Over the past several months, we’ve brought you highlights of the Sustainable Urban Housing: Collaborating for Liveable and Inclusive Cities competition. Held by Changemakers, the competition sought to develop innovative ways to create sustainable, inclusive, and liveable cities. After 289 entries were whittled down to 11 finalists through pubic voting online, an international panel of expert judges has decided on three winners. They are, in no particular order,
· Developing Real Estate for Squatters and Tenants of the City of Buenos Aires Argentina, Argentina
Habitat for Humanity Argentina’s Recycling Urban Homes project develops torn down buildings, to be rented to these squatter families at a market rate. The difference between this rate and a “Fair Rent” is set aside as savings, so that the family can leave its HPHA Assisted Rent programme with a track record and savings to step out of the poverty housing cycle.
· Zero Waste, Sustainable Architecture, Renewable Energy: Unlimited Source of Renewable Materials for Sustainable Housing, Brazil
Curadores da Terra (Earth Curators) has developed an innovative system that transforms waste into manufactured materials for housing, helping cities’ healing process. The core innovation consists of a patented technology that combines waste with organic resins in order to produce renewable construction materials, which are then used to build sustainable and affordable houses through a construction process that we also developed and tested.
· Green Development Zone, USA
In 2008, PUSH established a Green Development Zone (GDZ) on Buffalo’s West Side by concentrating investments in green affordable housing, geo-thermal and solar energy, green jobs training, and urban agriculture. In developing the vision for the GDZ, PUSH engaged in an extensive community planning involving hundreds of neighborhood residents. Work in the GDZ thus far includes the completion of 11 units of green affordable housing, with 20 additional units in development;
These winners hail from 3 of the 48 countries represented in the competition and each will receive US $10,000 to put their initiatives into wider practice.
For more information, see the Changemakers page. Congratulations to the winners!
