Discovery Gardens

One of the goals of the architectural community is to strive for maximum access to health, education and sustainable income for people around the world with peace and tranquility. In this regard, by reviewing and analyzing schools built in Africa, the design process will be divided into two parts:

A) Designing the building in accordance with the culture, economy and current situation of society in order to transform the school into an urban and social space

B) Modular design in accordance with the climate, cost-effective and principles that can be easily built by local people as a new model of construction.

Principles and design solutions taken from mode A and B:

1. 1. A space inspired by vernacular architecture
2. 2. Use of light, durable, porous and cheap structures in order to create air flow and reduce humidity of the classes (use of local materials such as laterite soil and create a suitable drainage system)
3. 3. Production of multifunctional materials designed based on traditional architecture review of hot and humid regions of the world (improvement of Sarooj mortar by mixing coral rocks and ash from burning animal waste such as cow waste)
4. 4. Design based on the analysis of the sun path and maximum shading
5. 5. The importance of having a sleeper wall under the foundation of the building in order to reduce floor moisture
6. 6. Design for maximum natural ventilation by optimal wind flow inside the building
7. 7. Considering the urban space in order to interact and educate people, especially women
8. 8. Design of rainwater storage system and its use in dry seasons

1. 9. The need to create a natural wastewater treatment for drinking water that has an educational aspect
2. 10. Designing a residential suite to interact with teachers and professionals from other countries and benefit from their experiences
3. 11. The need to design a multifunctional space in order to make maximum use of this space (6 functions)
4. 12. Respect for nature by preserving and expanding the green space available on the school site

In short, the design team strives to develop and teach simple and efficient methods for natural ventilation, rainwater storage and improved Sarooj mortar, so the main concept of the project is the preservation of indigenous values, the typology of local buildings and green cover and respect for the users of space.

Water Management System

According to the law of constant pressure on liquids, if in the pipes that collect rainwater, such as gutters, all of them must be connected with one or more tankers and the air pressure must be the same on all of them. The liquid level can rise in the tankers and with each cross section as much as the height of the same liquid in the gutter pipe.

With this argument, without the need for an engine, the liquid can be filled up to the sloping roof of the tankers. This system should be continued until the rainy season and the tankers are full, so after the rainy season, by closing the K valve, it is possible to prevent draining and reducing the liquid level in the tanker.

On the other hand, after collecting water in the tanker in dry seasons, this water can be used to irrigate the exploratory gardens of the classrooms and the public area of the school.

Gutter water can also be used to slowly build a natural wastewater treatment systems during the rainy season and use it for students’ drinking water.

The natural wastewater treatment systems is located on top of a tanker that is inside the ground and stores water in a tank, and with the pressure of water itself reaches the drinking place, and children only need to open the water flow by pressing a pedal.

This source works with a natural system that is the result of the physical arrangement of river rocks, and eventually, like a reservoir, possible impurities are deposited in it and disinfectants are added to it on different days.

By doing this, children realize the importance of saving water consumption and can see the amount of water left in the source and tanker every day.

In winter, the tankers irrigate the garden and fill drinking place from their water storage

The ducts around each of the platforms are drains that due to their porosity, allow air to move through the floor of the building. These drains are made of laterite channels, which is a good place for pipes to pass between gutters and tankers, as well as between tankers and drinking place.

Construction solutions for natural ventilation

1. 1.The usage of proposal mortar so that porous sea limestone can help the airflow permanently
2. 2.The ash which comes from burning animal waste operates as humidity absorber in the proposal mortar
3. 3.Use of drainage under the building
4. 4.The porosity of the lower part of the building seat
5. 5.semi-open Interior cover
6. 6.Execution (Installation) of drainage and absorption of moisture in the building

Perhaps the most sustainable form of development is one that is compatible with economic and cultural conditions. In the present age, accurate forecasting of the future is foolish, which is why the architecture group presents its five-year vision as follows.

1. 1. Creating a platform for tourists, festivals and cultural carnivals who live and performance here and sometimes participate in educational activities.
2. 2. Create a seasonal temporary structure for the exhibition and a small café run by students
3. 3. Self-governing workshops such as welding, carpentry, plumbing and construction workshops, etc. that work temporarily.
4. 4. Temporary greenhouses for growing and selling plants according to school education

The school space can have two characters from an urban point of view

The permanent character, which includes the open space, the entrance and the multipurpose section, and the temporary character, which is created during festivals and school holidays, and the roofed yard, along with the balcony and the entrance to the classrooms, also help us in the temporary character.

