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Kouk Khleang Youth Center

Consturction of Youth Center

At Phnom Penh, Cambodia in Cambodia
From 2010 to 2014
By Ukumbi - Finland

The youth center was designed and built as a collaboration between Komitu architects team and two Cambodian NGOs Cambodian Volunteers for Society (CVS) and Khmer Kamputchea Krom for Human Rights and Development Association (KKKHRDA) in a disadvantaged urban neighbourhood of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. CVS provides Cambodian youth with opportunities to learn, get work experience and unlock their potentials in order to do their share in the development of Cambodian society. Volunteering youth make useful contributions to their communities while gaining work experience for their future professional careers. Through CVS, youth from different urban communities meet and find solutions for common problems. KKKHRDA manages the neighbourhood where the center will be built and airs a radio program about human rights.
The bases of Komitu’s work is on culturally sensitive and participatory design. During the design process the voice of the youth was heard through workshops. The building phase also engaged the locals. The design of the youth center is based on the use of local and sustainable building materials and technologies. Earth bricks are a low-emission choice for the bearing structures, while bamboo has been chosen for shadings and decoration because it is rapidly renewable, affordable and traditionally used in Cambodian culture. By developing modern architecture that derives from local esthetics and craftsmanship we can promote the use of these undervalued materials in modern day Cambodia.
The project started in march 2010 on Aalto University’s Cambodia Studio’s field trip, where Komitu members Elina Tenho and Tuuli Kassi organised the first workshops with the youth volunteering for CVS. In December 2010 we travelled back to Phnom Penh to introduce the first design for the youth center and to futher develop it together with the future users. In addition to the design workshop with the local youth, presentations were held at Limkokwing University for students of architecture and at Meta-house culture center for anyone interested.
During the year 2011 Komitu worked on the design and developed the bamboo and earth brick techniques together with engineering collaborators. In March 2012 the construction begun with filling the site and prefabricating bamboo parts. In August 2012 we had a change of constructor, after which the building advanced at a good pace and BQC construction

building scheme
youth centre
shutters detail
the entrance

Technical support for earthquake affected households in Nepal

To provide social and technical support for approximately 600 households, in 3 earthquake affected Districts of Nepal - Dolakha, Dhading and Rasuwa

At Nepal
By Architecture Sans Frontières - Nepal
Local partners: Pourakhi Nepal
Donors: Caritas Luxembourg

The main objective of this project was to improve housing conditions in earthquake affected communities in selected wards of Dolakha, Rasuwa and Dhading districts through five aspects:
1.    Social Mobilization
2.    Technical Assistance
3.    Tiered Assistance
4.    Market Development
5.    Local building culture

We started the project in June with household survey along with community mapping. The survey was done to assess the need and status of the reconstruction of the target beneficiaries with their understanding of local building culture.
Demo house was constructed to promote local building culture and to train the local builders and masons to build earthquake resistant houses following government standards and codes.  The completion of demo house served as an exemplar for the community to start reconstruction of their houses following local building culture and government standards. This further paved the way for them to become eligible for the government grant. Under this project, our team on site supported these beneficiaries in this process by providing regular technical support, house drawings and required information. In addition, we short listed most vulnerable beneficiaries to provide them with top up grant to assist in the reconstruction process.
Furthermore, we also provided vocational training like Kiwi, cardamon plantation, hospitality and plumbing training to the selected locals to enhance their skill and livelihood.
We provided all of our beneficiaries with required technical assistance to complete the reconstruction of their houses till the completion of the project period in June 2019. Till then, almost all the targeted beneficiaries had either completed or were constructing their houses and nearing completion.

earthquakes_nepal_cardamon
Training at the cardamon plantation
earthquakes_nepal_house
Completed house
earthquakes_nepal_house 2
Demo house house
earthquakes_nepal_house 3
Demo house under construction
earthquakes_nepal_house 4
House in Dolakha under construction
earthquakes_nepal_house 5
Applying mud plaster to the demo house
earthquakes_nepal_areal
Magapauwa

Earth construction and community project

Land-rights recognition

At AMAICHA DEL VALLE in Argentina
In 2009
By Architectes Sans Frontières - France
Local partners: Terre Construite
Donors: Self funding

The association Terre Construite/Tierra Construida bases its approach on earth construction techniques, as a political answer to the issues of construction economy. Its involvment inside the Amaicha del Valle community strengthened this position, facilitating the community to build its economic and social autonomy. Natives communities have been recognized since the new Argentinian Constitution in 1994. At Amaicha del Valle, only 52.812 of the 132.000 ha of claimed lands were given back through a cadastral sketch in 2002. The administrative process for the legal restitution of the land is not over yet. Thus the struggle continues for the recognition of the whole territory against big land-owners and the constitutional context.

TC, in partnership with ASF-France, was actively involved in this work by drawing a precise map of the territorial limits, with the help of the “Cedula Real”, a 1716 text in which the king of Spain did recognize the existence of the community. The project manager of ASF, in a frame of action by TC, works closely with the cacique (chief of the community) on several projects:

- Establishment of a urban code

- Recovery of a plot, in order to refurbish it into a community development center (hosteria)

- Building of workshops for a school for the disabled (escuela San Roque)

- Technical support for a bridge construction (la Fronterita)

- Refurbishment of a building for tourism purposes, in order to develop the economic autonomy of the community (Pulperia)

- Survey of Quilmes’ ruins site, to improve the rainwater system which is currently damaging the archeological heritage.

In addition, the “Tierra Construida association house” allows architecture students to get earth construction training with amaicheños (Amaicha inhabitants), who still build with this material.

environment
participatory design
Earth construction
final construction
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