TULUM PLASTIC SCHOOL - Architecture competition

TULUM PLASTIC SCHOOL

ART, WELLNESS, ENVIRONMENT ARCHITECTURE COMPETITION

a competition by Archstorming -1-

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Š Archstorming S.L. 2019 Photographies: Los Amigos de la Esquina Special thanks to: Jonathan Kubben from Mom I’m Fine and Fran and Jaime from Los Amigos de la Esquina.

Thanks to all the participants.

introduction 7 who is MOM I’M FINE 8 who are Los Amigos de la Esquina 9 the location: Tulum 11 Tulum: climate 13 the plastic problem 14 the challenge 16 winners and honorable mentions 21 selected proposals 49

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introduction Education, art, cooperation, sustainability, recycling... the current competition will give you a chance to work on several subjects.

This time, Archstorming is partnering up with the NGOs MOM I’M FINE Project and Los Amigos de la Esquina. They both had a dream, they wanted to help other people creating something for those who need it the most. While trying to accomplish that, they met each other. Jonathan Kubben, creator of MOM I’M FINE, was looking for a place to build a school. On the other hand, the NGO Los Amigos de la Esquina, had the place, but needed the building.

We will also have the chance to do something unique. We will discuss about the current problem of the plastic pollution in Mexico. And not only that, but also the main material of the school will be precisely that one: recycled plastic.

We have a chance to show the world what design and architecture is capable of, to create something that can be a world landmark for its uniqueness.

Let’s all work together to create a less polluted, more educated world.

The chosen place is Tulum, a beautiful town in the Caribbean coast of Mexico. In this competition, participants will have the chance to design a school that will focus on art, wellness and environment. Three subjects that unfortunately are most of the time forgotten in traditional schools.

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who is MOM I’M FINE In March 2016, Jonathan Kubben gathered all his family & friends to announce a life changing decision - he had quit his job, sold his car and bought a one-way ticket to travel the world.

The very next day he landed in Cuba and took his first step into the new chapter of his life.

Aware of his mom’s concern, he searched for a way to reassure her and finally found a simple solution that brought to life MOM I’M FINE… On April 1st 2016 Jonathan introduced MOM I’M FINE to the world on Instagram.

As he travelled through Latin America the account began to gain an impressive following and continued to grow each day.

All along his journey he witnessed breathtaking landscapes and crossed paths with interesting locals. He had also adopted a new philosophy - ‘living life on the edge’ - and before he knew it he

was jumping out of airplanes, climbing mountains 6,088 meters high, scuba diving among sharks in the depths of the ocean, hanging with the Colombian army, exploring the glory of Poseidon and playing around with crocodiles in Mexico.

As he was living all these memorable moments he always made sure to leave his mom a special message ‘MOM I’M FINE’ one picture at a time.

Today Jonathan and his ‘MOM I’M FINE’ sign have become an Internet sensation.

His story has appeared on multiple media platforms (magazines, radio, TV) worldwide and has caught the attention of a few famous faces. MOM I’M FINE continues to expand its international reach at an extraordinary rate.

who are Los Amigos de la Esquina Los Amigos de la Esquina is a learning community that generates experiences through recreational activities for children in Mexico.

The project was born in 2017, when its two founders, Jaime Kohen and Francisco Rocha, bought a plot in Tulum. They hired some architects and they started with ideas and plans to build a house. While the project was being developed, they began to clean up the space. The children of the area approached organically, offering help to restore the place, painting and cleaning. At the beginning there were 3, then 10, then 20 until there were around 30 children every day at La Esquina. With the effort of all, the place was transformed and renewed, becoming a social space of the neighborhood. Jaime and Francisco became fond of each child, and it occurred to them to start doing casual activities to use the space while construction began.

What they did not know, is that they were founding a much larger movement...

Since La Esquina is an open space, many people passed and approached, little by little people from all over the world began to come and volunteer to give workshops of all kinds.

The time to start building the house came, which meant that this project had to find a new place, or it would end. But finally, after contemplating and observing, both decided not to build the house and leave the Esquina, so that the project can continue, flourish and grow. The name of “Los Amigos de la Esquina� was born (LADLE) and became an official NGO in August of 2017.

Their mission is to empower and improve the quality of life of children in Tulum, their first learning community. They encourage inclusion, sociocultural exchange, raise of consciousness, cognitive and socio-active development.

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MEXICO

the location: Tulum The school will be located in the current plot owned by LADLE, in Tulum, between the streets Calle 2 Pte and Calle 4 Ote. Tulum is a town located in the Mexican Riviera Maya. Its population is approximately 18,200 and it’s just some meters away of the Tulum ruins, one of the most visited archaeological sites in the world.

Los Amigos de la Esquina’s plot in Tulum mesures 9,73m x 23,21m. It already has a building that they use for their “Residencies Program”. It consists of two studios used as accommodation for specialists (artists, teachers, doctors, etc.) that collaborate with LADLE and go to Tulum to teach or help in different ways.

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Tulum: climate The climate in the Mayan Riviera is subtropical and has one of the highest sunny day proportions in the world. The average annual temperature is 25.5 ºC. From June to September temperatures can occasionally exceed 40°C, although the average is around 30°C, the sun rises at 05:00 and sunset is at 20:00. During nights the temperatures can descend to 25 ºC. From December to March temperatures are more moderate, with maximums that reach 35 ºC and minimums that can descend to 15 ºC during nights. The thermal amplitude is usually large due to the action of the sea.

Temperatures are fairly constant in the Riviera. However, the heat during summer months may be a bit excessive for some people. The rest of the year is much smoother and more pleasant.

The rainy season begins in May and continues into November. During the wet season, visitors can expect frequent heavy rain showers on most days. The showers typically arrive in late afternoon and last for at least a few hours. The dry season begins in late November and ends in February. During these months it still rains, but infrequently.

The threat of hurricanes does exist in the Mayan Riviera, though it is not as risky as it is on the other side of the peninsula.

Hurricane season is officially from June to October, with the end of the season seeing the highest chance of hurricane activity.

Tropical storms are frequent during this time, but, fortunately, most do not develop into hurricanes. Even if they do, direct hits to the mainland are very rare and only occur once every 10 or 12 years, on average. Strong winds and heavy rains are common in the wet season, but they normally do not last long.

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the plastic problem It was not very long ago when soft drinks and beer purchased in Mexico came in glass bottles that were always returned to the bottlers and reused. Then the bottling companies successfully petitioned the government to use plastic and aluminum containers on the condition that they would be responsible for recycling. Those arrangements quickly fell apart and the bottlers no longer take responsibility for the complete lifecycle of their products.

Aluminum is usually not a problem, because there is sufficient financial incentive for these cans to be recycled, but not so with plastic.

Most recyclables end up in dumps. When plastics were collected, they were usually shipped to Progresso, the port near Merida, where they were loaded on ships destined for recycling in China. However, this solution may no longer be viable since China announced that they are no longer

accepting “dirty� plastic for recycling.

Even if there are currently no scientific studies analyzing the plastic problem specifically on the beaches of Quintana Roo, Mexico in general generates half a million tons of plastic waste that ends up in the sea. Mexico ranks as the 12th largest plastics consumer in the world, consuming over 5 million tons of plastic each year.

In recent years, the effort in Mexico has increased significantly to clean the 10,000-kilometer-long beaches. Still according to the annual beach cleaning activities organized by volunteers or government agencies, plastics are the most common solid waste returning with ocean currents from different areas. It is not enough done against the pollution of the seas. There is new trash on the beach every day.

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the challenge PROGRAM For this competition, participants have to design a new school for MOM I’M FINE Project with the help of Los Amigos de la Esquina. The winning proposal will be built.

The building can have one or two stories and it will have the following program: •

CLASSROOM: a typical school classroom, with tables and chairs for approximately 20 kids.

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MULTIPURPOSE SPACE: an empty space, with no furniture in it, to be used for multiple purposes.

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SINK: small space with a sink to clean glasses, dishes, cutlery and to store them.

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RESTROOMS: with three toilets, one for only adults, one for boys and one for girls.

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STORAGE 1: shelves and storage where kids can have access so they can keep all their art and wellness material such as crayons, paints, yoga mats, foldable tables and chairs.

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STORAGE 2: storage cleaning materials.

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FOOT SHOWER: a space where kids can wash their feet before doing any activity such as yoga.

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OFFICE: big enough to fit two people working with computers and a meeting room for 3 to 4 people.

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PROJECTOR: a wall or a screen where they can use a projector (3m x 3m), white and flat.

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A mural artist (it might be the Brazilian artist Eduardo Kobra (@ kobrastreet)) will collaborate with MOM I’M FINE and he will be painting a mural in one of the walls of the school. Make sure your design considers a big wall where he can do it.

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The logo of MOM I’M FINE has to appear in a visible spot of the school.

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room

for

MATERIALS The main goal of this competition is that the school will have to be built using as many recycled plastics as possible.

Since, as we’ve seen, the plastic is a really important matter not only in the Riviera Maya, but in the whole world, this school wants to set a precedent and show the limitless possibilities of the recycled plastic.

You can consider any type and form of plastic, such as bottles or crushed plastic. Make sure the constructive system you propose is realistic and can be built by local workers.

The structure of the building, including foundations, can be designed using traditional materials and techniques (such as bricks or concrete).

If you know a company that creates building materials with recycled plastic you can use them for your proposal, but make sure they can build in Mexico and their costs don’t exceed the budget.

Focus on creating something that can inspire the whole world, a unique school made out of recycled plastic.

BUDGET The budget for the construction of the school is 50.000€, or in local currency 1.070.000 MXN. After registration, we will send you a file with the approximate local costs of construction.

SUSTAINABLE BUILDING One of the main subjects LADLE teach to kids is sustainability. That’s why the building will have to consider matters such as energy, heating and ventilation efficiency.

Also, each participant can design a system to collect rainwater. Keep in mind that Mexico has pronounced wet and dry seasons. Most of the country experiences a rainy season from June to mid-October and significantly less rain during the remainder of the year.

The installation of solar panels is also advisable. Make sure you consider its cost in the budget.

Plants and trees are a very important matter for LADLE, you should not forget about them in your proposals.

Remember that your proposal’s constructive system has to be easy and cheap to maintain. It should bear with the hot summers and the heavy rains of the zone.

