Idea
2912
- A Strategy for Spatial and Political Identity
Simultaneous site analysis and research into the various forms of Israeli settlements lie at the root of this proposal. The Israeli moshav model for an agricultural settlement is organized around family and community units. Each family is allocated an equal amount of land for orchards and smallscale agriculture. In addition, larger community land is cultivated and harvested cooperatively, and the income and produce from this work is shared by all. Cooperative banks, commercial institutions, health clinics, and other services exist for all; however, the family, rather than the collective, remains the central unit.
In this scheme for Ein-Hud, the basic programmatic elements found in the moshav settlement type are assigned a range of slope gradients, based on means of construction and the specific topography of Ein Hud. This slope and programmatic analysis yields a zoned organization, from which the specific master plan is derived. The various programmatic elements are examined in light of their ability to support integrated Arab and Jewish participation. Buildings such as schools and health clinics may very easily be shared between communities, while mosques and temples must remain separate. Those shared facilities are located according to their proximity to each community and the appropriate topography.
Methods of construction have been developed which may be easily undertaken by the residents of Ein Hud themselves. Rammed-earth and straw bale homes, together with the reuse of any excavated soil allow for unskilled workers to construct climatically appropriate homes at very low cost. Additionally, solar and wind power is harnessed to allow energy self-sufficiency, removing the political ramifications of connection to national service grids from the delivery of basic utilities.
CONTACT: Travis Frankel /
PROFESSION: Architecture
CODE: blan
