proyectos

Escuela Earthship de Jaureguiberry

Canelones

The first sustainable public school in Latin America, built in 2016 in the seaside resort of Jaureguiberry (Canelones, Uruguay) by the local organisation Tagma together with Earthship Biotecture, the studio of American architect Michael Reynolds, creator of the Earthship method. The building was constructed with 60% recycled materials and 40% conventional ones: around 2,000 tyres, 5,000 glass bottles, 8,000 cans and 2,000 m² of cardboard were incorporated into high thermal mass walls that stabilise the indoor temperature. The work was carried out in about seven weeks with the participation of nearly 200 volunteers from more than 30 countries. The school makes use of the sun, wind, water and earth: it generates electricity with photovoltaic panels and wind turbines, and its roof collects rainwater, which is stored in four tanks for reuse. It welcomed its first 45 public education pupils and has become a continental benchmark for self-sufficient architecture built with discarded materials.