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architecture competition: the results winners and honorable mentions

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1ST PLACE

Daniel Garcia, William Smith Boston, United States of America Of the 6.3 billion metric tons of plastic waste created historically as of 2015, only 9% has been successfully recycled. Of what remains, 12% has been incinerated into the air, and 79% has accumulated as landfill or spread as trash across oceans and landscapes. Compounding this problem, international manufacturing and low transportation prices have grown a massive global waste trade industry. Plastic waste is dispatched from the world’s largest economies and makes its way to countries with lax regulations where it has devastating effects on public health and the environment.

Despite local attempts at recycling, the problem of plastic waste is global in scale.

How can the Tulum Plastic School address the international state of plastic in a single locale? Using LADLE’s educational goals as a motivation for design, how can the school communicate about this global problem through its materiality in a way that is understandable to both children and the world at large?

With these questions in mind, this proposal invokes an easily recognizable symbol of our global exchanges: the international plastic

pallet. Its life cycle spent in transit, the pallet is put to use shipping other plastics around the globe. As a structural object and as a literal representation of waste trade, the project’s use of the pallet avoids common tendencies to aestheticize plastic waste itself. Rather than producing an amalgamated form made from waste or a highly refined construction product made from recycled content, we choose to approximate between these two extremes.

Set as the underlying structural order of the building, the quotidian pallet is elevated to an architectonic level, its engineered porosity filtering light into the school’s lofted interior.

The pallet is threaded through its forklift channels onto a repeating bay system and grouped to form two gabled structures that pivot around a pair of courtyards: one can be seen as an extension of the classroom, the other is offered to the community. Encased in clear, recyclable corrugated plastic, the building is protected from the elements while allowing daylight to filter in. Conversely, the structure becomes a beacon for the community at night.

The form seeks to promote an architecture of multiplicities: domestic, industrial, traditional, and contemporary.

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2ND PLACE

David Nee Zhi Kang Sarawak, Malaysia The concept of the Tulum Plastic School focuses on the children-centred design and the wellness of the community. When we see the architecture from the context of children’s school, often we will find the scale and proportion of the spaces or rooms do not respond to the characteristic of the primary user which is the children. Unlike furniture, it needs to be small enough to comfortably fit the children as they need to use it routinely.

So imagine if children can use the space like how the use the mini furniture which they are able to reach the wall, the ceiling or even the roof instead of just stepping on the slab? Therefore, the idea is to redefine the architecture of the learning environment for children through the ergonomic volume of space wherefore the children could feel their sense of presence in sync with the learning environment.

The design emphasizes on building volume that can fit both adult and children through the inclination of the roof height. Providing an intimate space for the children and sufficient room for the adults to carry out activities with children. Lower ceiling involves adults to bend and crouch their body when approaching children, gives a sense of equality, comfort

and secure to the children.

The proposal involves ground and a mezzanine floor connects to the rooftop of the existing building. Lifted classroom and office to the mezzanine to maintain ground floor as the public space/multipurpose space for social and gathering like what it used to be to enrich the social sustainability of the neighbourhood.

Double volume ground floor at the corner of the secondary road can be modified into a proper stage whenever there is an occasion.

Utilizing the flat rooftop of the existing building beside the proposed site by linking it to the mezzanine/classroom. Rooftop is an exciting space by default which can be celebrated by children’s activities such as yoga or kite flying.

Access point/staircase to the mezzanine floor is gated from the extended existing security grill so the classroom and office space are fully secured.

The construction will not use any processed recycled plastic material but focusing on the simple solutions using common plastic waste such as bottle without the need of heavy machine or professional. So that it can be practised easily and widely by people of Tulum in the interest of reducing plastic wastage.

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3RD PLACE

Iván Barczuk, Matías Falero, Agustín Flamig, Adrián Mendez Posadas, Argentina The designed project and its implementation are born from the recognition of the existing situation and analyzes as a starting point the ways of living in the region, trying through its construction to complete volumetrically the existing corner and liberate the general floor of the same, providing almost total continuity of public space within the intervention.

The project is divided into three parts or functional blocks: (recreational, educational and service or support spaces), which are the ones that model the shape of the same and allow from its conception the rationalization of the material.

At the same time, the whole generation of the work is born from four factors of primordial importance: the generation of a basic module of design, the flexibility of space and uses, the social and cultural integration of the community during the construction process of the building and the material recycling, MODULATION The school is modulated according to the dimensions of the materials selected for its construction, with the objective of optimizing their use to the maximum, avoiding waste and reducing execution and transportation costs.

The construction system seeks the fastest assembly, capable of being carried out by non-specialized labor. For this reason, the

previous construction of structural porticos and standardized panels is proposed.

FLEXIBILITY Understanding the large number of activities carried out by “Friends of the Corner” and in order to allow an endless number of uses, complemented by multiple spatial sensations, the construction system and the typology adopted offer the possibility of making their environments more flexible, through the movement or opening of their modular panels.

SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION In order to integrate the community and society with the foundation, a construction system is designed in which the population close to the project is part of the creation and generation of each of the panels projected, thanks to its simplicity of assembly and manufacture.

RECYCLING Recycling being the main generation factor of all the work is sought from the beginning, integrate the largest amount of plastic bottles within each modular panel built but at the same time, are used recycled shredded plastic liners and chips plates of reconstituted wood.

The use of vertical and horizontal orchards, rainwater collection systems, panels and solar collectors complete the combo of sustainability that make the work a project with an almost zero ecological footprint.

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HONORABLE MENTION

Rufus Edmondson, Alexandria Anderson, Fabio Hendry London, United Kingdom HOT WIRE HOUSE is a high quality flexible work space that will continue to nurture creativity, wellness and sustainability within la Esquina community.

The scheme provides flexibility through its external form, flat types and adaptable modes of communal in-habitation. Three flexible rooms are formed: the GF classroom can be opened up to the interior courtyard which can be used closed or opened to the street and the 1F flexible use space can be partitioned for multiple events and is proposed as a covered protected terrace.

The building is constructed using recycled plastics throughout, engaging the community in the build process continuing the learning community approach that has flourished on the corner. Once HOTWIRE HOUSE is built, the legacy of inclusion and cradle to cradle making will continue to facilitate workshops of all kinds, particularly those using the open source machines and tools to fight plastic

pollution provided by PRECIOUS PLASTIC. We propose to explore how plastic recycling, wellness and creativity can move beyond an acupunctural intervention to become a greater presence within the city.

HOT WIRE HOUSE investigates the material potential of recycled plastic using the innovative HOTWIRE fabrication method by Studio Ilio to create plastic based structural elements. This process reuses waste PET from plastic bottles and nylon powder from SLS 3D printing, a material currently not recycled. The process starts by building a form in nichrome wire within a reusable timber formwork. The wire is positioned inside the box, filled with a mixture of sand and waste nylon powder.

A battery sends an electric current through the resistant nichrome wire, melting the surrounding nylon sand composite turning the transient into a structural solid, seamlessly binding the material to find its own organic, bone-like construction.

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HONORABLE MENTION

Matan Gal Tel Aviv, Israel The project raises environmental awareness towards aspects of recycling, ecology, and environmental protection, as an educational resource and a channel for transmitting messages to youth and the surrounding population as well.

First, in the materiality aspect - through a basic motif of recycling, which provides an initial classification between the materials that can be burned and those are not, a sequence of spaces was designed to demonstrate this tension of contrast. For this purpose, natural materials are used on the ground level, including floor and wooden infills in rough finishes, rockeries and natural local vegetation- which spontaneously ‘meets’ the canopy made by 7000 plastic bottles: on the one hand, the canopy is creating a spatial definition and a separation between the spaces; and on the other hand, the canopy spreads as a blanket and ties the hole volume under the same conceptual narrative.

In a climatic aspect – a compilation of bottles filled with an insulating material such as

sand or natural wool, are gaining a double skin façade, inexpensive and efficient about thermal insulation. A boxes strip in an outer offset is surrounding the building perimeter of the façade, use as a “light shelves” that break the direct sunlight and spread flush soft light into the interior spaces. In addition, those shelves are using as a platform for presenting the student’s artworks.

The morphology of the interior parabolas produce turbulence of air currents that emits heat loads in a passive way and contributes to the ventilation of the space.

The roof of the project includes two openingallows the growth of the natural trees which already planted in the plot territory. The trees canopies are protecting against direct sunlight, and on rainy days, water leaks through the skylights directly into the plantation beneath.

This patio is used as a multi-functional space and constitutes a connecting link between the rest of the building, including the classroom, the offices, the kitchen, and the services.

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HONORABLE MENTION

Alexander Salov, Tatiana Osetskaya, Yulia Seyfetdinova Moscow, Russia Our proposal is based on one of the most important principle of architecture - respect to the context that is surrounding architecture and nature. It is the main reason why we made our Tulum school proposal completely elegant and simple. However, this project is truly unique.

The main difficulties were with the project site. It is quite small and has a big tree in the center. Considering the above facts, we decided to create a simple volume with a hole for existing big tree, to which we have added few smaller trees.

The uniqueness of the architecture is expressed in a simple at first sight roof. But when you are looking at the roof from a certain angle inside or outside of the school, it reveals as a complex structure, which reminds a funnel.

Roof’s construction consists of two layers.

First layer is a steel reinforcement, lying in horizontal and vertical directions. The top layer of the roof consists of cut in half plastic bottles, stacked one on another. On the vertial direction of the reinforcement lie LED strip lights.

These LED strip lights glow at night, scattering light because of the texture of the bottles. It helps to create a soft “internal” glow, adds coziness to the surrounding and makes the

street more comfrotable.

This type of roof is an excellent solution for any time of the day: on sunny days it scatters light inside the school; in rainy time water flows down to the reservoirs installed along the perimeter of the funnel, creating a charming waterfall effect.

The school’s natural lighting is also carried out through the roof. We have liminated classical lighting through the windows in order to make the architecture as simple as possible.

Walls and overlap consists of recycled plastic panels of Mexican firm EcoDom. Due to a very small area of the site, we decided not to divide two main spaces: the classroom and the multipurpose space. However, the study area is visually separated from other spaces with the help of funnel, which prevents the entrance zone and the teacher zone from interacting with the learning zone.

We are convinced that our architectural proposal will make school visits more joyful every day. Children will not only learn, but also enjoy, play and communicate with friends.

Among the delicate and the same time bright color accents a sense of beauty from architecture will be grafted to children, and a study progress will become easier and more enjoyable.

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HONORABLE MENTION

Ulf Mejergren Stockholm, Sweden THE IDEA Mexico generates half a million tons of plastic waste that ends up in the ocean each year.

