Cape Town - As the world is fresh off the charge of a successful Earth Hour, which took place this past Saturday, 24 March from 20h30 until 21h30 - these sustainable building options look at going beyond the sands of the hour glass.
These six African green development buildings look at ways to not just be aesthetically pleasing but to forge the road to sustainable architectural practices. Even in the building process, the architects behind these designs stuck true to aiming to minimise construction waste, use environmentally friendly methods and conserve energy.
From taking sand from the proverbial hour glass and bagging it as infrastructure to even staying afloat with schooling in Lagos, Nigeria - these green building developments will have you thinking smarter about bricks and water.
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So, what are these six green buildings making waves with their environmentally friendly wings?
1. Sandbag Houses, Freedom Park, Cape Town - South Africa
The sandbag home's goal is to conserve both money and resources. Its aim is being achieved as it's been built for $6 000 (or about R70 010 @R11,67/$). The designers ensured the use of inexpensive local materials, therefore cutting down on the transportation of materials. The houses were also built with the help of its future residents - this brought costs down even further. The houses were built using the EcoBeams system. This means that brick-and-mortar was replaced with sandbags. This method is reportedly a strong, safe and cheap way of delivering affordable housing.
(Photo: Design Other 90 Network)
2. Ecomo Homes, Franschhoek - South Africa
These houses have also been designed on sustainable best-practice principles. A focal point on their design is incorporating low maintenance materials. To minimise construction waste, they are built off-site in a factory in South Africa and then installed on site. The layouts of the houses are easy to customise - as the square modular units can be easily joined together in an array of arrangements to accommodate living, play, or sleeping spaces.
(Photo: Ecomo)
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3. Vissershok School, Durbanville - South Africa
This school is built from recycled shipping containers. The space serves as a classroom in the morning and a library in the afternoon. The large and hoisted roof shelters the container from sunlight with the provided gap allowing ventilation and minimising heat gain. There are also windows located across each side to achieve cross ventilation. The stepped outdoor seating area was included to offer space for the children to eat lunch - it also acts as an amphitheatre for school assemblies. A green wall has been planted and once there is foliage it will act as a vegetable garden and a shelter from the southeast wind for the play area.
(Photo: Inhabitat)
4. Woodlands Spa and Forum, Homini Hotel, Cradle of Humankind - South Africa
This building exists with an intention to not disturb the environment and the wildlife. The Woodland Spa and Forum has nestled itself nearly seamlessly in with its surroundings. Designers had made use of reclaimed bricks for the construction, the grassy roof allows for small game to graze, and indigenous plants are used in the gardens.
(Photo: Inhabitat)
5. Floating School, Makoko, Lagos - Nigeria
The Floating School looks to accommodate 100 students and will incorporate 256 plastic drums to keep it afloat. The frame is constructed with locally-sourced wood and was built by Makoko residents - both of these solutions lessen production cost and waste . Once the school is open, electricity is planned to be provided through the use of solar panels on the roof, and rainwater harvesting would help the toilets to operate. The school has been finalised with the total cost to build being $6 250 (or about R72927 @R11.67/$).
(Photo: NLE)
6. Hotel Verde Zanzibar, Zanzibar
The much anticipated, environmentally responsible and sustainable hotel in Zanzibar opened its doors to eco-conscious travellers on 21 March 2018. After three years of construction, Hotel Verde Zanzibar - Azam Luxury Resort and Spa will host its first guests in the 106-roomed, five-star hotel.
Owned by Zanzibari-born businessman, Said Salim Awadh Bakhresa, the hotel fulfills his "vision of becoming leaders in the green economy sector by building East Africa’s greenest hotel", says Verde Hotels. Green implementations at the hotel include a renewable energy generation, reticulated grey and black water recycling systems, waste management, a heating ventilation air conditioning (HVAC) system and regenerative drive elevators.
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The hotel also boasts responsibly sourced furniture and products, as well as LED low-watt lighting and a sophisticated heating systems to reduce energy consumption.
(Photo: Hotel Verde Zanzibar - Azam Luxury Resort and Spa)