Changing attitudes toward eco-friendly housing in the Congo Firebrick Housing Alternatives Changing attitudes toward eco-friendly housing in the Congo Lindsay MacLeod Reina Ingham Reyna Schenck Melissa Sullivan

Problem Statement The current firebrick housing trend in the Ruzizi Valley in the Democratic Republic of Congo is popular, but inefficient and expensive. Ideally, the housing would be cheaper, made with local materials, well insulated, and stable using sustainable building materials and practices. We want to find environmentally friendly alternatives to the firebrick housing in the Congo and devise a plan to motivate people to choose these building practices.

Possible Alternatives Canelo Project-Bill and Athena Steen Semmes Builders Claiborne and Churchill Winery

Case Studies The Canelo Project-They work for the organization, "Save the Children", to help provide low cost housing for the poor community of Aves de Castillo. They "started on a course of building small and simple one room houses out of local and very inexpensive materials. Semmes Builders and Co-Turko Semmes is a local businessman whose innovative company designs and constructs buildings with innovative technology and sustainable building practices. Claiborne and Churchill Winery-The building on their property is a straw bale building, and was the first of its kind in California when it was built in 1995. The building regulates the temperature and keeps the cellars cool without the use of any external heating or cooling system.

Steps to introducing new techniques Step 1: Identify places in need Step 2: Determine the Housing demand Step 3: Determine receptivity to new ideas Step 4: Conduct a sociological profile of the community Step 5: Select a community/site Step 6: Study the normal building process for the area Step 7: Develop the training aids and promotional materials Step 8: Conduct a pilot project

Potential Problems/Barriers Current home owners aren’t willing to change their current homes People aren’t receptive to new ideas Failure to receive the grant/funding for a pilot project Not using appropriate promotional materials for the area Expenses

Potential building materials Bamboo Straw bale

Grant Information We are going to apply for the grant asking for funding for our pilot project. We hope that people in the Working Villages area will be more receptive to our plan if they can actually see it in action. We would build an example home and hope that that would motivate locals to renovate their own home.