These are staggering numbers that urgently needs to be addressed.

This new school will manifest both the potential for recycled plastic bottles and for what a small community can achieve together with relatively small means. Actions that hopefully could inspire other people, organizations and communities.

A simple and economic wall system will make this possible, and to prove that anyone could do it, we suggest that the children that are attending this school will participate to sorne degree in creating it. This will also create a great sense of pride in the school they are going to.

The expressive and massive waves are meant to rise curiosity and offer an inspiring environment for the kids to thrive and evolve in, but it is also a symbolic gesture of where these bottles are taken from.

THE SYSTEM The system is made out of plastic bottles that are pierced through rebar that are erected in a concrete trench, looking almost like a tall fence at its first stage.

Plastic bottles with drilled holes in the bottom are pierced on each rebar, and then the rebar are bent into a desired position, forming waves.

Each reinforced unit can accommodate an extra !ayer ofbottles on each side, closing the

wave and making it solid.

The bottles close to the ground are filled with cement or sand to ensure a stability and each rebar is also attached to a wall ora slab in mid-air. The bottles are painted in a gradient ofblue-cyan-white.

The waves will be a great and a very fun effort for people to take part in and being a school with a focus on art, environment and participation, this could be a great way to express the mind-set and ambition that the school has pointed out.

BUDGET The structural system is created with local know-how; reinforced concrete pillars and concrete slabs as well as a simple concrete staircase. There are also extra concrete posts to frame doors and windows and block walls in the bathrooms. The simplicity is to save costs and to make it easy for local builders.

Based on the budget example that is set for a similar construction size in Tulum we can tell that the cost will not be higher than the set budget of 1.070.000 MXN. The structure is similar to an ordinary house, but instead of ordinary walls, there will be this wall system of rebar and plastic bottles.

Rebar is relatively cheap and plastic bottles are for free. The increase compared to the standard house will be mostly paint and more hours working on the wall system, but this job couldbe a great and fun workshop and thus cheap as well.

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HONORABLE MENTION

Gerardo Ramírez, Fernando Velasco, Nuria Ramírez Mexico City, Mexico We found a site where a large Tulipanero African tree with its foliage and flowers that extends as a collector of water, around it, kids learn and play creating it into the neighborhoods core and meeting point.

With the premise idea that learning should be a stimulating experience, the classroom becomes a great plastic bottle container allowing for an interesting play of light in its interior where one can be protected from the sun and rain.

Design strategies Sustainability The building is raised above the ground to preserve the existing condition of Los Amigos de la Esquina, a place that an organically became a space for the community where education, art and cooperation converge. By this idea the building creates a kind of shading space to the park without having to enclose the existing space, the project is composed in two areas, one allowing a more public program and a semipublic on the other.

Both park and multipurpose areas merge to create the public area where the lower space created by the cantilever structure could be enclosed to create a more intimate environment. Here the kids can perform in activities such as art, wellbeing, and environment, and perhaps take a selfie at the MOM I´M FINE signage.

The office is located on the upper level beside a recessed terrace, ideal for the creation of an orchard, this yields in the relationship between these two areas to be able to have a close relationship to nature.

A roof structure was developed in four segments where each one responds to issues of sustainability and to specific functions. The first is composed of photovoltaic solar panels, the second will be the rain water collector, the third a lightweight solid recycled plastic membrane roof system and the fourth a soil canal for vegetation to expand and grow weaving itself around the reused water bottle roof system.

Design driven architecture was deployed to add value to the environment creating a building as a great plastic container with the idea in mind of reuse and recycle used water bottles previously collected, the reduction of the carbon footprint by the use of the material as well as the plastic waste reduction becoming a reference in sustainable thinking, being conceptualized as a living entity thanks to the vegetation that surrounds it purifying the air and creating oxygen.

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HONORABLE MENTION

María Eugenia Chinchilla, Nancy Nayeli Moreno Mérida, México Tulum Plastic School is an after-school created to educate Mexican youth in three areas: art, wellness, and environment. The concept of the project is conceived as the meeting of two volumes, generators of a public plaza that carries on the essence of openness, generates community identity, sense of ownership and connectedness, and social interactions that will lead to a long-term integration. The project is designed to stimulate creativity and develop environmental consciousness through art walls, colors, textures, local materials, and the interaction with their natural surroundings, but also to serve as a beacon of ecological responsibility for present and future generations. The functional intention of the project is to take advantage of the natural resources and climate conditions of the site. The building is placed in a north-tosouth orientation to benefit from the prevailing winds and reduce heat from solar radiation, and it has a rain collection system with an underground well. The program is distributed in a two-story building in two volumes which represent the service areas (staircase, bathrooms, storage, offices) and schooling areas (multipurpose room, classroom) articulated with a light curtain façade that defines horizontal circulations. We believe in the power of words to achieve dreams.

Therefore, the staircase is designed as an open path with LADLE’s values on each step. The

multipurpose room, classroom, and art walls are aligned to the organization’s education models. The multipurpose room, located in the ground floor, has sliding translucent doors that allow the extension of activities outdoors in the plaza. The classroom, in the first floor, gives the students the opportunity to stay focused, reducing interaction with the exterior environment only through translucent awning windows.

The construction system proposed for this project is concrete frames with tridimensional galvanized steel sheet metal grid filled with empty recycled pet bottles for walls, and joist and beam slabs for the ceiling.

The colors, materials, and textures for the school include plastic bottle caps in corridor floors, walls with ecological mortar clay finish, which purifies the air and isolates heat, recycled plastic panels for furniture, yellow pigment in floors and walls, which represents warmth, energy, and creativity, windows and doors with wood frames with translucent polycarbonate sheets, which are heat and shock resistant, and wood frame panels with fixed pet bottle strips.

Finally, the project is designed to be constructed within local availability and resources, with the collaboration of the community in the process.

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HONORABLE MENTION

Huang Xiang, Liu Cong, Yan Hong Bing Beijing, China The project is designed to establish a connection with existing buildings and community traditions of the past, and to respond to the surrounding environment.

Decide to do that the building features were placed in the plot for the building, two trees remain in the center, so that form a central courtyard. Class, function rooms, offices and bathrooms and other rooms are built around the central courtyard.

The building mainly dominated by and wood structure, recgenerated plastic materials, recycled plastic materials, and some other materials play a vital role in the process of architectural design. The filler materials between the wooden frame make full use of regenerated plastics, and filling the recycled plastic bottles and the after processing plastic particles in the glass components, which bring portability and light transmittance of plastics into full play. Through the different

combinations and changes of the wall to form the interpenetrates of the courtyard and the room naturally. Teachers and students can also change the combination of the walls and change the functions of the building in the light of the needs of the scene.

In the design process of the project, which focused on the relationships between architecture and climate. In order to handle with the heat in the region, designing the building walls to be open type, that can enhance the convection of air. Also, in order to deal with the balance of rainy season and dry season, designing a rain garden and rain water collection wells in the central courtyard, that can accumulate rains in the rainy season, and water plants in the dry season and some other functions. Hope all teachers and students can experience the pleasure and cultural identity in this building.

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HONORABLE MENTION

Stefano Barile Fano, Italy Gemma is not only an architectural project but also a social project to create a new type of architecture and system that offers a growing opportunity for the community.

Even prior to Gemma’s physical existence, she will already be an active subject involving the community for workshops to build machines and the various architectural elements necessary for “her” life. In this way, Gemma will already play an important social role in the life of the community and beyond.

As mentioned above, the name chosen for this project is Gemma (meaning gem in English). As the name implies, it is a precious stone, especially when “cut and polished or engraved” (Oxford dictionary).

Gemma takes inspiration from the colors and classic architectural elements of the country while interpreting the shapes in a fun and light way, with a sense of humour. In this scenario, a window becomes an eye, a bench becomes a mouth, a canopy, hairs, and a whole façade becomes a smiling face saying: “Mom, I am fine”, in the hopes of bringing a touch of joy in people’s daily lives.

Gemma is composed of two constructive elements connected by a catwalk. The first,

a blue building/the face, consists of an office on the ground floor. There is also a meeting room, a restroom and a small storage room (for cleaning materials). On the roof is a multipurpose outdoor area covered by a plastic canopy. This area, called the cave, is made of recycled plastic bottles where some bottles are used as plant pots (will be a designated kids’ area).

The second building which is pink, is a twostory structure where a classroom and restrooms will be found on the first floor. It is possible to have a multipurpose space on the second floor with a balcony which is shaded by a recycled plastic bottles wall.

The catwalk connecting the two buildings is also shaded by two plastic bottles walls which are together using wires and a metal grid.

Below the path there is a small tribune where outdoor activities can be held. All the structural walls will be made of recycled plastic while the rounder walls on the ground floor will use a technique found in different areas of South America and Africa. This technique uses closed recycled plastic bottles filled with sand.

Gemma is ready to be your new social and smiley friend.

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HONORABLE MENTION

Ted Porter, Gong Chen, Noelia Linares, Jorg Thoene New York, USA The “Moving Image” Tulum Plastic School will be the dynamic gathering point for locals where they find education, meet people and enjoy the arts.

Movable partitions define the spaces in the school - the “moving images”. These partitions, composed of translucent recycled plastic bottles, can create a classroom, an exhibition space or an open-to-all public space.

daily use, the building will be an example of the possibilities for recycling. These multiple “moving image” panels will make the building appear as an evolving crystal, while the flexible functions of the facility will maximize its importance to the community.

By using recycled material in a creative, practical and affordable way, the school will show the world what architecture is capable of, and in the process create a local landmark.

By putting recycled plastics into important

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HONORABLE MENTION

Pablo García, Ricardo Arámbula, Macarena Rossetti Quintana Roo, Mexico The project seeks to generate an impact at urban and social scale, extending the “Ruta de la esperanza” to connect the marginalized areas of the town, giving color to the streets; generating more friendly spaces, giving value to public spaces through its use; and mainly preserve the social and public essence of the original project, generating awareness and community through participation.

The curved and sinuous forms are used to provide the space of fluidity, and give the feeling of containment, softness and dynamism related to childhood, as well as generate dynamic and natural routes, and generate a playful building in itself, a trigger of ideas for children, and some games are added as a tool to activate the urban space, and generate playful spots.

With this objective we created a building that reuses recyclable materials in a simple way to do it, so that the community can participate in the construction, raising awareness about sustainable development, learning new techniques, and resignifying garbage as something reusable and usable when re-inserted into new cycles. They are implemented in addition to plastic materials such as glass and tetrapak recovered to assist in the reduction of waste, and allowing to generate a low-cost building.

