A script following the play that is life
While I was in Nairobi attending the NOCMAT Conference, Othy travelled to Abuja, Nigeria where he participated in the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Forum. Here are some photos from his time there and a link to a video by the DRC presidential office that he was interviewed for.
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The International Conference for Non-Conventional Building Materials was held at the University of Nairobi which has a beautiful campus. On day 1 my favourite sessions were a keynote lecture on the development of standards for non-conventional materials, a presentation about the challenges and opportunities for the reuse of excavated material in the built environment, and a presentation on the development of a panelized building system for low-cost housing using waste cardboard and repurposed wood. Another interesting presentation was the one before mine on lessons learned by MASS Design Group and ARUP on earth construction they did for the Rwanda Institute for Conservation Agriculture. My own presentation was on the analysis of earthquake testing trends of alternative building materials. It went well and I received some valuable critical feedback afterwards from two structural engineers.
The following day my favourite sessions were on the application of alternative construction techniques in rehabilitation of urban slums, and the study of the socio-economic, cultural, and environmental impact of the use of unconventional building materials in conventional buildings. These were both presented by the partners of a design practice in India called Masons Ink. Overall I enjoyed the conference and made connections from a variety of backgrounds including engineers, materials researchers, architects, and community activists. The overlapping of various disciplines was a welcome sight as collaboration between these groups is what is needed to solve the complex problems in our world today.
From July 24th – 28th I attended the International Conference of Non-Conventional Materials and Technologies (IC-NOCMAT). The first day of the conference was a workshop held by an engineer and bamboo specialist from ARUP, a structural design firm that has an international development arm. I found the workshop to be very useful because it helped me understand the strengths and weaknesses of bamboo as a material and the importance of appropriate design for its use. Here are some of the biggest points I took away from it:
That is a summary of the most valuable lessons I took from the workshop. Of course this summary does not replace the need to consult an experienced structural engineer when working on a specific project. I hope that I will get an opportunity to work with bamboo in Congo! The reason why it has become established as a building material in Colombia is because the government supported it, standards were developed, and architects such as Simón Vélez have made some beautiful projects out of it that are showing the possibilities of what can be done with good design and craftsmanship. So perhaps the same is possible in Congo and we can start using a building material that is available, affordable, and highly renewable!
This past week I took my second trip to Nairobi. This time it was for the International Conference of Non-Conventional Building Materials and Technologies (IC-NOCMAT). Since I was coming from Kampala I decided to save money and take the bus. The cost was $45 roundtrip instead of $300! The bus departed on Sunday night at 7pm and I made a special request to the driver to drop me in Limuru which was on the way and saved me the time of going into the city only to come back out again. It was a 14 hour journey! I managed to get at least a few hours of sleep after walking to the front of the bus and asking the driver to turn off the music. I think music on overnight buses has become a real pet peeve of mine and I am getting bolder!
After getting off in Limuru I walked a short way to a nearby gas station and then called a boda to pick me up and take me to where the Shaws live. I visited them the last time I was in Nairobi and they are in the same neighbourhood but have moved to a different house. It was a warm reunion and extra large because other international CI staff were there! The first day was full of naps between times of catching up. In the late morning I went on a walk with Kate to Browns Cheese which make delicious cheeses, crackers and apparently ice cream too. Once back at the house I filled up on some of the best crackers and gouda I have had in a long time! In the early evening I went on a walk with the Lawsons and Martins to the tea fields. It was so beautiful! I enjoyed the fresh air and peacefulness that comes from being outside the city. The next day I had to get a bunch of work done since I wouldn’t have the chance to do any for the following three days of the conference. Other people needed to get work done too which created a nice working atmosphere. That night for dinner Kate made lasagna because I had told her it was my favourite. I was so spoiled!
Jon, Kate and the kids were headed to Nairobi early the next morning and so I was able to get a ride with them. We went to a cafe called Le Grenier à Pain, and I enjoyed a delicious hot chocolate and pain au chocalat before saying my farewells. I ordered an Uber to take me to my Airbnb to drop off my bags before continuing to the university for day 1 of the conference. The location of the apartment building where the Airbnb was located wasn’t obvious but after asking around I found the entrance. The street was busy and a bit ruddy, but the unit itself was well furnished and peaceful. The price was right at $20 per night and the place was only a short walk from the university. I was running a bit late dropping off my bags, but decided to walk to the university anyways in order to get my bearings. The university proved easy to find as the conference was being held at the University of Nairobi Towers which is a clear landmark. I was thankful for the time I had catching up with old friends and also for the opportunity to learn more about alternative building materials! Day 1 of the conference was a bamboo workshop which I will share about in my next post!
