Houses for ChangeSponsor: IE University
Type: Open, student, ideas
Eligiblity: Open internationally to students or recent graduates with a maximum of 5 years since the date of graduation (graduation in 2009 or later). Individuals and teams of up to 6 welcome.
Registration Deadline: 10 December 2013
Submission Deadline: 16 December 2013
Entrance Fee: None
Awards: The winning project will be granted with a scholarship equivalent of 20.000 € applicable towards the tuition fees of the following programs at IE: – Master in Architectural Management and Design
– Master in Architectural Design
– Master in Workspace Design
– Master in Corporate Communication
– Master in Market Research and Consumer Behaviour
– Master in International Relations
– International LLM
– Master in Management
– International MBA
– Global MBA
– Master in Finance
– Master in Advanced Finance Jury:
Design Challenge:
The purpose of the competition is to consider housing as an urgent and basic component of improving urban environments for the poor and at risk. Architecture students and recent graduates of architecture, along with peers from other fields forming multidisciplinary teams, have a unique role to play in suggesting solutions and approaches in response to the housing crisis facing many cities today.
Buildings and projects are place-specific and must take into account not only physical realities, but also cultural, economic, and the social context. Entries are invited for housing that is appropriate and affordable for a specific place (identified by the participating team). The housing must be for an urban area, and therefore address the needs of many. Schemes or units should be designed so the model can be reproduced/duplicated.
The housing proposed should respond to the needs (geographic, economic possibilities, materials, construction processes, cultural context, etc.) of a specific community or place, selected by the competition entrants. Participants are reminded that the proposal is directed at those in the most fragile economic situations – the poor and disenfranchised- and should selected their community accordingly. The design solution and budget must not assume government subsidies or support.
Teams must submit an architectural concept, as well as a brief business plan justifying the cost, materials proposed, and affordability/viabilityvis a vis the site. Sustainable solutions will be positively rated.
The proposals to be submitted must reflect the economic, social, technological and cultural realities of the specific place.
Proposals will be evaluated based on appropriateness for the specific context (and the justification of this), quality of the design, viability of the proposal, sustainability and innovative approach.
For more information, go to: http://www.housesforchange.net/competition/houses-change
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Development phase image courtesy ©Brooks + Scarpa
If architects have had one complaint concerning the planning and realization of a project, it has been with planners and especially construction managers, both of whom often display a lack of knowledge about architecture. The survival of a well-conceived design can hang in the balance when there is a knowledge gap at the planning and realization end.
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by Jean-Pierre Chupin and G. Stanley Collyer
published by Potential Architecture Books, Montreal, Canada 2020
271 illustrations in color and black & white
Available in PDF and eBook formats
ISBN 9781988962047
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 Helsinki South Harbour and Tori Quarter Suomen Ilmakuva Helsinki. Image credit/ Tietoa Finland, Janne Hirvonen
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View to Concert Hall from bridge ©BIG
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Image courtesy Budapest Development Agency ©Grimshaw
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