House for Trees

Rapid urban growth has pulled the city far from its origins as tropical forest. Greenery now covers only a tiny fraction of its area, motorbike traffic clogs the streets and fouls the air, and a new generation is growing up with little contact with nature.

Built on a tight budget of about 155,000 USD, the house is a prototype that tries to return green space to the city while housing a dense family life alongside large tropical trees.

Five concrete boxes each hold a different part of the programme and act as pots, with trees planted on their roofs. Their thick layers of soil also hold back stormwater, so if the idea were repeated across many houses it could help reduce flooding.

The boxes stand loosely around a shared garden. Rooms open onto it through large glazed doors, and the gaps between the boxes let air and light reach every space. Board-marked concrete on the outside meets brick-lined rooms within.