This project looks at Nigeria as a microcosm of the future African condition of rapid urbanization and proposes the introduction of bioDune sand bricks to sustainably support the construction of the growing urban fabric amidst climate change and desertification uncertainty within the Sub-Saharan African region.
The past decade has seen the rise of Microbial Induced Calcite Precipitation as a new biological process that uses enzymatic reactions of bacteria with urea to ‘grow’ bricks through the process of calcification. Building on this research, the project proposes the use of desert dune sand along with human urine and bacteria in a zero waste, heat-free process to produce outputs of a new type of ‘bio-brick.’
The project re-imagines agencies like the African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States (ACP) that are partnered with the Green Wall Initiative to expand their portfolio to assist local communities and governments to sustainably extract desert sand for production while also providing guidance to restore and manage fragile ecosystems.
