E-cohabitat in Romania

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E-cohabitat in Romania

Written by Catalina Grigore

Workshop The Straw Bale House

Project developed by: Eco Habitat Assoc. & Glodeanu-Cârlig Parish

The Eco Habitat Association was founded in 2011 and is made of a group of young people with specializations in various fields (architecture, construction, history, arts). We endorse programs which aim to:

•educate the Romanian society as regards sustainable living;
•offer concrete, legal and viable, sustainable living alternatives;
•promote 'green' building in Romania;
•protect the habitat by improving environmental policies.

Context

Community Problems:

Economically speaking, the villagers rely exclusively on subsistence agriculture, which does not ensure a decent living.

Families from Glodeanu-Siliştea Commune:

-do not have potable water (due to exploitation with chemicals in recent decades, the groundwater is contaminated);
-do not have decent living conditions (there are no utilities except for electricity, the 30-80 year old houses are severely damaged);
-do not have stable jobs (the majority work as day-laborers, frequently paid with food products);
-are predisposed to social abandonment, alcoholism and low social cohesion due to the conditions mentioned;
-are confronted with high heating costs in winter due to the low thermal efficiency of their homes, costs that most of them can not afford.

Effects on Children:

-21 children from the village of Cârligu Mare, Glodeanu – Siliştea Commune, suffer from hunger every day. Other 11 children from neighboring villages go through similar ordeals as their daily meals often reduce to a piece of polenta or bread. The youngest is a few months and the oldest 13 years old;
-There are two families where children are cared for by mothers who are mentally ill - this has influenced the development of children;
-Some children are sick (some of them suffer from very serious diseases such as epilepsy). One year, a family passed the winter without heating and windows in the house. Their child now suffers from kidney illness;
-All children come from poor families and the conditions in which most children are kept are precarious : misery, sickness, poverty.

Vision

E-cohabitat: The project supports suffering children and has two lines of development:

A. the social line (cohabitat)

- The aim is to tighten community bonds by bringing certain disadvantaged families in the vicinity of the new day care center for children. This can be done by building a group of houses on the nearby land provided by the parish. Here, families will receive housing, drinkable water, at least one meal per day provided by the day center, and the children will benefit from decent living and educational conditions. In addition, these families will be able to take into care other children from neighboring villages who risk ending up in an orphanage. At the same time, communication and mutual aid between families will be encouraged, which will trigger a rising level of social cohesion.

B. the architectural line (environmentally friendly)

- from the architectural and environmental point of view, the houses will ensure the necessary hygienic conditions and utilities, at the same time being energy efficient so as to reduce maintenance costs. Building materials will consist mostly in local resources, thus reducing production and transportation costs etc.

Objectives:

-to create a cohesive community;
-to create favorable living conditions for children;
-to improving quality of life as regards accommodation conditions;
-to ensure cost efficiency as regards accommodation;
-to promote ‘green’ technologies, materials and products in the design, construction and maintenance of buildings as an alternative to the currently used materials;
-to enhance awareness of consumption, energy efficiency, the multiple uses of natural materials, global thinking (impact on the future), reuse, recycling, accessibility;
-to prepare the ground for the implementation of the future 2015-2020 European environmental standards (to be applied in Romania too) based on the scheme: INFORMATION - KNOWLEDGE - APPLICATION

Solution

Implementation period for the first house to be built:

- erecting the house - September - October 2011;
- finishing – spring of 2012.

Short term results:

- a house for the Petre family, who will be able to move in by winter/ spring time;
- helping the family move near the day care center, within the E-cohabitation community;
- the Petre family will be able to take into care other children who wil be living in the same house.

Impact on the community:

- setting an example, encouragement, stimulation;
- educating mentalities;
- tightening social cohesion;

Long term impact :

- preparation for the implementation of European regulations from 2015;
- global thinking (on accommodation);
- improvement of the quality of life as regards accommodation;
- cost efficiency as regards accommodation;
- protecting the environment by improving envirnomental policies.

Last Updated on Sunday, 18 September 2011 16:02