Given the context, bioclimatic techniques of passive design and active systems that absorb the heat of the area and generate fresh spaces are incorporated. The volume is arranged in such a way that it allows cross ventilation, and covering the sun from the west with the trees.

The materials used have a low thermal mass, allowing heat to not accumulate. On the flat roof, solar panels will be placed on a structure to generate shade on the roof, also allowing the flow of wind. Endemic vegetation is proposed that acts as a shock absorber of the radiation, and generates oxygen and shadow for the spaces. For us is very important maintain the materials locally, giving the essence of Tulum and not to forget the roots of where is the project located. Local materials will put in value the history and the context where the activities develop.

The building is conceived keeping the essence of the place: the public space as origin. For this purpose, the volume is raised while maintaining a public area on the ground floor that allows to continue interacting with the community and to blur the limits of the private space.

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architecture competition: the results selected proposals

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Claudia Altenius, Jenny Olausson, Bruno Gonçalves Göteborg, Sweden The plastic hub is a playful multipurpose building, constructed mainly in prefabricated plastic modules and recycled galvanized steel pipes. Its architectonical design is based on one of the most important examples of Yucatans vernacular architecture, the tablados. The proposal´s intention is to create a simplified interpretation of the tablados essential elements and more importantly to embrace the social transcendence of its construction. Just as in the tablados building process, the plastic hub´s construction and further development intends to involve the whole community. The hub will not only be a school but a dynamic transformable cell that works for and through the community. It is meant to be a place where everyone can meet, learn, teach and contribute to the focus areas wellness, environment and art.

The proposal includes two main structural elements: • A recycled galvanized steel pipe structure, which embraces the entire building and the courtyard. Its main function is to support the steel frames that serve the school with either shelter for rain and sun or one of the applied technical systems (see text below). It also provides the school with an interactive

multipurpose space that can be transformed and used as a playground, for art and scenography installations, dividing screens, gardening, etc.

• Functional cubes. They contain the rest of the school´s program and are constructed in a modular system known as EcoDom (http:// en.ecodom.mx). EcoDom is an affordable, resistant, isolating and easy to build Mexican product conformed by crushed plastic, steel frames and concrete. The modules can be delivered or fabricated on site, the building can be assembled either by the company or by locals after a short training period.

Besides the program above, our proposal includes two extra spaces: • Workshop. The workshop is a place where kids can practice artistical activities, learn to cook healthy food, produce their own plastic objects (see information below) and learn more about material recycling.

• Library. Located on the second floor, it is meant to be a reading corner and a sculptural playground. Through the library it is also possible to get to a high viewpoint on the roof.

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Liz Graves Phoenix, AZ, USA Building upon the roots of collaboration organically seeded at La Esquina, TPS+ seeks to further integrate the children of Tulum, the founding organizations and the natural ecosystem into a cooperative network of locally sustained and globally linked artistic innovation, active wellness and environmental stewardship. Through a modular system of locally designed, locally made and locally assembled perforated blocks, the children of Tulum and their guides create a glowing facade to a communal space that encapsulates a local heritage of craft and cultural empwerment.

Made from recycled plastic and chukum sealed limestone plaster, each block integrates an age-old history of tectonic assembly and gives voice to the contemporary indigenous keepers of an extraordinary place. The mosaic curtain of the community center is the skin that binds the people and the common space which sustains a collective growth.

By taking part in the design, construction and maintenance of their community center from the ground up, the children of Tulum are guided and empowered to learn and to grow.

The children of Tulum construct and complete the inheritance which binds their community

into one living and evolving culture.

By designing a modular system of construction that integrates the aesthetic and craftwork of the local population, TPS+ maintains a continuity of indigenous empwerment in the face of an ever more globalized and gentrified world Through participation, the children of Tulum steer the course of disclosure within their community and learn to take part in and guide the focus of future development. TPS is a piece of art, wellness and environment and community. Through presence, education and inclusion, TPS+ links the site, the people and the organizations which it serves into one web of mutually empowered inspiration, commitment and growth.

TPS+ is the built embodiment of the people of Tulum. Its development reflects the transformation of its community on a world stage. Its facade mirrors the formative imagination of its children. Each perforated brick is designed and made by small hands and guided toward a greater patchwork tapestry that builds the story of its people. TPS+ is the glowing beacon of the ever-emergent heritage of Tulum and its people.

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Jorge Mancilla Mexico City, Mexico “Originality consists in the return to the origin; thus, original is that which returns to the simplicity of the first solutions.” - Antonio Gaudi.

The architectural intention pretends to recognize and celebrate the history and experiences of “Los Amigos de la Esquina” by proposing a sibling building that is born in a different time but with the same ideals and values; here the school and office space will be placed due to its purpose similarity with the residences.

However, like all siblings, they cannot be the same, but they can find common ground where they partake, play, and learn together from each other. A box is set to have this encounter of personalities; the simplicity of the geometry contrasts with the complexity of what will happen inside. Regarding water closets, sinks, and foot washer; its space its located next to the present elevated water tank. Proposed apertures strategically set as low as possible are proposed to let the fresh air in the room while the high apertures are set to allow the hot air to go out. The angular geometry of the new roofs response to the rain presented between April and September while the direction of its angles leads it to a proposed water collector next to the existing

elevated water tank and proposed service area. Location of solar panels answers to the site orientation, being the south side the best place to take advantage of solar power at the existing building due to its flat roof condition and proximity to the current electrical system.

The proposal considers that using an easy to ensemble and understand system is critical for the success of this project; this is why we recommend a unique module for walls and roofs formed by stacked plastic bottles concealed inside chicken wire attached to a rod truss. The main structure considers concrete framing since the neighbor constructions are commonly built with this system, making it feasible and economically effective to the project.

Since the project requires a big empty canvas for the expression of its sponsors and local presence in its exterior, the interior gesture intends to express its materiality through exposed walls with bottle caps flooring, lighting fixtures and furniture made by compacted plastic.

The Tulum plastic school will become a community milestone and a cultural landmark from and for everyone in the world but mainly impacting the lives of its students.

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Jorge Luis Rodriguez Gonzalez QuerĂŠtaro, Mexico 5670 PET bottles will be the eco-bricks that the community would be able to use for the creation of this new ecological space destined for education, art and social cohesion. The architectural program requested by LADLE is completed in 2 volumetric blocks, and complementing to the requested spaces, we propose implementing an urban garden for students and an outdoor cinema in the central garden which divides both volumetric blocks, on the ground floor the central garden seats beside a terrace that is in the corner of the plot and its intention is to be a space for workshops and outdoor meetings, and also

will provide a roof on sunny or rainy days to the people walking by in that area and in this way, generate a place for community to come together.

Mural paintings facing the 2 streets are framed by a turquoise construction, which resembles to the deepest sea or the quetzal feathers, are sustained by a metal structure to permanently ensure the building against inclement weather.

Gardens full of vegetation and life create this space which has the intention of fomenting culture and environment preservation.

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Surya Ali Oetomo, Qi Zhou, Hui Long Cai, Rong Hui Huang Shanghai, China 1. The concept of design: The building is shaped like a scattering of plastic bottles, also like scattered crayons.

Children can feel the sunshine and stars through the skylight. The different sizes of spaces are filled with the pure dreams of Tulum children. Recyclable Polycarbonate and steel structures are used to enhance the indoor and outdoor permeability.

2. The floor plan: Classrooms and multifunctional rooms make semi open space around the inner courtyard, and other functional spaces combine with the original solid wall layout.

3. The use of recycled plastics The overall structure: steel frame, precast concrete floor slabs and wall.

The ground: color plastic garbage is recycled and grinded to make colorful floor bricks.

The wall: Part of the walls along the street are made of recycled plastic bottles to form a rainwater collection system. Part of the walls facing the central courtyard are made of sunshine panels formed by recycled plastic, which make the space brighter.

The roof: The roof is covered with a Polycarbonate mask on the steel keel to form a light and spacious space with Mexican style.

4. Rainwater recovery system Rainwater is collected using the walls of recycled plastic bottles in rainy days. These collected rainwater can be used for many purposes, such as watering plants and flushing toilets . Empty bottles can be put back on the walls again after using.

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Ruben Rodriguez, Omar Rodriguez, Marisol Dorantes, Martha Serrano Mexico City, Mexico Our design proposal was based on the site characteristics and its particularities, such as weather, vegetation, winds and it surroundings.

On one hand, the incorporation of recycled plastic in the project is a key component of the materials used for construction. For example, 20 L water containers, crushed pet bottles, and others filled with sand are part of the proposal. On the other hand, a fundamental part of the design is found in the walls which are made with Sargassum, which today represent an environmental problem.

Specifically, Sargassum is used as both, a construction material aggregate as well as for decorative purposes taking advantage of its natural warm colors.

These elements (plastic and sargassum) were transformed into slabs, walls and platforms.

The main roof of the project is composed of 20L decapitated water containers within a reticular slab with small light-armed beams, which allows natural light to pass through its structure.

A single slab with a traditional constructive system “Vigueta y bovedilla” is proposed for the office area, partly because it’s a small area to be covered, and also because of the weight it will receive.

Taking into consideration that the rainy season is from July through October, the ceilings of the project have a slope of 5% to easily guide the water to an underground water tank, which will eventually be filtered and used for toilets and irrigation. .

We are preserving the original access as the main administrative entrance of the center.

We also propose to remove a couple of preexisting doors in order to guide the entrance to a single entrance.

On the entrance area we build the staircase that will give access to the new offices and administrative area. We also propose the construction of an orchard in the ceiling of the studios which is easily accessible with the new staircase.

The classroom and multipurpose room are projected under a single space, flexible enough for the capacity and future needs, hence the strategic location next to the patio, to continue offering this capacity of extension.

Another volume was built in the corner for its function and also as a design strategy, it was thought that the patio should be contained, for the safety of the children and also give a character and meaning to the name of the project “The friends of the corner”. This volume is separated from the main corridor to allow access through the secondary street, never turning its back on any front. Here the pantry and bathrooms for children are housed, those for adults are proposed on the first floornext to the administrative section. It is in this “corner” where it is proposed to make the mural of the artist.

The heart of the project is the area that connects all of them: the patio, in which we preserve the main tree and as an oasis or water mirror we place the foot shower, imagining it as a small wetland where children can wash their feet before entering into any space.

