The article discusses a collaboration between Holcim and Chilean architecture studio ELEMENTAL showcased at the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale. This project features an innovative prototype made from biochar concrete, challenging the dichotomy between climate action and the need for affordable housing. The work focuses on addressing basic needs such as shelter, water, and infrastructure through an expandable design. Alejandro Aravena of ELEMENTAL emphasizes the importance of using better tools for construction in response to urgent housing demands, highlighting the project's potential for broader impacts on global housing solutions.
Whoever comes with solutions and technological developments that lower the carbon footprint of building is welcome.
It was pragmatic: people need places to live, and they'll build them whether or not governments or markets are ready.
The prototype is a structural sanitation unit that addresses core needs - water, shelter, and infrastructure - through an expandable frame.
You have to reframe your understanding of housing as a process, not just a finished product.
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