, bamboo housing is convenient since the material is easy to transport and assemble off site.

has received enquires from residents across villages in India, who are taking to the idea of low-cost green housing. "The life span of thi ars. After that it will require basic maintenance, but you'd have to take care of a regular cement and brick structure too," he reasons.

act local ndeep Virmani, Kutch

hquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale rocked Bhuj district in Gujarat in January 2001, Sandeep Virmani was there to help get the r and safe in their homes.

ter, when one of the worst tsunamis hit the southern state of Tamil Nadu, Virmani went on to mend broken homes.

s in Indonesia, working on a building plan for 5,000 shelters that are being set up in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami.

raduated Virmani realised he wouldn't be happy building penthouses for the rich. He tried his hand at designing luxury homes flanked b d himself discontented at the end of most projects.

ted to work in the social sector, and in 1989, when I trained under an Indo-German fellowship at built homes for the marginalised in south Gujarat, my mind was made up," says the managing director of Hunnurshala, a Kutch-base mmunities to reconstruct homes struck down by natural calamities.

kicked off in 2001 after the earthquake in Bhuj, when professionals trained in various fields got together to help. It resulted in setting up ed do-gooders who continue to work towards water management, organic agriculture and preserving grassland ecosystems in addition t mes using traditional techniques that locals are familiar with.

any calamity, the government gives huge contracts to builders to reconstruct homes but the quality of housing is never a consideration t boxes, nothing more."

hanged that. State governments now invite Virmani and his team of 50 architects, engineers and social workers to collaborate with loca al building techniques. "We help with technical guidelines but try to stick to local materials. So, in Bihar we use bamboo, in Gujarat, we mir, we used wood and stone."

builds a demo home with the locals, finally handing over the remaining contract to artisans after they have been groomed at a 10-day arn a lot from indigenous building methods. Equipped with a fresh skill, artisans are able to set up small construction businesses, while ays Virmani. It's all in a day's work.

ools inside sand dunes Foundation of migratory workers at Kutch salt pans

ohesion Foundation, an NGO that works for the betterment of the salt pan-community that works along the coastline of the Rann of Ku people work on the pans where sea or water from borewells is allowed to evaporate, leaving behind salt.

n is labour intensive work, and workers are subject to a slew of occupational health hazards.

is poor, drinking water and electricity scarce, and defecation in the open, common. A saline environment, with strong winds and intens getation to sustain.

dation works with migrant communities that spend between eight and nine months at the pans before returning to their villages during

al migration involving entire families, children miss out on a regular schooling system.

been working with salt-pan workers of Kutch since 2001 to support the education of their children by setting up temporary schools, in m ut. The schools are affiliated with the government education system schools, which means their attendance is registered, making the ch ment exams and receive official certificates.

school has a single teacher trained by Cohesion, and belonging to the local community.

their huts here by digging pits in the sand, measuring approximately 2.5m x 4m and 1.5m deep.

t, a tent is constructed, usually made from jute or tarpaulin, fortified by branches of the Prosopus Juliflora, a local plant. Available grass earth is piled around the pit to secure the tent, protecting it from winds.

kept to the northeast, facing away from wind direction. Cohesion looks to build their schools following the same principle, with technical to suit their needs.

d is temperature control. A classroom can accommodate up to 40 children and a cr che for younger children with a single teacher to wat an includes a double skin tensile roof made from traditional materials, which doubles up as a rainwater harvesting system during the m ture is inverted to work like a funnel.

sation includes a central assembly or play area with four nooks to accommodate a cr che. Low dividing walls ensure that the teacher is e

ldren without leaving the room. The flooring is lined with cattle dung.