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Tatiana Sánchez Botero, Alejandro López Isaza, Carlos Esteban Arias Giraldo, Jean Maillcons González Pereira, Colombia Sharing the dream of LOS AMIGOS DE LA ESQUINA and the NGO MOM I’M FINE of devising a school where art, well-being and sustainability are the fundamental pillar of training, our group of architects puts all their creativity into the design of a space created from and for the versatility of the users.

This is how the school Project “LOS AMIGOS DE LA ESQUINA” seeks to generate different environments inside of the spaces from a system of movable panels that make each volume a number of spatial possibilities, responding to the diversity of activities that develop with the community. the project form highlights elements of Mexican architecture such as the garden, the wall and the use of color. The garden as an element that maintains the presence of nature in the project; the thick walls that separate the private spaces of the public; and the color present in all the elements of the project and the idea of a graffiti.

In its spatial conformation, the project seeks to preserve the relation of the corner, generating a direct connection of the spaces designed for the activity of the school with the immediate surroundings and the cinema under the stars,

allowing this to remain the open corner, an active part of the dynamics of the place.

For sustainability issues, the project contributes to the conservation of the planet with the highest possible use of recycled plastic, using it in constructive elements such as floors and walls, and architectural elements such as the enclosing panels, ceiling and solar protection screen all of this built by the community The modulation in the walls of Adobe material contributes to the generation of the least possible waste on site and the use of the metal structure to a clean construction, light and easy to maintain.

The effects of climate are counteracted by elements such as the screen woven in plastic, that also protects of the sun and the rain, allowing cross ventilation in the Project generating comfort inside the spaces.

On the other hand, the use of solar panels on the roof and a rainwater collection system to supply the project are an important commitment to the sustainability of the school, as well the gardens as part of their environmental education.

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Yongpeng Liu Shanghai, China The project discusses the best format of open air venue for the community school, by three steps.

01 - Setting the classroom, office and meeting room on the second level to maximize the open playground on the ground level for multi purpose use.

02 - I ntroducing an amphitheater on the ground level to strengthen its extended meaning of arts, performance and entertainment.

03 - A series of urban furnitures are set at the boundary to provide the extra contribution for the community.

AMPHITHEATER On the ground level, a ring of steps along with restrooms, sink, foot shower, storage rooms are set at the boundary of the site, so that left the center completely free for any possible activities. All these facilities work together as an amphitheater, cre ating an organic social space where students and tutors could conduct any individual or team works.

URBAN FURNITURE At the same time, the lifted steps create the protection for the students from the outside distractions as well as serve as an urban furn iture for the community, offering seat, tap water, daylight shading and night illumination.

ENERGY SELF - SUFFICIENT Around the boundary of “amphitheater�, there

is a biofilter, which collects rainwater from the roof, filtering it through settling and phyto processes. Once filter ed, rainwater is then gathered in storage tanks beneath the steps, and then been pumped to an open tap for the community use. Also, electricity for the LED lighting system as well as for the water pump is provided by the solar panels on the roof, making th e whole system entirely energy self sufficient.

PLASTIC BOTTLES Base on the physical property and chemical limitation of plastic bottle, an construction approach that has been proven widely in Africa would be adopted in this project.

The recycled plastic bottles could replace traditional bricks, becoming a new wall filling material, once they filled with clay and arrange in particular order with the help of steel net binding. This new filling material could generate a particular texture effect after the exterior paint finished, and even bring random surprise, if different sizes bottles deliberately arranged without any preset rules.

Not only does this scheme reuse the recycled plastic bottles, but also reduce the air pollution from the firing bricks, and at the same time, this cost efficient approach brings an alternative option to replace the traditional rigid bricks, which has a great potential to be adopted globally.

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Omar Vergara Mexico City, Mexico The importance of participation in the construction of a common welfare, not only lies in the solution of a problem or in improving certain conditions that involve everyone, but in the feeling of union and belonging that is generated in the participants. By sharing a common goal, everyone comes together to achieve an objective that generates an impact, not only for the participants but for many other people either directly or indirectly.

Participation allows that during the process that is carried out in the solution of a common point, the people involved are more empathetic with the other, allows greater understanding towards the different ways of thinking and living, as well as a greater awareness of the needs of others.

We believe that participation is the essence of “The Friends of the corner�, that is why our architectural proposal seeks to detonate this concept in the realization of the project.

Participation begins with the collection of plastic bottles, which are a predominantly pollution problem. These bottles have a color effect that is achieved thanks to the filling of water and dye, an activity in which participation is again required. The bottles

will be contained in a module made with PTR frames and cyclonic mesh, being visible from the outside. The water achieves an insulating effect of sound towards the interior, and the use of the cyclonic mesh, allows the natural ventilation.

The distribution of the volumes is based on the importance of the corner, it is where the most activities are carried out, it is a meeting and integration point; The corner also allows everyone to have direct access from both sides of the street, an open space in which everyone is welcome.

The proposal uses the already built and merges it with the new with the intention of optimizing the spaces and creating a concordance between the three volumes. In two floors, the architectural program requested is distributed, adding an orchard, a games room and a shop that helps economically manage the school; There are semi-open multidisciplinary spaces with the intention of encouraging recreational activities for children. In these spaces the plastic and its colors generate textures in the interior, that together with the light, generate diverse visual experiences.

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Szymon Chwazik, Aleksandra Rusin Warsaw, Poland Considering global plastic problem, we tried to approach this project not with the most sophisticated, fancy design, but with reasonable building, connected with local traditions, that can be treated as a role model for all necessitious societies, how to cure the need for new homes all over the world.

The design of school was strictly connected to mexican adobe houses, but using contemporary and cheap material: plastic. The idea was to design a building that is speaking with the same language as surroundings, but using plastic as a main constructional material. Very thick and resistant walls, made with bottles filled with plastic scraps, coated with clay are great for conditioning air and establishing proper temperature inside the building. The courtyard is very important space in this project, not only extending both rooms, but also helping to ventilate and cool the building. Most of the building program is located on the ground floor- classroom and multipurpose space opened to the courtyard.

Near crossroad we located tower, that consists of small office with meeting room, and creates a landmark in the street with MOM I’M FINE logo on it. What’s more on the top of the tower we have located solar panels to increase

efficiency of this system.

For the construction of the building, we tried to make it as simple as it can be. The goal was to involve kids and local community in this process, showing them how they can treat and manage plastic wastes, and how many capabilities can plastic waste give. All off the design can be made by local workers, but the idea of children helping to build their place was very important.

Due to global environmental problem, we tried to lower buildings energy consumption, by using thick walls and proper ventilation. The cascade arrangement of building solids, helps to water plants and grass. On the coutryard is located a reservoir, to collect rain water.

Gardens are full of plants, to maximize the amount of vegetation in the building, teaching kids how to take care and responsibility about surrounding world.

The building proposal was design to be simple, understandable, flexible for changes and made up for climate. We believe that architecture, based on local traditions, language and form is a proper way to deal with housing problem.

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Saifa Sammana Bangkok, Thailand Tulum, the place with a rich historical background, diverse ecosystem and we know as one of the most beautiful places to visit.

Every year, lots of people around the world come to appreciate this beautiful nature. More consumption causing problems as we know, one of them is the plastic waste pollution that occurs not just in Tulum but in our entire world. And how do we solve it?

To solve the problems of the world, we need to start with ourselves. Tulum Plastic School is a starting point to solve this plastic waste pollution problem by instilling in children “love” in nature. Beginning with love, then they’d wanted to protect, preserve and restore it. About the plastic waste problem, the children will learn how to reuse, recycle and repurpose them. And when the children understand, then they spread it out into the community. Then, Tulum will change. People also love nature and are aware of the problem.

People who come to Tulum Spread out. Then the world will change. Like Butterfly Effect, starting with only a few children then can make great changes to the world. That day, nature will be complete again.

Tulum Plastic School is a starting point for children to spread out the love. To affect the world, we had to start by making a difference.

Change people’s idea of plastic waste. Stop seeing that it is worthless. We need to use it for maximum benefit according to its life. Most people think that it is cumbersome to recycle.

Shows the possible easy way to do it in our daily lives.

Change children’s thought that learning is not only in the classroom, but unlimited; anywhere and anytime they want. Creating space where the children could learn from nature and their social friend.

Change people’s minds: NATURE, PLASTIC WASTE, and KIDS can live together by relying on. Clearly, show to the world through the architecture of the school. Structure from natural materials like wood and clay could be supported by a plastic wall.

When the children love and understand, they start changing that effect to the Tulum community. And then, the people in Tulum changes. Also the world, people love nature and learn to use plastic in their daily lives.

At the same time, we need to restore natural ecological. One day, nature turns to complete and plastics gone. It’s the day Tulum Plastic School completely success.

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Beidi Zhan, Renbo Zhao, Siqi Yang, Can Zhang New York, United States of America Our goal for the plastic art school is to create a natural ,quiet and comfortable but also very engaging educational space for the kids here in Tulum. To achieve this goal we try to introduce enveloping and infiltrating spacial elements to the existing school, as well as a way of involving kids in the construction.

The waste of plastic could really be a pain so we try to turn this frown of the environment upside down by recycling them and re-using them as a crucial part in the walls. The bottles will be cleaned and carefully selected by their sizes to compensate different modules. The kids could take parts in the construction as these bottles need to be stuffed with local mud tightly before they go in and lined up for the concrete schmear. They could really experience the joy of building something for themselves.

surrounding the tree naturally dividing the site into 2 separate but visually connected parts where the teachers/volunteers and the kids can have one of their own. The west wing where teacher’s office resides is connected to the existing building so the visiting artists and teachers can have a direct access to the school. The east wing is a multi-purposed space where it can be used as a normal classroom or as the desks and chairs can be easily stored, a entertainment room, or they could have the folded window doors all open for a direct connection with courtyard and practice yoga. The smaller tree on the site is relocated to the west wing and we created a smaller courtyard around it which is also connected to the main courtyard. There is also a continuous water feature at the back which includes a full length sink behind the classroom and a little pond for kids to wash their feet.

The strategy is also very much about the existing tree on the site, we created a courtyard

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Guillermo Ganem Lases, José Roberto Garcia Chavez Mexico City, Mexico The project has two constructions inspired by the geometry of the Mayan architecture; a central open-air atrium with existing trees was designed as the main path, such as the Tulum archaeological zone.

