<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div><br></div>Enthusiastically second Henri Mannik's nomination.<div><br><div apple-content-edited="true"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-size: medium; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-size: medium; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; ">Thanks,</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; min-height: 14px; font-size: 12px; "><br></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; ">Bruce King, PE</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; ">Director of <font class="Apple-style-span" face="Sketcher" size="4"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">EBNet</span></font></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; "><font class="Apple-style-span" face="Sketcher" size="4"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; ">Ecological Building Network</span></font></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; "><b><i>the art and science of building well</i></b></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; "><a href="mailto:bruce@ecobuildnetwork.org">bruce@ecobuildnetwork.org</a> </div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; ">PO Box 6397</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; ">San Rafael, CA 94903 USA</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; ">(415) 987-7271</div></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; font-size: 12px; ">follow us on Twitter: @EBNetwork</div></div></span></div></span> </div><br><div><div>On Apr 5, 2011, at 9:15 AM, martin hammer wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type="cite"><div> <font face="Arial"><span style="font-size:11pt">Jorge,<br> <br> You mentioned the “traditional Haiti house” or the “tropical Haitian house”, as documented by Anghelen Arrington Phillips. Few outside Haiti are aware of what are known as the Gingerbread houses, a name they adopted after American tourists in the 1950’s compared them to the “gingerbread” Victorian era houses in the US. They are fascinating buildings built between 1870 and 1925, derived from the architectural styles of France and the US at that time, but are uniquely adapted to Haitian culture, climate, and materials. Many use braced timber wall framing with masonry infill (colombage), similar to European half-timber buildings, but are even more closely related to building systems found in Pakistan, Turkey, and Spain. These buildings performed well in the earthquake, and it’s common to see one standing adjacent to a lot with a collapsed concrete and concrete block building.<br> <br> The Gingerbreads have no direct connection to strawbale, but have personal meaning. I evaluated them as part of an earthquake reconnaissance team from the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute last March, and later with a team from the World Monuments Fund. We subsequently wrote a book entitled “Preserving Haiti’s Gingerbread Houses”, recently published and available as a free download at <a href="http://www.conservationtech.com">www.conservationtech.com</a>. I’ve attached a photo of a prominent Gingerbread (that suffered moderate damage from the earthquake, and was later repaired).<br> <br> Regarding strawbale, I agree with your point Jorge, that a good way to promote strawbale in Haiti is to adapt it to the traditional architecture. That’s what our Builders Without Borders team has done. But not by adapting it to the Gingerbreads, but to the traditional Ti Kay (small house in Kreyol) which is the more common and I think the truer traditional house in Haiti. It is the basic two-room plus galri (porch) rural living unit. The Gingerbread houses are also traditional, but are urban/sub-urban, were constructed in a limited time period, and were built only for the middle and upper middle class (maybe 8% of Haiti’s population). I’ve attached a photo of what we call the Ti Kay Pay (small house of straw). More can be seen in the Photo Gallery at <a href="http://www.builderswithoutborders.org">www.builderswithoutborders.org</a>.<br> <br> In another post I should tell of the key features in the design, and lessons learned. But for now I will say that the building was/is successful (with numerous challenges along the way) and is being received very well by all who see it. We’re now exploring next projects and prospective partners. <br> <br> The Ti Kay Pay team includes five core members who are on this list, with peripheral assistance from at least six others on this list. I want to thank and acknowledge them (and a few others) for their contributions. Catherine Wanek and Derek Roff provided support as co-directors of Builders Without Borders which is the umbrella organization, with help from two organizations, the Sheltering Pine Institute, and Grass Roots United (who provided the site on-site support). Dan Smith, Henri Mannik (P.E, more on Henri later), and Andy Mueller joined me on the design team, with bamboo assistance from Darrel DeBoer. Haitian architect Regine Laroche (introduced in a previous e-mail) helped steer us regarding cultural issues. Tim Owen-Kennedy and Bob Theis chimed in at times with perspective from their own work in Haiti. Likewise Bruce King and EBNet, who is also co-owner of our sturdy rubble crusher. A natural builder from the SF area, Kevin Rowell, who spent 10 months in Haiti, made many contributions in the bale production phase, along with resourceful Haitians Noel and Arol who manufactured the bales. Andy Mueller was the lead builder (and did a <u>remarkable</u> job), with weeks of important work from Tina Therrien. One of our primary donors Mark Phillips dedicated over a month helping with the construction. Most importantly Haitians Jean Louis Ellie, Annio Baptiste, and Samuel Alcide became integral team members, learning (as did we) how to build with strawbale in Haiti. They are the first of many Haitians we hope will learn, help develop, and continue this way of building in Haiti. I also want to make special mention of Darcey Donovan, whose work in Pakistan with strawbale building since 2006, was in many ways the starting point for the Ti Kay Pay system, including the method of bale fabrication. This first strawbale building in Haiti was a team effort in every sense of the word.<br> <br> And to continue a bit further, it’s not difficult to draw lines from all the people and work I just mentioned to many others, maybe even everyone on this GSBN list. One needs only look at the earthen floor discussion to see a direct example of that. But there are countless other connections and influences that are less obvious, but no less important. This continues to be a remarkable web of remarkable people, and I’m not sure there’s anything else quite like it on the globe.<br> <br> With that I’d like to nominate Henri Mannik, an architect and our team’s project engineer. Henri has designed and engineered numerous strawbale buildings in northern California (and now in Haiti), and has participated in numerous structural tests with strawbale systems over the years. He would bring another acute engineering eye to the group.<br> <br> Cheers all.<br> <br> Martin Hammer<br> <br> <br> On 3/25/11 1:54 AM, "Van Krieken" <<a href="vankrieken@gmail.com">vankrieken@gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br> <br> </span></font><blockquote type="cite"><font face="Arial"><span style="font-size:11pt">I understand that .the traditional Haiti house was very much influenced by the northen french bathhouse architecture, in the late 1890. Young Haitian architecture students in France, were inspired by these forms and created a tropical Haitian house, documented later by an American,.Anghelen Arrington Phillips.<br> <br> StrawBale building methods can adapt very easily to this traditional Haitian architecture language. I make a emphasis on this issue because I believe that the best way to promote strawbale houses its to adapt them to the traditional architecture, special in rural areas. We do that in Portugal, and the impact is excellent, as locals do not look at these houses as a foreign aeccentricity, but yes as a intelligent and smart way to build their traditional houses.<br> <br> Being lime the traditional material used in Haiti, why not just use a limecreet in the floor (well documented by Barbara Jones), about 5cm of 4:1 lime/sand -- attention, not too humid please .. :-)) -- finished a few hours later by a «burnt cement» finishing layer (cement powder mixed with pigments, and trowel after with a inox trowel). It makes a beautiful floor, very traditional on tropical and temperate climates, fresh and easy to clean. If you need more practical info about this just tell me.<br> <br> By the way, .cCouldn't we all help to developed a few well documented open source emergency building projects for a law cost passive house that could be used in any part of the globe, and easily adapted to local architecture design?<br> <br> Good work<br> <br> Jorge Van Krieken<br> <br> </span></font></blockquote> </div> <span><Gingerbread.jpg></span><span><TKP1.jpg></span>_______________________________________________<br>GSBN mailing list<br><a href="mailto:GSBN@sustainablesources.com">GSBN@sustainablesources.com</a><br>http://sustainablesources.com/mailman/listinfo.cgi/GSBN<br></blockquote></div><br></div></body></html>