How to use bamboo as a resource in Nepalese rural area? Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world and its situation was worsened in 2015, after a huge earthquake destroyed several parts of the country. The countryside area has been the most affected by the cataclysm, with the highest number of victims. Researches estimated that most of the houses that collapsed were made by concrete or wood, while bamboo dwellings endured the damages. However, even if Nepal is quite abundant both in terms of bamboo quantity and species, this material was not commonly used in the construction field through the last decades. Nowadays, the industrialisation process encourages people to trust more in industrial materials such as concrete, steel or glass. This makes natural materials, including bamboo, lose their importance in the architectural field. The aim of the thesis is how to use this natural material in Nepalese rural area, where it is abundant, by providing a method easy to apply and make it a resource for rural livelihoods. In this way, villagers could learn to build without the need of skilled labours. The thesis finds the main issues related to the aim: knowledge problem that is specific for architects, including techniques, social perceptions (such as how people judge the bamboo architecture) and problems related to the nature of the material. Besides, in the state of Nepal, earthquakes are quite frequent, in this context, bamboo can become an efficient alternative to the industrial material, because of its properties. In order to reach the aim of the thesis, the methodology of the research is divided in two parts. The first one is a theoretical research, based on the reasons why bamboo lost its role in architecture, the study of of Nepal and the bamboo species available on the site. Important aspects will be related to find a simple, cheap, earthquake resistant ways to assemble bamboo and other materials together in order to promote the use of these materials even for people without a specific technical knowledge. The second part is a project based on the theoretical part, with the design of a urban strategy located in Nepalese rural area and the developing of a bamboo center. The bamboo strategy has the aim of making bamboo a resource to empower locals. Working with bamboo has to be considered as a chance for both architects and residents to cooperate and learn new ecological methods. The thesis can’t be experimented directly on the field, but since the structure and the construction phases of the architecture have been studied and represented in detail, it can be the base for starting future lab-test and, according to the results, experiment it on the field.
Come rendere il bambù una risorsa per le aree rurali in Nepal? Il Nepal è considerato uno dei paesi più poveri al mondo. La sua situazione si aggravò nel 2015, quando un terremoto di magnitudo 7.8Mw devastò gran parte del Paese, provocando migliaia di vittime, specialmente nelle zone rurali. Diverse ricerche hanno mostrato che una buona parte degli edifici crollati furono realizzati in cemento, senza seguire alcuna normativa anti sismica. Diversamente, alcune costruzioni realizzate in bambù si sono dimostrate più resistenti al sisma. Nonostante il Nepal possa godere di un gran numero di specie di bambù, negli ultimi decenni questo materiale non venne spesso utilizzato per la realizzazione di edifici. Lo sviluppo industriale ha incoraggiato l’utilizzo di materiali come il cemento, l’acciaio ed il vetro, allontanando il ruolo del bambù e di altri materiali dall’architettura. L’obiettivo della tesi è comprendere come utilizzare questo materiale nelle aree rurali nepalesi, fornendo metodi di costruzione semplici e rendendolo una risorsa accessibile e di supporto per zone spesso caratterizzate dalla povertà. La tesi si articola in una prima parte di ricerca, nella quale i problemi relativi all’utilizzo del bambù vengono analizzati, ed una parte progettuale, quale illustra uno studio sul Nepal e si focalizza a seguito sulla valle di Kathmandu, dove il progetto si localizza. La strategia progettuale ha come oggetto l’utilizzo del bambù come risorsa, attraverso l’introduzione di coltivazioni, ed il suo impiego nell’architettura. Quest’ultimo si esprime attraverso il progetto di un edificio per artefatti in bambù, che diventerà un centro di supporto per la comunità di il villaggio di Talkududechaur, inserito all’interno di uno scenario che coinvolge la cittadina di Pharping e le aree abbandonate sulla riva del fiume Bagmati, quali verranno riqualificate attraverso la piantumazione di Moso Bambù.
Strengthening rural livelihoods. Using bamboo as a resource in Kathmandu valley
CASERINI, MICHELA
2018/2019
Abstract
How to use bamboo as a resource in Nepalese rural area? Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world and its situation was worsened in 2015, after a huge earthquake destroyed several parts of the country. The countryside area has been the most affected by the cataclysm, with the highest number of victims. Researches estimated that most of the houses that collapsed were made by concrete or wood, while bamboo dwellings endured the damages. However, even if Nepal is quite abundant both in terms of bamboo quantity and species, this material was not commonly used in the construction field through the last decades. Nowadays, the industrialisation process encourages people to trust more in industrial materials such as concrete, steel or glass. This makes natural materials, including bamboo, lose their importance in the architectural field. The aim of the thesis is how to use this natural material in Nepalese rural area, where it is abundant, by providing a method easy to apply and make it a resource for rural livelihoods. In this way, villagers could learn to build without the need of skilled labours. The thesis finds the main issues related to the aim: knowledge problem that is specific for architects, including techniques, social perceptions (such as how people judge the bamboo architecture) and problems related to the nature of the material. Besides, in the state of Nepal, earthquakes are quite frequent, in this context, bamboo can become an efficient alternative to the industrial material, because of its properties. In order to reach the aim of the thesis, the methodology of the research is divided in two parts. The first one is a theoretical research, based on the reasons why bamboo lost its role in architecture, the study of of Nepal and the bamboo species available on the site. Important aspects will be related to find a simple, cheap, earthquake resistant ways to assemble bamboo and other materials together in order to promote the use of these materials even for people without a specific technical knowledge. The second part is a project based on the theoretical part, with the design of a urban strategy located in Nepalese rural area and the developing of a bamboo center. The bamboo strategy has the aim of making bamboo a resource to empower locals. Working with bamboo has to be considered as a chance for both architects and residents to cooperate and learn new ecological methods. The thesis can’t be experimented directly on the field, but since the structure and the construction phases of the architecture have been studied and represented in detail, it can be the base for starting future lab-test and, according to the results, experiment it on the field.| File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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2019_04_Caserini.pdf
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Descrizione: testo della tesi con disegni degli elaborati di progetto
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https://hdl.handle.net/10589/148030