Now that I am finished school and am working full time, I am on my final step towards becoming a licensed architect. The last hurtle is to log over 3700 hours of time in specific categories of work in the profession. Sometimes it is frustrating to feel so close but yet so far. When I am almost complete these hours I can take the licensing exam! Another requirement for licensure is to take a three day admissions course that covers topics related to the building code, the architects act, the construction lien act, contract administration, and the list goes on! In the middle of May I sat in on the course that was held at the Allstream Centre at Exhibition Place during the annual OAA conference. It was a bit of a reunion because many friends and old classmates were there and it was fun to catch up! We had sessions every day from 8:30-6:00 with a two hour lunch. It was nice to have a two hour lunch to be able to walk into Liberty Village.
A highlight came on Thursday evening because all of the admissions course attendees were given free tickets for the conference opening party. It was being held at Casa Loma and so I knew I couldn’t miss it! Vikkie and I decided to go together, and it turns out several of our other friends and colleagues came as well! It was one of the most fanciest parties I think I have ever attended. There were open bars located throughout the various rooms that each offered different types of drinks. The doors were open onto the Casa Loma gardens and a spectacular view of the city skyline. There was a DJ and an open floor in the fern room for dancing. We were one of the few groups that actually danced, but we didn’t care what anyone else thought! It was a lovely evening!
The admissions course over all was insightful if not a bit drawn out at times! Mostly I was happy to reconnect with colleagues who I had not seen in sometime!
My lanyard: Proud to represent UCBC!
The one downside sometimes to couch surfing is that it isn’t always possible to find a host for all of the days. I had this problem for my trip to Exeter. Two weeks before I left I sent out requests and only found a host for the last three nights of my stay. By the time I tried to contact additional couch surfers it was too late. Then when I called a hostel in Exeter upon arriving in London I found out that it was full and that it was the only one! What I should have realized is that other conference attendees would be couch surfing and staying at the hostel. I called the hostel again the day I was to arrive in Exeter, and luckily there had been a last minute cancellation! The hostel was called Globe Backpackers and it was a very charming, gezellig sort of place. There was a common area with a large table and couches, free wifi, and a fully equipped kitchen. I was happy to be able to cook for myself for the first two nights and I met a lot of friendly people from around the world. What was interesting about this place is that it had a lot of permanent or semi-permanent residents of all ages that had become like a family. It totally made sense because the weekly rate was cheaper than what you would pay to rent a place. It was also cool to meet conference attendees at the hostel, especially since I didn’t know anyone attending the conference.
The conference didn’t start until the evening the following day and so I spent that time honing my presentation and getting feedback from Archip and Othy. I was nervous for the presentation especially because I feel like I faltered so much for my thesis defense back in June. At the same time though this felt different. Here people assumed I was already a master of my topic and I had nothing to prove. What was funny is that most people I talked to thought I was presenting doctoral work!
On Tuesday afternoon I walked over to the University of Exeter campus with Somo, a fellow conference attendee from India who was also staying at the hostel. We picked up our conference materials and hung around in the building until the plenary lecture started in the evening. The hub of the conference was in a building called the Forum, which is a beautiful atrium addition that has a fantastic undulating timber gridshell roof with scattered triangular skylights. It was designed by WilkinsonEyre beginning in 2008. The building looked very familiar to me and then I realized that it is cast as the court house in the second season of Broadchurch that I saw on the plane on my way to Nepal.
The Forum
The first plenary lecture was given by Will Steffen and Jamie Lorimer. Will Steffen is performing climatic research that is trying to prove the concept of the “anthropocene”, that we are now in a new geologic era (that has replaced the holocene) where humans are now affecting the the geological make-up of the world. Some argue that this era began with the industrial revolution in the mid 17th century, but his hypothesis is that it began in the 1950’s with what he call’s the “great acceleration”. It was a very interesting talk! Jamie Lorimer approached the same topic from an ecological standpoint and addressed some of the ideas from his book called ‘Wildlife in the Anthropocene’. He talked about the concept of “rewilding”, which is essentially the recreation of “natural” habitats and presented the different sides of what it means to live alongside nature in this era. He referred to some interesting case studies coming out of the Netherlands such as the Oostvaardersplassen, a large manmade nature reserve that is re-introducing wild-life, and Ecoducts that are wildlife corridors that bridge the highways that cut across the Veluwe.
Following the lecture there was a reception. I psyched myself up and managed to approach and talk to a few people who weren’t talking to anyone. What did I have to lose? On the way back to the hostel we passed the Exeter Cathedral that looked very beautiful by night. What a full and interesting first day in Exeter this had been!
Life Section 