Sustainable housing in Cambodia. Building Trust International.

The non-profit organisation Building Trust International has completed construction of three sustainable homes in Cambodia. They are the winning projects of the competition “The Future of Sustainable Housing in Cambodia”.



Three sustainable house models emerged from the competition, supplied in kit form by the NGO Habitat for Humanity Cambodia, therefore even giving prospective families three possibilities to choose from.



The project is the result of a participatory approach and combines traditional skills and new materialsto come up with a sustainable response both in economical and environmental terms .





So, smart board, timber, bamboo and palm were used in addition to the traditional “status symbol” materials of brick, concrete and tin for the roofs.  Building Trust International will be monitoring these materials to record their durability and performance.





The three model homesare already being lived in and can be visited. A huge step forward in providing a dignified, sustainable lifestyle, without putting limits on contemporary and traditional ways of life and also considering the climate, in a region where nature often shows off all her power with frequent typhoons and flooding .

Winning projects:
‘Wet + Dry House’ by Mary Ann Jackson, Ralph Green, Muhammad Kamil & Nick Shearman from Australian firm Visionary Design Development Pty Ltd. http://www.vdd.com.au 
‘Courtyard House’ by Jess Lumley & Alexander Koller from the UK.http://www.lumleykoller.com 
‘Open Embrace’ by Keith Greenwald and Lisa Ekle from USA. 
Location: Cambodia
Year: 2014
Sponsors:
Building Trust International, http://www.buildingtrustinternational.org 
Habitat for Humanity® International in Cambodia, http://www.habitatcambodia.org 
Karuna Cambodia, http://www.karunacambodia.org 
Photos: © Building Trust international paragrafo