Rain Garden

Category: Professional Client: Mizanur Rahman Project Type: Residencial Location: Joypurhat, Rajshahi, Bangladesh TBA: 00 SFT Land area: 00 Period: 2018-2022 Status: Built Principal Architect: Md Mostasim Billah, A fundamental concept of ecological society is the harmonious co-existence between humans and nature. The separation we have produced through our isolated designs over time has not come without costs. Obesity, ADHD, and a reduction in imagination are attributed to a lack of interaction with the world. Unfortunately, this estrangement from nature directly affected our well-being. It has affected our ability to respond to vital contemporary issues, such as climate change, waste management, human rights violation, etc. This family residence built in Joypurhat district of Bangladesh. Situated in a fast-growing peri-urban area, predominantly agricultural land, holding a heritage of village’s socio-cultural values. The design objective was to create a symbiotic relationship within living organisms, with a sustainable approach to revive the local socio-cultural norm integrated with economy and ecology. The amount of land that has been used for buildable surface, nearly the same amount of area, is created on top of the building for the vegetable garden. The green spaces are arranged in multi-layer. In addition to that, almost half of the ground floor area has direct and indirect soak-able green. The materials used were locally available, and manual human labor was used to construct the house, which promoted local craftsmanship, helped the local economy, reduced costs and ecological footprint. Keeping the climate of that area in thoughts the building’s longer side has to be north south orientated. However, the site was longer on the east-west side. So the design has a composition in a module where the longer facades of the building fall in north-south. The cabinet of bedrooms has been taken recessed on the outer side to reduce the heat gain so that the heat takes time to get in. For natural ventilation, the monsoon windows are integrated. Therefore, the air passes inside the rooms, even when it rains. A beautiful courtyard type space called “Orboroi Tola” is working as the house’s soul, as direct sunlight enters through the roof above the space. A striking play of light and shadow can be seen at different times of the day.The idea of co-existence has been tried to achieve by combining economy, ecology, and society on a small scale to create an impactful outcome. The pond in front of the house is also good enough to fulfill the protein requirement. The tertiary level of grey water filtration goes to the pond. The pond also helps in rainwater harvesting and earth water refilling. Rooftop Vegetable garden, multi-purpose backyard, and wooden front deck are the spaces that connect humans with nature in the day to day life. Multi-layered green and the pond will help to balance the ecosystem of the small space. The ratio of indoor and outdoor spaces creates a soothing atmosphere for the family. Traditionally, women do not feel comfortable going in front of strangers, so they do their daily activities either inside the house or in a separated space from the house’s entrance. Respecting the social norms, the different hierarchy of spaces like semi-private courtyard merged with the front deck, and a private back yard has incorporated, which echoes this country’s local cultural norms. These integrated interactive spaces as a backyard where women and children feel safe to perform day-to-day activities, children play and women chatter with neighboring people increase interaction between people. There is a wash zone at service entry in the back, which is highly effective in this Covid-19 situation. The produce vegetable from the roof garden would be sufficient to meet the family’s need for the whole year. The rooftop garden helps in reducing the heat gain and energy requirements of the house. This small-scale urban agriculture will cut off the extra cost, labor, and pollution due to the process after growing the food for the consumers. The food that will be produced would directly go to the family, and the waste will also be used as organic fertilizer that reduces the cost of inorganic fertilizer. On top of that, it helps in better waste management. In the time of GMO and chemical pesticide used food, having fresh organic home-grown food is a blessing. Sharing home-grown vegetables with neighbors is a cultural norm that generates better bonding with surrounding people.