Through their School 4 Burma competition, Building Trust International aimed to provide a modular educational facility for Burmese child migrants and refugees – and the winners have finally been announced! Out of some 800 applicants, a flat-pack, bamboo-panelled structure by architects Amadeo Bennetta and Daniel LaRossa took top honors. The competition sought sustainable solutions that addressed the huge range of issues faced by displaced communities, and Bennetta and LaRossa’s design ticked off all the checkboxes.
With a focus on Mae Sot, a town that straddles the border between Burma and North-West Thailand, the designers explored the issues faced by displaced communities and also took into account the region’s tropical climate. Hailing from Berkeley, California, the pair came up with an amazing flat-pack form that can be constructed on a wide variety of sites. The modular design can be adapted to suit different conditions as either a series of units or a single structure, and comes complete with waterproof fabric and a prefabricated framework.
The winning design will be built as intended with the hope that other initiatives will be able to follow its example. Following an overwhelmingly positive response to the competition, Building Trust International is seeking other sources of funding to realise other projects from the competition.
+ Building Trust International
Images courtesy of Building Trust International
