2012 The Big Idea: Global Spread of Affordable Housing - Ashoka

at low cost by the community itself. 1
We bring in machines to manufacture these
eco-bricks and teach the community how to
use them to generate enough materials for
all the houses to be built. 2
We help them plan their new home layout,
including other eco-friendly, simple
1 Adoblocks result from an engineering innovation by
Ital Mexicana and the Institute CRAT of the University of
Grenoble in France. This innovation was the first ecological
construction system based on earth as a material more
resistant than concrete and made by the community – that
is, the manufacturing of the blocks is done in and by the
community, not providing prefabricated building materials
as has been done in the past. This adds economic value
and appropriate technology benefits to the communities
themselves.
2 The machine is a hydraulic press that exerts pressure
of more than 40 tons to form each brick. Tests confirm the
Adoblock is stronger than one of concrete or clay. Regular
tests evaluate brick quality and Adoblock always comes out
as strongest.
and cost-effective technologies, such
as catching and storing rainwater for
drinking and cooking, gray-water filtering
for recycling waste water, and solar
photovoltaic cells to generate electricity.
As this work continues, we find that the
entire fabric of this community evolves into
teamwork, excited to implement these new
opportunities and together create new skills
and jobs, which then restructures the social
fabric of individual families and the entire
community.
To date, Echale a Tu Casa has helped
communities build nearly 26,000 homes,
generating over 130,000 jobs and US $65
million of income.
Making living conditions better in rural
areas to improve lives where communities
exist, instead of increasing urban migration,
is another track for Echale a Tu Casa.
Just one year ago, poor communities were
threatening to deforest the natural habitat
surrounding their settlements in Calakmul,
a town in Campeche. It is one of the largest
Mayan cultural sites in Mexico and home to
one of the world’s largest and most diverse
biosphere.
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