Building Local - Building with Optimized Bricks

This graduation thesis is divided into four parts. The first part explores the existing culture, through local materials and an analysis of housing in Bangladesh. Then, it looks into which waste streams have potential for the construction industry, to then optimize existing local materials by incorporating these waste streams. Lastly, it explores how to use these optimized materials in the design of a high-density housing complex that can help address the housing crisis and be resilient to current and future climate challenges.

The thesis explores the feasibility and optimization of local materials in Bangladesh, focusing on three main categories: existing materials, raw materials, and innovative alternatives. The study places particular emphasis on the brick industry, a cornerstone of the country’s construction sector, which accounts for over 1% of global brick production and employs approximately 1.6 million people. However, this industry is also a major contributor to air pollution, topsoil depletion, and socio-economic vulnerabilities, particularly among rural cottage industries. Sustainability within affordable housing is a harder task to achieve as the people in need of affordable housing have more immediate needs. This makes it our responsibility as designers to design with social and environmental sustainability in mind, making sustainability a natural by-product instead of a separate challenge.