Europe

Gando, Burkina Faso Africa

Gando Primary

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Smart Design
The old concrete-and-tin school was dark and hot inside. According to Dibdo, it was like a room to bake bread, not to teach somebody. He wanted the new school to be comfortablea place where students would want to be. Dibdo came up with ingenious ways to make the new school naturally bright and cool without air conditioning, fans, or lights. His design was so impressive, it won awards around the world.

Build a Better School, Build a Better Life

With a lot of hard work, Dibdo made his dream of building a school to sustain his community a reality. Since 2001, Gandos villagers have built an addition with a public library and teachers housing. More than 800 students attend the school today. And with the new construction skills they learned building their school, Gandos villagers are earning money working on projects in other towns. Following Gandos lead, other communities are building sustainable schools and houses using clay bricks. But not to Dibdo Kr, an architect who grew up in Gando. Hed been studying architecture in Germany, and he believed that Gando had everything it needed to build a new school. It wouldnt be easythe village had no electricity, few resources, and no money to buy what was needed. But the biggest challenge would be convincing the villagers that claythe one resource they had plenty ofcould be used to build a sturdy school. The villagers had given up building with clay long ago because the rainy season damaged and destroyed clay buildings. Theyd been building with expensive imported concrete for years, following designs brought in from places with cooler climates that werent well suited to Gandos hot temperatures.

Fact: Dibdo designed an unusual roof for

the school. It is raised off the ceiling, leaving a gap where hot air can escape from inside the school. It also allows cool breezes to blow in. The wide overhang helps shade the school from the sun so it stays cooler.

ometimes solving a seemingly impossible problem just takes a fresh way of thinking about it. That was the case in Gando, Burkina Faso, where the village school was about to collapse in 1999. Without it, kids would have to walk for hours to the closest school or stop going altogether. There was no money to repair the old concrete school, and building a new one seemed out of the question.

Dibdo was the son of the chief, and had the opportunity to go to boarding school in another town. He earned a scholarship to university and became the first person from Gando to get a degree.

The whole village helpe d build the school. Wome n stamped down the clay floor; children carried mu d and stones; and men made the clay bricks, constructe d the walls, and put the roof in place.

mostly farmers, so Dib The Gando villagers are n beside the school. putting a vegetable garde

do suggested

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