Building Empowerment

Sigi Koko @Natural Homes Conference 2017

Building Empowerment

Sigi Koko is a well known Architect specialised in Eco Buildings. She is the head of Down to Earth design and she is one of the most inspiring woman natural builder we know. Sigi believes that building naturally is also building Empowerment of people and creating resilient communities.

At the conference she was the first person to speak. She started talking about how empowering can be for us, for the community to build natural buildings.

If you want to start your path into natural building here there are some suggestions and some
Build using natural and local resources. Try to reuse materials trying to create healthy space for you and your family.

Think first of the climate you are in,
What is the larger climate?
Do you experience four season?

Start looking around your site,
What is around you?
How can your house improve the site?

Prioritise your comfort needs.
Are you sensitive to cold? or heat?

What is your budget? Get people to help you. People are bringing free labour but they will experience something amazing, they will have the knowledge and some beautiful memories once the work is finished. Building naturally is accessible for anyone, is a way of playing and connecting with people.

Build where you need improvement.
Pick the spot that needs to be improved in your land, not the pretties one.

Think of what you have in abundance around the area.
Stone?
Wood? …maybe there is plenty of woodland around your area?
Straw? Is there a farmer close by?
Clay? How is your soil?
Fibers like straw, hemp, seeds, hay?
There is a whole host of materials that can perform in different ways:
INSULATING
THERMOMASS

PASSIVE SOLAR DESIGN
Passive Solar Design to minimise the energy use.
Know where the sun is so that you can have free energy.