Elora Hardy believes that bamboo is a completely sustainable resource and needs to be treated as a serious construction material. In her TED Talk, Hardy showcases some of her recent projects and talks about her unique construction process.
Hardy works with her team at Ibuku to design and build bamboo homes, mainly in Bali, where m ost homes there have big curving roofs to catch breezes and combat the tropical heat.
Bamboo is a wild grass that grows on land that would otherwise be unproductive. 1,450 species of bamboo grow across the world and we use only seven of them.
Loaded axially, bamboo exhibits the tensile strength of steel and the compressive strength of concrete. The hollow structure allows for lightweight design while still maintaining its strength. Hardy’s father first used bamboo in the construction of Green School as a promise to the youth of Bali that their learning spaces could be sustainable and continuous.
Bamboo has been in use for thousands of years as a building material. The past few decades have allowed for innovations that protect bamboo structures from rain and insects. Using borax to treat the bamboo turns it into a viable building material, and a properly treated and designed beam can last one hundred years.
No two poles are alike and no straight lines exist in this new branch of architecture. Hardy says that she asks the bamboo what it’s good for and what it wants to become.
Scaled structural models are constructed for each building. When a model maker steps back from his creation and pounds on the wireframe structure to show its strength Hardy proudly exclaims “that is the blueprint of the house.” The model is taken to the build site, measured with tiny rulers, and scaled up to the finished product.
Bali values artisans in society and Ibuku brings together engineers, architects and designers to build houses and buildings in completely new ways. More than fifty unique structures have been built in the past nine years. A small house is currently being developed for export.
Building with bamboo is an effective use of sustainable resources that are being used in innovative ways. To learn more, watch the video above.