Edition #6, September 2004
The desire to learn
Around nine o´clock one evening, the project director found the resident engineer in Matiguas, Nicaragua, explaining to a young mason how steel is placed inside the beams, while he busily took notes. Earlier they had been checking the daily expenses. It seems to be a common practice for them to pass time discussing and theorizing about the whys of construction. At times it is a reverse process where the mason explains practical questions to the engineer.
Henties Bay
A model house built by the Clay House Project in Henties Bay, Namibia was inaugurated recently. The CHP sent its experts to teach and build the clay house with Cool Tiles, the name by which MCR tiles are known in Namibia. The event received wide radio and television coverage and it is hoped that this will impulse more houses to built with the Shack Federation in Henties Bay.
Gabriel Pons - in memoriam
In July we received the sad news about the death of our colleague Gabriel Pons from San Salvador. Many of us remember his brilliant interventions during the debates in the 2nd Ecomaterials Conference in Santa Clara, his explanations and theories concerning earth constructions to resist earthquakes.
The three B's: Bed, bread and beer
The EcoSouth Network has an innovative system of honoraries among its colleagues. When one provides consulting to another or they work together on common projects, they apply the concept of the Three Bs - Bed, Bread and Beer. In this way the host provides the Three Bs. Recently in Canada, Robert Day, vice-dean at the University of Calgary received Fernando Martirena of CIDEM and Kurt Rhyner of Grupo Sofonias at his farm for a few intensive days where they designed a project about Ecomaterials with Latin American universities.
Simplicity with Style
Recently the prestigious magazine Open House International, published an article about the post-Mitch reconstruction project in Malacatoya, Nicaragua. It describes the different project phases, but especially emphasizes that the beneficiaries are treated as real clients. The question as to Why architects design individual houses for the wealthy, but chicken coops for social projects?, is at the center of the discussion. The article is published on the EcoSouth website in the original English version with special permission of Open House International.
