Ezbet Eshaq’s Eco Classroom, by the BENAA Foundation, is an affordable and sustainable model for educational facilities in rural Egypt.
© BENAA Foundation for Sustainable Development

Ezbet Eshaq’s Eco Classroom, describes Aya, is an educational and community space that addresses the lack of such amenities in Ezbet Eshaq. Its material palette focuses attention on the issue of increasing amounts of solid waste in the small Egyptian village, which has 1,100 inhabitants.

The design and construction process involved active community participation right from the outset. Key stakeholders included children, their parents, and the local youth.

Local youth were trained to assist in the construction of the Eco Classroom. This helped to build skills within the community.
© BENAA Foundation for Sustainable Development

The Eco Classroom was built with more than 9,000 upcycled plastic bottles (filled with sand), broken concrete from a nearby demolition site, and local materials such as compressed earth blocks and clay. The building has been operational for around two years.

Designed by Richard Kroeker and Oxbow Architects, Muscowpetung Powwow Arbour will be a place of celebration and connection for Indigenous communities.
© The Mirage Studio

Muscowpetung Powwow Arbour, says Richard (who is working on the project with Oxbow Architecture), will be a cultural centre for powwow celebrations in Saskatchewan, Canada. Indigenous communities will come together there to honour their culture and traditions and to conduct tourism activities.

The column-free space beneath the canopy of Muscowpetung Powwow Arbour will provide a large and versatile setting for Powwow gatherings.
© The Mirage Studio

The shape of the structure (which is currently under construction) symbolises the sacredness of the circle in Indigenous cultures and pays homage to the traditional teepee typology.

The design combines timber members and steel tension cables. The construction process is drawing on local resources and expertise. For instance, the structure incorporates local trees harvested by Indigenous groups.

The two projects’ climates, contexts, and structures are drastically different, yet they are bound by a common desire to transform the communities they serve through the act of building.

At the naturally ventilated Eco Classroom, wooden pallets have been upcycled into desks and benches, and local bamboo has been used for the roof.
© BENAA Foundation for Sustainable Development

Thanks to deep engagement with locals, Aya explains, the Eco Classroom has been tailored to their specific needs. This, she says, would not have been possible if an externally sourced solution was imposed. For example, the need for outdoor play-based learning spaces emerged after discussions with the children.

Tree trunks sourced locally by Indigenous forestry management companies will be used to construct Muscowpetung Powwow Arbour instead of sawn timber.
© The Mirage Studio

Muscowpetung Powwow Arbour, says Richard, aims to bring Indigenous thinking to the forefront by challenging the misguided notion that such cultures are ‘a thing of the past.’ Rather, it will showcase how they continue to thrive and move forward.

It will highlight how symbolism in Indigenous building practices often corresponds with scientific reason. For instance, cutting a tree trunk along its length is considered harsh in symbolic terms. It also compromises the structural strength of the untouched material.

In both projects, community engagement required optimisation of communication techniques. Visual aids and hands-on demonstrations were key at Ezbet Eshaq’s Eco Classroom. For Muscowpetung Powwow Arbour, physical models were used to convey design ideas.

The Eco Classroom’s outdoor learning spaces make education more resilient to unforeseen events such as pandemics.
© BENAA Foundation for Sustainable Development

But community interactions had moments of contention too.

Aya and her team were asked why they were not building a ‘modern’ concrete structure. Most locals, says Aya, hadn’t heard of the term ‘climate change’ till then but they all felt it. By explaining the impacts of global warming and how to make a difference, the project team was able to bring the community on board with more traditional and low-carbon building methods.

In the case of Muscowpetung Powwow Arbour, a need to balance the opposing forces of a limited budget and the community’s big ambitions led to the innovative timber structure. Using more conventional materials like fabric and industrial timber would have been too expensive and less expressive.

The structure of Muscowpetung Powwow Arbour will be supported by repeating tripod-like modules, which will be assembled on site with local community involvement.
© Oxbow Architecture

Both Aya and Richard point out that winning a Holcim Award has been encouraging for both their teams and the communities they are working with. The recognition has shown them that such hyperlocal interventions are appreciated globally.

Aya is already witnessing ripple effects. Several individuals and groups in Egypt are interested in replicating the approach taken for the Eco Classroom.

Richard hopes that Muscowpetung Powwow Arbour will strengthen the relationship between local youth and their Indigenous culture. He also aspires to bring change to the official building code that often undermines or doesn’t recognise Indigenous building practices.