The construction on the eastern side has a multipurpose room and a vertical garden with views and access to the main atrium. On the same side, a vertical garden integrates the construction, contributing to minimize the internal heat gains.

The vertical garden was designed on a ramp built with recycled plastic boxes, divided into three areas, and go up to the upper floor on the western side. An important feature is the mural with the theme of “THE MAYAN CULTURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT”, that surrounds the building and it can be seen from the outside and when ascending through the farming area.

On the ground floor of the western side, there are offices in the south and north connected with the service area. The office has views and access to the main atrium. The service area contains the foot washer, drinking fountains, sink area, material storage, and cleaning warehouse, access to the existing construction and a service yard with a compost production

area and access to the roof through a service ladder. It has access to the main patio providing daylighting and natural ventilation to supply hygrothermal comfort conditions for the occupants and to reduce energy consumption for air conditioning. There are also toilets in the service patio on the northern side.

On the western upper floor of the construction there is a classroom with views to the atrium and has access through the ramp of the farming area. In this building, the logo “MOM I’M FINE” is projected with shadows on the wall facing south, and it was designed with a sundial, inspired by the Mayan outstanding knowledge of the solar movement and their cosmogonic vision.

Each space was designed to activate the feelings and perceptions of the children. For example, when walking through the gravel in the atrium, there is a sound sensibility as well as a vivid sensation when ascending the ramp to the vertical garden viewing the dynamic shading projections of the trees. The walls and roofs of the buildings were designed with a sustainable approach using recycled plastic pet, constructed with local labour, while providing hygrothermal comfort to the occupants with a harmonious relationship with the local warm humid climate.

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Kenny Chan, Jinhui Huang, Cong Chen, Zhaoli Lin Xiamen, China Spirit Room seeks to create an atmospheric, yet purpose-built social space for the community of Tulum by using the principles of sustainable low-tech construction, biophilic design and community engagement.

Urbanistically, La Esquina Tulum is reshaped from an empty lot into a sociable street corner – a meeting spot – to be shared by the kids and adults from the neighborhood. While designed to be open to both faces of the streets, the repositioned native trees form a new diagonal axis that welcome visitors to step out of the sidewalk, enter the multi-purpose tree canopy and enjoy a public foot shower during a scorching hot day before class begins.

In response to the sheer breadth of classes offered by the various LADLE collaborators and teachers, we eschewed the undermining confines of a conventional classroom arrangement to propose an open-air, yet lightly sheltered big-box living room. We designed movable wall modules out of empty plastic bottles that can be transported by adults and kids alike, and affixed to the ground by filling it with water. They serve to repartition the big-box classroom according to the needs of the mentors, whether it be a more traditional desk-chair classroom, a circular arrangement under the tree canopy, a big workshop open

to the community, or an evening screening of movies. These moving wall modules will also serve as the working canvas for Eduardo Kobra’s mural.

As the eastern winds breeze through the nearly wall-less spaces, the children and mentors are shaded by a kaleidoscopic colored roof made of 2-L soda bottle cutouts, arranged as a transparent tiled roof. Colorful light beams are then filtered by a suspended mesh of vine canopies whose resulting shadows evoke the atmosphere of a glittering forest in an urban setting. During the wet season, the waterproof sloped roof channels rainwater to be gravityfiltered by a vertical floral wall on the western façade before being re-used in the sinks.

In sum, Spirit Room demonstrates the possibility of an economic and environmentallysensitive approach to the redesign of upcycled plastics. Aside from the concrete armature, the project effectively synthesizes many upcycling techniques developed by the DIY community worldwide into an integrated building system. The low learning-curve ensures that the school can be built, modified and maintained by the community of Tulum, for its future’s sake.

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Hong Ching Lee, Tsz Shing Liu Hong Kong, Hong Kong The school is composed of two volumes, one for education and the other for administration, enclosed inbetween courtyards to preserve the existing trees. Viewing from the exterior, the white painted facade extends the existing fabric of the school with its corner entrance facing the road junction to welcome children from both sides. The white facade serves as a canvas for children’s mural and display of artworks.

The contrast between the solid facade and transparent internal space of the school is attained with the use of a ceiling system combining horizontal rooflight and recycled plastic bottles. Compared with vertical openings, the horizontal rooflight admits more daylight and casts the light over a space in a more uniform manner. The glare of direct sunlight is thereby diffused and controlled by the slightly tinted yet translucent plastic bottles. As you step into the school, the hanging plastic bottles, as if a chandelier, shimmer and gently pour light onto the white wall. Ambling

along the corridor will slowly reveal the courtyard and unfold the space in parallax of changing perspectives.

Children are then directed to the classroom through the pivoting doors. The plastic bottles are morphed into a smoothly wavering surface in the classroom, demarcating the classroom from the corridor that has a constant ceiling height. Light strikes on the plastic bottles, diffuses and hits the wall, where the drawings of children are displayed. The overall ambience is minimal and pure, emphasising on the interaction between children and their artwork.

In terms of sustainability, recycled plastic bottles are adopted as a construction material.

The assembly process of the roof with bottles can also potentially be a collective activity for the community and the school, which may enhance the social cohesion within the neighbourhood.

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Ciro Diaz, Morhia Gifford Toronto, Canada The school is designed as an adaptable space for the community. It is proposed to integrate its enclosed spaced with the public by pivoting its wall panels to fully open, creating moments of expansion and compression.

The adaptability, the location of the existing trees, the arc of the sun and the program are the main principals that drive the interior layout. The program is configured into three distinctive spaces, organized linearly around a central courtyard. The office, the meeting room and the restrooms are located at the east side of the site as the most private areas capturing the morning light. The learning space is located to the west of the site, containing bench tables for approximately 20 kids, shelves and storage where kids can keep their art and wellness materials, and a 3mx3m projector. The engaging spaces are located in the middle of the building. These are the courtyard at the south side of the site, and the multipurpose space at the north side, facing the street. The courtyard is proposed to serve as a green outdoor circulating space interconnecting the private with the learning area, keeping the existing trees intact, where

the greenery contrasts with the quaint mural on the existing concrete wall at the property line. The multipurpose room can change based on how the space is being used. This space is fluid and flexible without furniture and it can be used for wellness activities, expansion of the classroom and it fully opens to allow community events.

The structure is elevated from the ground and framed with wooden posts and beams. The proposed walls are modular panels made of compressed plastic contained in between two polycarbonate sheets that are cladded with wood slats to diffuse the light, creating interesting shadows and colors. These modular panels are easy to maintain, it can be assembled and dissembled without affecting the site. All the wood is locally sourced and any plastic can be recycled. The assembly of the panels and wooden structure is simple requiring minimal expert labor.

The roof has overhangs to project enough shadows for cooling. Rainwater is collected to be distributed to the restrooms as greywater.

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Damon Lee Hong Kong, Hong Kong Lightness, spacious and nature are major factors of the design. The building mass wraps round the existing tree with the other being replanted resulting in a creation of a natural screen where activities from the Multipurpose space can extend to the outdoors. With recycling, specifically plastic bottles, being the main objective the idea of recycling wooden pallets into outdoor and indoor furniture is inexpensive.

The proposal of building walls and columns constructed from a local Mexican company Ecodom, specializes in constructing homes using recycled plastic. With the large floor to ceiling windows made from double-walled transparent corrugated sheets hold bottles which creates privacy and the solid walls to

be constructed and finished as normal for a typical home.

On the first floor holds the school where the idea of being within nature has inspired the exterior to be cladded in light plywood also reflecting into the interior. Skylight windows to the north allows maximum soft-light creating a soft and warm atmosphere with the existing tree pushing against the window allows the student to study the changes during the seasons. Pitched roof allows rainwater to be collected and solar panels facing the south allows the building to be self-sufficient.

With nature being heavily involved a garden, used by the students in order to learn the importance of protecting the environment by recycling.

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Marisela Herrera, Cristian Araya CuricĂł, Chile LADLE develops multiple community activities on the place. The plot has the role of a public park for meetings, learning and entertainment for neighbors. Turning this into our idea of architectural design: A patio open to the community.

We propose the materialization of an interior patio, open to the community. Surrounded by the architectural program, creating a safe space for the development of children’s activities. A green heart for the neighborhood.

FUNCTION AND ORGANIZATION The school is organized from its center, the articulating patio, a green heart covered by a plastic veil and surrounded by the architectural program.

The north facade is a permeable face configured only by flooring and ceiling creating access to the green heart, flexible use of space and open to the community.

Eastward is the main volume that contains the classroom and the multipurpose space. To the north, a high-enclosed volume functions as a container for the utility areas; above that is the administrative area with access from the hidden courtyard behind the large mural.

All the community areas have been arranged on the ground floor, facilitating accessibility and preventing accidents to children.

MATERIALITY AND REUSE OF PLASTIC The reused plastic is the protagonist of the

materiality of the project. The construction by means of bottles and fruit boxes on the floor, wall and ceiling facilitates self-construction in a communal way. The roof structure is projected in wood, an easily obtained and construction material; the two level volume is projected in brick, a technique widely used in the area.

The project considers the use of 6047 plastic bottles that will be collected and reused by the community. This number is the one that gives name to the proposal.

LANDSCAPING AND EXTERIORS The existing trees are kept creating a green heart and at their feet are relocated the more than one hundred plants that LADLE has.

At the perimeter of the main volume a green wall is proposed, generating a community garden.

In order to facilitate the sustainability of the green areas, a large seat has been designed, which accumulates the rainwater collected by the roof and is used for irrigation.

SUSTAINABILITY AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY The basis of the architectural project is the construction with reused materials. Using them with an intelligent design by means of passive ventilation and cooling techniques for thermal comfort. Reuse of rainwater for irrigation and electricity generation with photovoltaic panels.

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AubĂŠry de Bretteville Santiago, Chile Concept. The project is based on a simple but strong idea: to give the building maximum flexibility in order to be able to meet the various expectations as well as possible.

Thus, the structure of the building develops both around the idea of intimacy and also of openness to the public.

This concept is directly reflected in the structure and materiality of the project. An L-shaped building closes the plot by creating a patio. The building is divided into two elements: a first element built of rammed earth that offers this intimacy and a second element made of wood that allows transparency and openness to the public space. In this way, the school can adapt its functioning according to needs.

Plastic and construction. A global strategy on plastics is implemented from the beginning of the project. The objective is to have 12 collection points spread throughout the eastern city on the beaches to collect enough plastic for the construction of the project. This collection phase also allows for awareness and information on the future school. The building is composed of a rammed earth part and a part with a wooden structure. In each part, the plastic has a function.

