International architecture non-profit Shelter Global has announced the winners of its 2015 Dencity Competition. Out of 300 entries from 50 different countries, three winners and six special mentions were selected.
The competition’s goal was “to foster new ideas on how to handle the growing density of unplanned cities and to spread awareness of the massive problem,” and jury members sought out project designs that empower communities and allow for self-sufficiency. Read about the three winners, after the break.
First Place: Urukundo; Kigali, Rwanda / OC Workshop
The competition’s first place winner, entitled Urukundo, seeks to remedy poor infrastructure and services through the concept of a “slum factory,” in which unused waste can be repurposed for maximum efficiency. Essentially, the project seeks to improve the existing business and facilities of a clay cooperative in Rwanda by creating a small factory that would produce construction materials from the clay-rich soil in the valley and allow the area to promote its own development through infrastructure improvements.
Second Place: The Agency of Mapping; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil / Jack Isles
Australia-based architecture graduate Jack Isles was awarded second place for his project, The Agency of Mapping, which creates mapping solutions for the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, where residents can use inexpensive, accessible materials like recycled water bottles, cameras, and makeshift kites, to map the areas themselves.
While the favela areas are “irregular” or “improvised” housing communities, residents often live with services like any resident of more “permanent” housing would live—namely phones and internet service. Thus, with mapping solutions, residents can have their own physical addresses, which are necessary for job applications, bill payments, and the right to vote. Mapping can thereby improve the state of socioeconomic barriers, as well as help the spread of infrastructure by informing city companies like water suppliers where to implement more utilities based residential densities.
Third Place: Agua Común-ity; Manchay, Lima, Perú / Han Kwon and Kellen Pacheco
Designed by Iowa State University architecture students Han Kwon and Kellen Pacheco, Agua Común-ity addresses access and efficiency problems with water infrastructure in Manchay, a municipality in Lima, Perú. In the dry, hilly conditions of Manchay, residents are often prevented from utilizing enough water for both nutritional and agricultural use due to inaccessibility and inefficiency of outdoor water storage tanks. For this reason, Agua Común-ity seeks to construct basic water piping to replace external water tanks, as well as to maximize water efficiency potential via greywater recycling.
With its popularity and success, Shelter Global will host another Dencity Competition for 2016, to begin accepting registration on January 1. Learn more about the 2015 winners and special mentions on the Shelter Global website, or Facebook page.
News via Shelter Global.
