'lari octa green' shelters are uplifting flood-hit villages in pakistan

‘lari octa green’: sustainable bamboo design for flood relief

The recent flooding crisis that swept across Pakistan has left 33 million people displaced, with over 5 million families desperately seeking shelter from the approaching sub-zero winter months. In response to this unprecedented natural disaster, the non-profit organization Heritage Foundation of Pakistan — founded and led by architect Yasmeen Lari — has mobilized a flood relief initiative in collaboration with INTBAU Pakistan. Together, they’ve built emergency shelters for displaced families in the highly flood-stricken Sindh Province.

Dubbed ‘Lari Octa Green’ (LOG), the emergency shelters boast an octagonal shape made of bamboo panels lined with date palm matting and topped with a conical roof. The more permanent structures are coated in mud for insulation. Given the context, each shelter is also disaster-resistant and DRR-compliant.

‘The octagonal form is inherently strong and, unlike concrete, the light bamboo frames pose no danger to life. The mud exterior both provides ballast to prevent the shelter from overturning and acts as insulation. Bamboo, though lightweight, is a long-lasting material, and the structure, though intended as transitional, can be used quasi-permanently if needed. Each structure has enough room for five people sleeping on the floor or two charpoys (string beds) with some space to walk around. This can be expanded by clustering structures together and leaving internal openings. The designers have devised tweaks to this basic technique for structures which can be used as toilets, kitchens, schools and a host of other functions,’ states UNDP Pakistan.

‘Lari Octa Green’ shelters | images & videos courtesy of Heritage Foundation of Pakistan (unless stated otherwise)

zero-carbon, zero-waste, and locally made

As they exclude industrial materials, the ‘Lari Octa Green’ shelters promote a zero-carbon approach to construction while spotlighting traditional and vernacular architecture. For example, the conical roof recalls the south’s traditional chaura construction the bamboo framework echoes the north’s cross-braced dhijji structure. Moreover, as bamboo is a renewable resource, the overall process is also driven by a zero-waste philosophy.

In addition to being zero-carbon and zero-waste, the relief project invites total inclusivity and local agency. Instead of charities and intermediaries stepping in, villagers are invited to build the shelters themselves under the supervision of the Heritage Foundation of Pakistan.

‘The traditional ways, particularly the International Colonial Charity model, which relies on handouts and intermediaries, have proven to be ineffective in the face of major disasters because of their limited outreach and treatment of affected people as supplicants and fostering dependency. I would like for it to be replaced by humanistic humanitarianism. The enormity of the present 2022 Flood requires a paradigm shift in the structure of the culture of giving,’ writes Yasmeen Lari.

decorated LOG shelters | image by Taj Mohammed

UNDP Pakistan adds to the architect’s words by stating: ‘Thanks to its simple construction methods, even unskilled workers can quickly and easily learn how to fabricate the shelter, while the roof panels are stitched by rural women, providing a potential source of livelihood to economically marginalized communities. The entire structure takes less than an hour to assemble. The low cost, ease of manufacture and erection, means that it could be dispensed through nodes in disaster-affected union councils, and delivered by trained artisans who can bring the product to market.’

‘Lari Octa Green’ production at ZC3 Makli

the shelter building process

The first phase of construction involves sending pre-fabricated bamboo units to the affected villages in Pakistan, where locals begin assembling the components under the supervision of an expert from the relief project. Low-cost bamboo curved joints are used as the foundational frame covered by modular panels. Once the assembling is complete, the participants proceed to covering the rooftop with a kind of fabric or any other available resource, including plastic covers or parachute material.

using bamboo joints as the main structural framework

To lay out the shelter’s foundation, a group of participants marks the ground with a circular perimeter which is then outlined with an octagon to erect a set of prefabricated panel walls. A 10” pocketed square is also drawn and dug at each corner of the octagon to fit in the panels. Once installed, they can be filled in with lime concrete before firmly joining them with ropes.

For the roof, participants temporarily place a 12’6” bamboo stick at the center of the plinth and take it out once the top part is fully completed. The prefabricated bamboo roof consists of eight beams joined to the eight pre-fab panel walls for sturdiness. Once all the joists are linked, the purlins get attached and joined at a distance of 1′. Yasmeen Lari has even shared a series of tutorials on her YouTube channel, presenting step-by-step guides on how to build her shelter archetypes.