Garbage homes that turn bottles into bricks.
They say necessity is the mother of invention. You don’t have to look any further than Ingrid Vaca Diez to know it’s true.
Ingrid is a Bolivian woman on a mission to build homes for the poor using one of the only objects she can find in abundance – plastic bottles. To date, Ingrid has built 10 “Garbage Homes” using her plastic bottles-as-bricks method. She took a nearby resource, flipped the usage on its head and innovated in the face of adversity. It’s downright inspiring.
While Bolivia remains one of the poorest countries, with many families living in shoddy housing conditions, Ingrid gives us hope. She illustrates a whole new way to think about transforming our communities through contextualized design. In her case, no need for unsympathetic international housing development programs or complex government financial assistance initiatives. Instead, solutions become about using available materials that flesh out local needs.
This is a fresh perspective on how we can – and should – each individually impact and change the world around us through social innovation. Take a look below, from bottle collection to build. What will you do to turn garbage into greatness?
Hat tip to diy.org for the great find.