CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT
Canggu Community School By Ben Voborsky, Primary Principal Canggu Community School (CCS) welcomes the new 2020-2021 year by increasing their footprint with a new Primary campus, providing students with more space and enhanced sports facilities. The campus was designed to support CCS core values: Learning, Respect, Engagement, and Balance.
The Primary campus has transitioned from a 700 m2 plot to a 1500 m2 facility just across the river from the previous Primary school. The new Primary campus and sports facilities are connected by two bridges to the Secondary Campus. The substantial difference in added space has provided a great opportunity to make use of the landscape by adding outdoor facilities including a half Olympic sized swimming pool, sports field, numerous outside seating areas which are shaded by the incredible flora surrounding the campus and allow for all classrooms to extend into outside learning spaces. This will help in navigating COVID-19 physical distancing requirements while providing hands-on learning opportunities, fresh air and the numerous benefits associated with having access to nature.
Joglo structures have been used throughout the CCS campus as a homage to Indonesia’s unique traditional architecture, while also being aesthetically respectful to the island. Joglo is the architectural vernacular for Javanese structure, originally built for aristocrats where the height and type of roof reflected the social and economic status. Nowadays, Joglos have been used throughout Indonesia as modular homes for their natural aesthetics and resilience in lasting through tropical weather and earthquakes.The teak wooden columns are strong and reliable material that mix well with modern construction. The most impressive structure lies in the heart of the campus. The canteen sits perched on a hill as a circular-plan joglo that offers a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape. Traditionally, the canteen can be compared to a Pendopo building where social gatherings typically take place in the open pavilion of a Javanese home. The campus is surrounded by flora and fauna that is native to Indonesia. Each unique plant on the primary grounds is labelled with an informative tag for students to learn and identify the nature surrounding them. The majestic Beringin tree is situated between the two entrances as a protective guardian of the campus. The aromatic tropical herb plant, Pandan grows wildly outside the Early Years classrooms, distinguished by its long, slender and spiky bright green leaves. The sacred Pule tree stands tall next to the football pitch, traditionally used as the wood carved into Barong Masks. Jepun trees line the pathways offering their fragrant frangipani flowers which are commonly used in Balinese ceremonies. The newest addition is the vegetable garden where students will take part in the complete journey from planting to fruition. Globally, we have arrived at a stage where becoming more efficient with our resources has become absolutely necessary in order to strive towards sustainable economic growth. The ethos of Zero Waste is already practiced in several cities, households, events and numerous companies. Rethink, Reuse, Reduce and Recycle are the 4 R’s that embody this concept and have been applied to the construction process at CCS. By using Joglo architecture, heavy and dense structures made out of concrete have been reduced drastically and have the benefit and option of being reassembled and reused. An addi-
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tional effort considered in the design phase to reduce CCS’s carbon footprint is by reducing the need for cooling spaces with air- conditioning. In order to maintain the natural airflow throughout the campus and minimise invasive construction, the campus was designed to fit the original land shape.
The Primary and Early Years buildings have been designed with large floor-to-ceiling sliding doors and numerous windows to be able to open up the classroom and take in the natural light and breeze. A contributing factor to maintaining cooling air temperatures is the use of wood for its high insulation properties and can even help to regulate humidity levels. Reuse and recycle has been addressed in the reuse of materials from the old campus such as the wooden door and window frames, metal structures, window glass and playground set. Additionally, instead of throwing away the wooden scaffolding, it was recycled into building the canteen tables. To be proactive and considerate of Bali’s monsoon season, biopore infiltration holes have been strategically placed throughout the campus to prevent flooding and increase groundwater reserves. The term ‘biopore’ refers to small tunnels that are formed in the soil by the activity of underground organisms such as worms, movement of roots, termites and other soil fauna. An added benefit of replicating this concept is that it reduces the forming of puddles during the rainy season, ultimately reducing the risk of mosquito breeding. After two years of planning and development, the Primary Campus is ready for the Melaspas ceremony and opening its doors to students. The ritual of a Melaspas ceremony in the Balinese Hindu religion is to cleanse and purify new objects, to bless the space with peace for new occupants.