Following this collection, we distinguish 3 types of waste. Plastic bottles of 1.5 or 2 litres; 0.5 litre bottles and any other plastic residue.

The 1.5 or 2 litre bottles allow the construction of adobe walls. The small bottles allow the

construction of the windows of the multipurpose room. Bottle caps are used to make roof tiles. A small quantity of the 2-litre bottles is kept to create a solar panel to supply hot water to the building.

Sustainable. Sustainable materials are used to built the school: Rammed earth walls, wooden structure, plastic recycled‌ This strategy also able a cheap construction. A bioclimatic strategy is also being implemented with a sunlight study and work on rainwater harvesting. Solar panels placed on the roof of the existing building provide power to the school.

Flexibility. The school is designed to optimize space and offer maximum flexibility. The multi-purpose room can be closed for more privacy or open to provide a large space. The classroom is also optimized for about twenty students. The tables can be stored in the window openings to provide additional space, such as a second multi-purpose room.

The school aims to be a place that meets the needs of all through its flexibility and allows it to transmit its vision on future issues. The use of plastic in the construction of the building is very present but remains visible only in the most strategic part of the project in order to highlight the plastic problem currently facing Mexico and the world in general.

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Norman Wei, Kevin Kun Ding Auckland, New Zealand While plastics is creating tremendous environmental issues globally, its lightness and flexibility are uniquely charming, demonstrating architectural opportunities cannot be paralleled by conventional building materials. The proposed school design is a celebration of the unique properties of plastics, creating an educational facility that is playful and flexible by utilising recycled plastics, it is a collection of spaces full of sunlight and colors.

Programmes Extending from the existing building site, the school design retains the openness of the current site and transforms it into a sheltered courtyard space, providing climate protection and some degree of privacy. The ground floor of the proposed building is to be semi-open without clear distinction between interior and exterior, offering a curious cave-life experience to the children. Two structures are erected on the two sides of the courtyard containing office and classroom spaces that are naturally lit and ventilated. The collective of spaces enables children and teachers to form an open community without clear boundaries or enclosures, optimising collaborative learning while embracing the tropical climate of Tulum.

Plastics A brick-like module made of recycled plastics repetitively used in the building for various purposes. Plastics are recycled from the

coast and the surrounding community – going through a series of shredding, compressing, melting and re-moulding. The method is prototyped and proven simple and feasible through a series of experiments with daily kitchen equipment. These modules are robust and durable while providing a vivid visual effect. Although not structural, the modules are extensively applied in the building system, acting as elements of external envelope, canopy and furniture. Combining with a lightweight timber frame structure and a layer of Polycarbonate sheets, it becomes the genesis of a building that is both lightweight and light-filled. Sunlight would stream through those double diagonal openings and project shadow inside , meandering through space as time shifts.

Construction The school is designed with intention to be easily constructed. The only key trade skills required are the construction of a curved blockwall (a combination of concrete block and plastic block), a double storey timber frame structure and the plumbing. The rest of the building can be made with help from volunteers and the local communities.

The plastic remoulding is the key of this community-build project, which requires the plastics to be cleaned and assorted systematically before being shredded and heated.

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Sebastian Ramirez, Seba RamĂ­rez, Pato MuĂąoz Santiago, Chile There are two main constraints that make up the proposal: -Place all construction and programmatic requirements on the ground floor.

-Keep free spaces around trees.

Both self-requirements contradict each other due to the lack of free space and the attempt to maintain a minimum of measures for each of the programmes.This is the challenge of the project: to achieve a symbiosis between the open spaces and the associated programs, maintaining an image of public place for and

by Tulum.

The answer is to put order and share; that is, to regulate the soil and to establish connections between programs. It’s understood that each activity do not happen at the same time and that. On the other hand, they must also be prepared for a great event. In this way, flexibility naturally flourishes within observations.

The proposal grants order, defining a hard / static zone, which is in charge of absorbing those programs that possess immovable installations (restrooms, kitchenette, Both storage 1 and 2 office and foot shower).Also should not necessarily be open to the public

road.

The proposal gives dynamism (lawlessness) manifested in modular and mobile constructions that allow the appearance of multiple spaces. Modules (4) come together, separate, can set up a classroom (2 modules), a multipurpose space (2-4 modules), a meeting room (1 module) and anything that can add value and use to place. They can even take to the streets and create an event on a city scale. These modules are worked in a flexible way, allowing through sliding frames of plastic bottles, open, semi open and closed spaces.

The great value is this flexibility: in the referential image a scene is created in which a theatre performance happens while in the classroom there is an art session.

The entire complex, subject to the ground and the public space, is unified with a cover of steel and polycarbonate that binds the new construction with the original one. The polycarbonate possibility to curve allows to collect rain water and produce plant species that refresh the volumetric of complex, ready for use in the future of its fifth facade. On the polycarbonate sits a metal mesh screen that allows light to pass through and filter the water.

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Tasos Theodorakakis, Giorgio Piscitelli London, United Kingdom The Plastic Ground is a school where children learn how to interact, live with others, share things, respect their surroundings and thus develop a sense of social values and behavior.

Dealing with plastic will be one of the key activities within the school to grow awareness among the kids since childhood.

In order to deal with the plastic pollution, everyone needs to accept its presence as a mass of material. Recycling is still a process which involves waste of energy. We cannot erase the plastic mass that has already been produced. A more honest approach would rather be to dispose plastic in a different point of waste.

The vision is transforming the entire school plot into a plastic bottle disposal area for the city. The plastic landscape becomes the playground of the school and invites the children to reuse the bottles. Facilities are floating above the “plastic ocean�.

The bottles have being covered with a net that acts as a membrane and holds the disposal in place while forming an artificial movable ground which the children can interact with.

As the disposal of plastic increases within the city, the courtyard is being reshaped.

The programme of the school is organized in a two-storey volume located towards the side of the existing facilities. The classroom is located on the top floor while a multi-function space and its services are placed at the ground level, connected with the main courtyard.

The Play Ground is organized around the two existing trees with the administration volume separately located on the NE side of the plot.

Floating platforms above the plastic bottles form the circulation of the entire school.

The structure of the building is a timber post-frame organized in a modular three dimensional grid. The infill elements of the structure are repeated to form external envelope, partition walls, floors and ceilings.

The grid allows for modular openings that can be easily adapted for optimizing natural light and ventilation within the learning spaces..

The building has a monolithic external appearance with a threshold as its main entrance.The plastic disposal is revealed by a retaining net all around the corner of the plot where the neighbors can directly feed the plastic ocean with their own waste material.

The school will be a point of plastic disposal for the entire city, revealing the issue and stimulating the re-use process.

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Oliver Beck, Dawn Ling, Seulah Lee, Davide Peruzzetto Toronto, Canada Tulum Living Lab is envisioned as a microvillage for youth and the broader community in Tulum. The space will serve as a catalyst for environmental stewardship and is designed to allow for experiential learning in art and wellness. The school will serve as a community gathering space with programing aimed towards the promotion of a holistic approach to environmental sustainability.

The project is designed as a series of small, colourful buildings, distinct in character and function, interconnected by a courtyard that serves as a social node. This key organizational system permits a universally accessible environment, devoid of physical and perceived barriers. The organization is flexible and allows for activities from the more formal teaching space and multi-purpose space to extend into the courtyard. The courtyard is framed at the North by a long wall that would be ideal for Eduardo Kobra’s mural and also has visual access to the video projection wall (through the multipurpose space).

The division of the project into four small buildings reflects the nature of program clusters (classroom, multipurpose space, office, and utility) and also generates a scale that better relates to young people.

Permutations for use, openings in the walls and the courtyard parti deviate from the typical

educational theme of “bells and cells” and suggest opportunities for dynamic settings.

Appearing as a playful abstraction of regional vernacular architecture, each roof is designed to promote a certain function: the roof over the multipurpose space is sloped to maximize the use of photovoltaic panels; the roof over the classroom maximizes north daylight; the roof over the office space facilitates better ventilation; and the roof over the utility spaces enables exhaust. All roofs facilitate the harvesting of rainwater.

Critically, the school functions as a neighbourhood recycling hub. The front of the school features a “MOM I’M FINE” pavilion for collecting plastic. This material will be used on site for crafting decorative building elements.

It should also be noted that construction of the base building wall system will make use of discarded plastic bottles. Meanwhile, other collected plastic materials will be used for crafts; including proven, safe methods for reshaping plastic into components to clad the school and other uses. This aspect of the project not only serves as a demonstration tool but also imparts a sense of citizenship, ownership and belonging – values central to the notion of environmental stewardship; and indeed, living as part of a community.

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Chang Yuan Max Hsu, Jeremy Leonard New York, United States of America Organized around an open central core, the school will become an epicenter for children of the neighborhood. It is a place where emphasis is placed not only on their educational growth, but more importantly, their roles within a resource limited society.

By introducing recycling and its applications at an early stage, the students will receive hands on experiences in shaping their world through adapting to contemporary concerns.

This will be a driving factor for the school, where multiple parts of it can be built by the kids. This proposal will become a template for new communities to come, where the humanistic and applied sciences merged to create a balanced lifestyle.

Rainwater, sunlight, and plastic are all resources that have multiple methods of usage.

Storm-water is collected and stored through a gutter system as a reserve during periods of drought. It can be filtered for cleaning, and flushing for toilets. Photovoltaics are installed on the roof to mitigate energy independence from the grid. What is collected during the day can be used to power electronic during the night without the need for generators. Plastic will become the building blocks, where this ecosystem can exist. There are numerous ways in which synthetic polymers can be incorporated to create a meaningful, yet

robust form of shelter without the need to look like a greenhouse.

Recycled plastic cartons can be integrated within the wall cavity as insulation. Each container is encased with air to allow for minimal conductance, and their abundance helps to mitigate convection. Arranged within steel mesh capsules, they are stacked between columns to form an enclosure. A layer of concrete is pasted over to preserve its thermal integrity, as well as to provide surface areas for movies and murals.

The roof and doors are comprised of bottles organized in their respective functions. As canopies, the plastics are portioned in half, and tiled like shingles. The semicircular form collects and guides rainwater into storage.

As entryways, they are threaded by wooden sticks to form translucent barriers that allow light to penetrate through. In both systems, implementation can be carried out by students as a way to educate, and help them understand the benefits of recycling.

The design should not be seen as a cautionary warning of impending futures, but a chance for society to adapt to imminent issues in an economical, and clean fashion.

