Can a school made entirely from waste also become self-sufficient?

About the author

Esther Peñas

Journalist

Esther Peñas Domingo is a graduate of Complutense University (Spain) and works for different outlets, such as Ethic, Turia, CTXT, Cermi.es, Oxi-Nobstante and Graphic Classics.

She has published several books of interviews, various essays (such as ‘Amazon Heritage’, which appeared in Wunderkamer, and ‘The Oddities Springing Up’ in Ediciones Cinca), as well as books of miscellany (‘Deviations’, published by Kaótica) and several collection of poems (‘The Story of Rain’ in Chamán) and novels (‘The Tara and the Don’ for Adeshoras).

 

Meet the author

Sustainability and the environment – in whatever guise – have been present in schools for many years now: as taught subjects, in architectural elements (ecological paint, recycled glass, pre-fabricated concrete, etc.) and as auxiliary services (waste recycling, solar panels, irrigation of playing fields, etc.). One school, however, has implemented these practices in a quite radical way - an innovative, efficient, public project, with space for 100 pupils aged between 3 and 12, in the Uruguayan resort of Jaureguiberry, a town of 500 inhabitants on the River Plate coast, 50 miles from Montevideo. It is the first school in Latin America to be constructed entirely from waste and which prides itself on self-sufficiency.

Infrastructure constructed from second-life materials

The building has been constructed combining traditional materials such as brick and cement with others collected or contributed by neighbors. The figures speak for themselves: 2,000 tires, 5,000 glass bottles, 2,000 square meters of cardboard, and 8,000 aluminum tins. 100 volunteers from 30 countries traveled to Jaureguiberry to contribute to the innovative project during almost two months, linking up with public and private bodies.

Solar energy, water collection and zero waste

Over the school’s 270 square meters, everything is sustainable: from solar photovoltaic panels and wind turbines that generate electricity consumed on site, to the re-used water in the organic garden and greenhouses. The roof of the building has rainwater collectors with a capacity of 30,000 liters, stored in four tanks, where it’s also purified. It has three classrooms, four bathrooms and various common areas.

The community driving the educational project

The project’s results continue to set continent-wide benchmarks, as does the way in which the community as a whole has become involved, along with public and private sectors. National and international volunteers have also turned up to collaborate in an educational initiative that has important effects for the local economy and strengthens social fabric.

Jaureguiberry’s school used to be in a rented building, but the community always dreamed of having its own property independent of whims and speculation. It finally became a community school governed by families in the locality and held altruistic workshops combining local knowledge with the educational needs of pupils. But the Liga de Fomento (Development League), charged with developing the area economically, proposed moving the school away, something the community opposed. After several years of negotiations, this rural school now belongs to everyone.

Learn by doing: the allotment, the kitchen and the circular economy

Pupils don’t just learn about respect for nature, they practise it - on the allotments and in the greenhouses, recycling materials and incorporating all this into daily life. Each pupil spends at least an hour a week looking after the plants and food supplies (strawberries, lettuce, chard, tomatoes, potatoes, etc.), products they then cook between them and enjoy in the canteen. Also, the school does not produce any waste – everything is re-used in one way or another.

The idea of building the school on this basis came from Martín Espósito, coordinator of the civil association Tagma, which is dedicated to implementing innovative initiatives that link education to the environment. He contacted US architect Michael Reynolds, founder of Earthship Biotecture, which designs life projects based on sustainable accommodation, self-sufficiency and minimal environmental impact. What was initially seen as a utopian proposal began to take real shape.

Reynolds visited Jaureguiberry and built the school on the lines of others he’d constructed in Sierra Leone, Guatemala, Mexico, Haiti, Australia, Scotland, Belgium, Spain, Canada and the United States.

Once the land had been scoped and the available material assessed, the school was erected in just a month-and-a-half. It was officially inaugurated on 16 March 2016.

What was borne out of a seemingly utopian initiative has become a symbol of innovation and respect for the environment and of how a whole community can participate in a project. It has been about much more than erecting a building and can redefine the basis of future educational models. In a world seeking resilient solutions, this small school in Uruguay offers a grand idea: building with purpose.