In the permanent character on urban land, gatherings, annual celebrations, public announcements, and performances and dances can be held weekly and monthly. This area can be a gathering place for horticultural and agricultural products, and next week it will be a place for some fishermen to repair their nets.

The idea of the architecture group is to make the site dynamic. From dancing and singing and group competitions to distributing gardening equipment and even welcoming a footballer who has made it to the Singapore national team.

In the multipurpose space, which is the second space with a permanent character, the furniture and partitions of the space are designed in such a way that it can be a dining room, a place for mothers to study, a place for discussion and various forums, as well as a place for theater and dance practice. An exhibition for the works of the soul and a workshop for the theoretical and practical training of women and creating a sense of collective participation.

In the case of the temporary character of the spaces, the courtyard, which is used by students during breaks and rainy days, along with the classroom balcony can be turned into a place to display women’s handicrafts and sell local products on holidays.

Classes can be used in critical situations and can be used to quarantine or relocate people who have lost their shelter during outbreaks of infectious diseases and floods and earthquakes.

Volunteer Teacher’s Residence

Certainly a developing society in addition to knowing its needs, uses the experiences of others who have experienced this path many years ago. In this regard, the design of a suite to host volunteer educators, teachers and professionals who are eager to teach talented students was on the agenda. These dear guests can sometimes be women who train teaching methods, life, and self-confidence to student mothers. The students’ mothers are in fact the main teachers and educators of the next generation.

Climate study of the spatial layout (impacts of local climate on spatial layout)

1. 1. The space in front of each classroom, which is a semi-open space and roofed in front of the classrooms, creates air bubbles (air flow), especially on sunny days.
2. 2. The central courtyard space causes air bubbles to form in the middle of the buildings, and this air flow causes surface evaporation and cooling of the air, as well as thermal comfort on the skin.
3. 3. As much as possible, light colors are used on the walls.
4. 4. The use of horizontal and vertical canopies is very effective in reducing the temperature
5. 5. The shared walls between the classes make the exposed facade receive less sunlight
6. 6. Using a porous wall as a partition that separates the spaces but allows air to pass through.

Construction Process

Stages of  buildings and latrines construction in each phase

1. 1. Excavation of drains and water storage (first phase) then transfer of soil to the construction site.
2. 2. Construction of drain pipe with blocks of laterite
3. 3. Waterproof plaster on both sides of the drainage channel surface
4. 4. Implementing polyethylene pipes in the drainage channels to transfer rainwater to water storage
5. 5. laterite stone as a cap for drainage channels
6. 6. Construction of porous platforms on which the building is placed (built)
7. 7. Execution of Sleeper wall of the building with lattice stone
8. 8. Knitting tie beam rebars under the wall
9. 9. knitting vertical tie rebars and mesh network in the middle of the wall
10. 10. tie beam molding under the wall
11. 11. Mixing and pouring the proposed waterproof mortar into the foundation formwork
12. 12. Opening the foundation molds after 15 days
13. 13. Vertical ties molding
14. 14. Mixing and pouring the proposed waterproof mortar into the vertical ties of the walls
15. 15. Open vertical ties molds after 15 days
16. 16. bricklaying classrooms by flemish bond method using Laterite stone with dimensions of 20 * 20 * 40 cm
17. 17.Soil consolidation Classroom floor, then flooring with laterite brick and binding with sand and water
18. 18. Execution (Installation) of lintel with laterite stone

1. 19. knitting the first roof of the interior spaces and making the truss supporting the second roof with bamboo wood
2. 20. Installation of the first roof and truss of the second roof
3. 21. Installing a protective plastic cover on the trusses
4. 22. Covering the second roof trusses with categorized rice paddy
5. 23. Execution and installation of gutters for collecting and transmitting rainwater
6. 24. Transfer of gutter pipes into the drainage channel around the building
7. 25. Water and sewage piping services
8. 26. Installation of septic tank
9. 27. Bathroom flooring with ceramic tiles
10. 28. Installation of water supply tanks
11. 29. Construction and installation of windows and doors made of bamboo
12. 30. Building benches and chairs

Design Lead:

Mojtaba Hooshangian Shirazi

Project Team:

Amjad Sadri

Sina Safari

Zahra Nejati

Lida Sobhani

Thanks To:

Mahsa Pakshir

Hilda Khozaei Nezhad