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Yahel Balisiano Tel Aviv, Israel When thinking of a project that emerges from bottom-up, from the community for the community, you want to create an object that people can get involved with. The community, as a social co-working force, can construct the building’s frame. The walls are designed using a simple and smart technique that is made of recycled plastic bottles and rammed-earth.

Both of them are accessible materials that can be found locally. The building is located, in a position that defines an outdoor space, which will be shared by both the existing and the new buildings. In fact, the new building is designed in a way that connects both entries of the buildings with one single paved road.

This way the whole site is functioning as one single unit.

There are many different factors to consider when designing a classroom. Certain spaces can be open-or-closed, wide-or- narrow, light-or-dark, empty-or-full, quiet-or noisy.

In this project there are two different kinds of classrooms, and together they create a variety of space qualities that can be used for different purposes.

The class on the 1st floor is designed to be simple and basic in order to help concentrating and allow quiet learning along with a gentle light that shades from the bottle walls and provides a relaxing environment. This class also has the option to be opened to the outer area, allowing the class to be half-indoor and half-outdoor. It allows a unique feeling of learning with natural light, fresh air and a big Spathodea tree in the yard that shades and cools the class area.

On the 2nd floor, there is a multipurpose class with different characteristics that can be used for music, yoga, art, discussions and many more. The goal of the design is to maximize natural light and fresh air, with a wide view to the surrounding area. This is achieved by the recycled-opaque-insulated-plastic walls.

In addition, there are inner curtains to control the natural light. The space is empty and can provide maximum flexibility to the users.

During the evening, the floor is illuminating the entire yard, transforming it into a local landmark.

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Rushabh Chheda, Céline Mugica Rotterdam, Netherlands ‘El Árbol de Arte’ is a safe and inspiring shelter for the children of Tulum so that they can expand their creativity and imagination.

By stimulating the local building industry, the project taps into informal waste collection and makes use of the ‘UniBrick’ design in order to recycle a maximum amount of plastic. Through using the ‘UniBrick’ alone, the project is able to recycle 10 tons of plastic. The bricks are three times more insulating than clay and are made fire resistant. With a small team of people, the project can be expected to take around 4-5 months to build. The school’s simple and effective construction starts with a shallow R.C.C. foundation, where the bricks can start being laid; anchored and tied down using a system of steel rods and bolts. The walls can then be topped off with a prefabricated and lightweight roof structure made of timber, bamboo and roof sheeting. The roof is designed at two different angles in order for solar panels to be placed at the optimal angle and for rain water to be collected (for cleaning and watering plants).

The design consists of three blocks built in a similar way, allowing for less elements and material to be wasted. The office block is separate so it can be locked if needed. The multi-purpose room and classroom are more

open and connected through an outdoor deck which can be adapted to multiple types of activities (art, yoga, wellness…). These two buildings are located around the beautiful african tulip tree whose shade and sight can be enjoyed by the kids. Behind the sanitary block, where the children can clean their hands, feet and dishes, there is room for the second tulip tree to be placed as well as a picnic bench where both children and adults can enjoy eating or making art outside.

The school has been intentionally designed in an introverted manner, looking towards the natural elements (trees and plants), not only improving the mental wellbeing of the children but also making use of the natural ventilation provided by the eastern winds.

Spatially, a direct link between the interior and the exterior can be created, as well as a safer enclosure from the sounds of the roads.

Therefore, three large walls can be made available for both the art mural and the ‘MOM I’M FINE’ logo to be clearly seen from the exterior.

Through its educatory and positive impact, “El Árbol de Arte” imparts a similar vision to the one of LADLE, empowering the children in Tulum through ART, WELLNESS and ENVIRONMENT.

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Jan Wojtas, Jonas Strass Stuttgart, Germany Idea It is our responsibility to find new solutions to deal with the huge amount of plastic waste we have already produced. In our opinion, recycling is not efficient enough. The process of recycling uses a lot of new energy to recreate the same problems again. We think about giving plastic waste a new, better value

by UPcycling the waste into new products.

Process We collect raw materials in and around Tulum, such as plastic bottles, and sort the different types of plastics. After cleaning the raw materials, we shredder the plastics. Next, we melt it, press it into various forms, such as beams and boards, and cool it down. Now we can use as many of these new UPcycled shapes and forms for the main construction of our design. After building the school, the machines (shredder and injection) can still be used to create art or usable things like, bowls and plates.

Design The purpose of building TULUM PLASTIC SCHOOL is creating a sustainable and social spot in the neighbourhood to teach kids about art, wellness and environment. We believe that the ambience of the school should be friendly and warm. Inspired by typical Mexican street

art and the usage of mixed coloured plastics, our building will turn up in a marble-esque colourful variety. The supporting structure and all other parts are made of UPcycled plastic waste. After producing the different types of building materials, we can post process them like wood and use them for construction. All rooms are situated around the tree in the middle. The multipurpose room is an open space area directly connected to the court which can be used all year, even during the rainy season. The office, including a meeting room, and a classroom for approximately 20 kids are also situated around the tree. We suggest closing the entrance to the existing studio1 by using UPcycled plastic “bricks�.

There will be only one entrance which is located on the North side of the plot, right next to the existing entrance.

Sustainability Natural ventilation is possible by lifting off the building of the ground. A breeze beneath the building cools the building down. The inner court situation increases this effect. The heat in every room can escape through a special designed two-layered roof. Solar panels on the roof, a rainwater collection system and as much UPcycled building materials as possible, make this school sustainable and unique.

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Camila Alcantara Maringรก, Brazil LADLE building has a sustainable concept and its layout was conceived from the mission of the institution: Art, environment and wellbeing.

The building was designed to explore the use of economic and energy efficiency, reuse of rainwater from cisterns, new construction materials and modular furniture in a way that it stimulates creativity and curiosity in children.

The layout of the work was conceived in an open concept and could preserve the development of activities in the ground area and also take into consideration the integration of the entire internal courtyard with the classrooms, proposing greater environmental comfort from the airy surroundings, shaded by the trees already in the place.

The integration of the courtyard and classrooms is not only visual but also physical, since sliding doors can transform the space into a large hall. This significant increase in its area opens up a series of possibilities, benefiting the space for future events and new activities for children, making it possible for

more and more people enjoy the project.

In order to maintain the activities already carried out by the children, a vegetable garden was created on the terrace, stimulating and encouraging contact with the environment and the benefits of healthy eating.

The fact of producing food in the building intensifies the need to have an integrated project, the irrigation of the garden and plants is made from the water stored by the rain and it can also serve as a discharge to the bathrooms. In addition, with modular furniture, the multipurpose room turns into a place where children can have their meals, which can be brought from home and complemented by foods produced at LADLE. As such, we can say this project aims at the self-sustainability of the building in a way that harmonizes with LADLE ideology , harmonizing with the environment, thus providing a comfortable and pleasant space for the population.

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Alejandra Zapata, Estefano Torres New York, United States of America Art, Wellness and Environment not only drive the education in this school, but also the creation of the space where the Tulum community gathers. In designing a school in Tulum, I considered how the culture of the site and nature meet. For instance, the city of Tulum which is closely located near the ocean and is surrounded by tropical forests is warm and humid year round and experiences a yearly monsoon season which brings heavy rain to the site. Based on that, the climate and weather led the design to be more focused on how to integrate passive cooling while using the land as a way to introduce local plants to the children. The design, thus, led the existing site to become a friendly corner to the local community, receiving the name of “La Esquina de Los Amigos�; with this proposal the corner would be preserved and reprogrammed to be an open garden. The culture of the community is also critical in the understanding of design

in Tulum. The Mayans have an admiration for nature, specifically astronomy: the design is circling the tree which would be symbolic of the sun. The radial design also allows for the nature of the site to be respected but also to be representative of the history of the region surrounding Tulum. The new garden was implemented around the existing trees, mainly composed of medicinal plants such as Aloe Vera, Matali, Arnica and Belladonna. Honoring the site’s cultural patrimony, the exposition of plants to the public was already a practice implemented by the Mayans and can now inspire the children to understand and respect their environment. The school proposal will replace conventional glass and concrete walls with different systems composed of recycled plastic, which will be sustainable, as well as affordable, for the members of the community, and which will provide a precedent for future schools and centers.

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Ben Farrar, Toshi Woudenberg New York, United States of America What will we leave behind for future generations? What will our ruins say about our civilization?

A stone’s throw from the school’s grounds, remnants of the Mayans are revered by the people of Tulum and the world beyond. The most significant remnant of our current civilization tells a different story, one of corporations who put plastic and profit over people and planet. Modern Ruins is a visual and educational counterpoint to that ethos of waste.

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Our design reclaims responsibility for the complete lifecycle of the materials our society produces. Every step of the way, we aim to restore permanence, humility, and to celebrate a new kind of building that does not deplete our natural resources.

• The school will be a landmark of optimism on the world stage and a modern myth in local consciousness; it is a phoenix rising from the ash – or rather, the trash.

Pun very much intended. Playfulness and community are the dual stars around which this project orbits. The design is intentionally accessible and ensures that the communities who power LADLE and MOM, I’M FINE can participate in construction hands-on, connecting people back to purpose and to the artisan history we all share.

Architectural Features: • The woven seatbelt external walls are

playful and connect back to the rich history of Mexican weaving. The seat belt retains its purpose as a protective element, while also allowing access to natural light and ventilation.

The raised platform helps identify interior and exterior spaces without the need of solid boundaries. The program has been oriented in a way that is inward facing, retaining a line of sight back to the tree at all times; an important symbol of nature prevailing over plastic.

Upon entry, you are immediately flanked with modern hieroglyphs; an iconic light installation on your left, and an art and graffiti wall in front of you, both promoting the joint philosophy and ethos of LADLE and MOM, I’M FINE. The art wall also doubles as a projector wall with the addition of a roll-down screen.

The roof allows rainwater collection through the purposeful location of tanks behind the WC, servicing the bathrooms and footwash station. The design does not hide these sustainable mechanisms, but rather celebrates them by keeping them visible for educational purposes.

The addition of solar panels will power the artificial lighting as well as the playful MOM, I’M FINE feature installation.

Modern Ruins does not represent a building. It represents a simple, repeatable idea. The aim is to use locally available materials and waste by-products in order to create positive from negative. In doing so, we hope to foster a love of the earth and the desire to protect it.

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thank you for your interest! you can see more proposals in our web page

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