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METI-School
School
Anna Heringer and Eike Roswag,
Berlin, Germany
Location Rudrapur, Bangladesh
Completed 2006
Photographer Hoerbst
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The METI School is a building hand-made by local craftsmen, pupils and teachers together with a European team of volunteers in Rudrapur, Bangladesh. Rudrapur is a typical Bengali Village in the north of the country, which is one of the poorest parts in Bangladesh.
The aim of the project was to improve existing building techniques, attaining sustainability by utilising local potential and strengthening regional identity. The challenge of the project was to meet the needs and dreams of the people in an economically reasonable, ecological, social and aesthetic way.
The METI school is a genuine hand-made building - the bamboo came by ox cart, the straw by rick-shaw - although the loam was picked up by tractor from a nearby source (3 km) and electric drills were used. Since the beginning of May 2007, solar panels have been producing electricity to light the building and drive some technical equipment. The school is a symbol of a successful symbiosis of old traditional, low-tech building materials with high-tech concepts. No air-conditioning is needed since the natural airflow and the thick loam walls keep the indoor climate at a comfortable level. Almost no electricity was needed for the production of the building materials, which consist mainly of earth and bamboo. Building with loam makes a valuable contribution to preventing an increasing ecological footprint and is affordable for the even poorest people in an underdeveloped country, while bamboo contributes to a good climate. The local materials also offer advantages from an economic point of view: they strengthen the local economy and create jobs.
The METI School is an excellent example of the fact that architecture is about much more than providing shelter. It is intimately connected with the creation of a sense of identity and self-confidence, which is the basis for development.
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Image copyright Anna Heringer and Eike Roswag, Berlin, Germany
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