Mexican Housing Projects Nominated for World Habitat Awards

The National Reconstruction Program (PNR), focused on assisting the victims of the 2017 and 2018 earthquakes and carried out by the National Housing Commission (CONAVI), nominated four projects for the World Habitat Awards. These awards seek to promote projects that solve housing challenges, promote equality and inclusion, address the climate crisis and are carried out with the local community. The furthermore consider criteria such as impact, innovation, environmental sustainability, relevance and viability.

The projects sent to the contest are located in Santo Domingo Ingenio, Santa María Mixtequilla and San Dionisio del Mar, all in Oaxaca, as well as in El Llano Grande, Guerrero.

For PNR’s Social Reconstruction of the Environment in La Blanca, Santo Domingo Ingenio, 10 houses were restored using the pre-Hispanic technique of Bahareque, through an investment of more than MX$3.8 million (US$187,500) in conjunction with the NGO Cooperación Comunitaria.

In El Llano Grande, Guerrero, 18 homes of the Me'phaa indigenous population were rebuilt.  The project involved an investment of MX$2.6 million (US$128,300). CONAVI carried out the work in direct collaboration with the members of the community.

In Santa María Mixtequilla, Oaxaca, 18 houses were rebuilt. This project highlighted the rescue of the traditional and cultural aspects of the homes, which were built with the region’s traditional materials and methods, such as red brick, shingles, prepared lime paint and mortar and roofing with clay tiles. The use of these traditional materials and techniques not only contributed to maintaining the community identity but also helped to reduce the heat inside the houses. 

The last project nominated is in San Dionisio del Mar, Oaxaca, along the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. The project sought to design houses that combined contemporary construction with traditional materials, such as palm and latticework. The houses also incorporated porches, which are important to families and working areas in the Isthmus.

The Ministry of Agrarian, Territorial and Urban Development (SEDATU) emphasized that the works where CONAVI is involved have the goal to promoting the development of local communities by using traditional methods, sustainable design and adaptation to the climate and geographical conditions of each region.