Guiding self-built housing towards sustainability and thermal comfort

Dates: July 12 -15, 2022
Last date to apply: June 28, 2022
Venue: Anil Agarwal Environment Training Institute, Nimli (Near Alwar), Rajasthan

India’s cities and towns cities are experiencing rapid urbanization, with intensive infrastructure development and ever-growing built footprint owing to population growth and migration. This has created a demand for fast-paced construction technologies, that often result in repetitive building units. However, these technologies do not perform well on environmental parameters. At the other end of the spectrum, reverse migration due to the ongoing pandemic has brought the spotlight on to smaller towns. The unprecedented scale of this migration has triggered a need for affordable housing.  

India’s housing sector is dominated by self-construction, with around 70% of houses sanctioned under PMAY, being built under the beneficiary led construction scheme – but what it needs, is guidance towards the mainstreaming of climate-appropriate native material choices and building technologies. Government institutions such as the Central Public Works Department have started promoting indigenous technologies and materials for a self-reliant India. Native material-techniques have multiple advantages over their fast paced, often industry-manufactured counterparts. The raw materials required are often locally available and respond well to local climatic conditions; they are also better suited to tackle the issue of thermal comfort for the occupants. 

The other big advantage is that these technologies utilise and promote local labour and skills. The self-built housing market does not only provide an opportunity to fulfil the shelter needs of the displaced population but also to improve quality of life, develop skills and create jobs for a ‘green recovery’ and sustainable regional development, amidst the ongoing pandemic. 

Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) invites applications for a training course about self-constructed housing and how it can be guided to ensure thermal comfort for its occupants’ address the issues and a sustainable way forward for the development sector.

COURSE HIGHLIGHTS

• Green recovery in the self-built housing sector post COVID-19
• Government initiatives and an overview of self-built housing
• India Cooling action Plan – Thermal comfort for all
• Human thermal comfort
• Climate appropriate building materials/techniques
• Building envelope and thermal properties of materials to achieve occupant comfort
• Eco Niwas Samhita – (ECBC-Residential) 

COURSE COORDINATOR

Harikrishnan C U
Senior Research Associate,
Sustainable Buildings and Habitat Programme, CSE,
9495406904, 
harikrishnan@cseindia.org

COURSE DIRECTOR

Rajneesh Sareen,
Programme Director,
Sustainable Habitat Programme, CSE, 
rajneesh.sareen@cseindia.org