BY: KAROUN CHAHINIAN
Shivering bodies cloaked with torn newspapers and curled up beside urban buildings is the image I see when the word “homelessness” comes to mind. Sadly, this image has become too familiar.
Every night, over 100 million people around the world sleep without a roof over their heads and 1 billion are without an adequate form of housing, according to the latest survey by the United Nations. An architectural firm in Ireland recently made a big step towards improving the homelessness crisis by creating their first ever shipping container home. They donated it to the St. Vincent de Paul charity so it could be used as a shelter.
Ceardean Architects made this prototype container home in only three days with a 60-person team of contractors and craftsmen as part of the Ripple Container Homes Project.
Ceardean Architects made this prototype container home in only three days with a 60-person team of contractors and craftsmen as part of the Ripple Container Homes Project. The home is meant to serve as a prototype for communities in search for more affordable housing substitutes, says Derek Treneman, one of the designers in the firm.
The home was built using a 40-foot by ten-foot shipping container with a nine-foot ceiling and cost approximately $61,000, which the architects think can be reduced to somewhere between $31,000 and $37,000. It is large enough to house six people and is equipped with a living room, a full kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and relaxing deck. It’s even powered by solar panels, has micro-heat recovery units, and also has water heating.
The home was built using a 40-foot by ten-foot shipping container with a nine-foot ceiling and it is large enough to house six people
After the home was completed, it first made an appearance at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) and then was later gifted to a family from Deerpark in Cork just in time for Christmas.
It’s a common notion to think that a large home is a necessity, but when a large percentage of the global population is suffering from homelessness, it instead seems like a selfish luxury. Hopefully, this project will inspire other countries to be equally creative and think of innovative solutions to help reduce the homelessness crisis.
Sources: trueactivist.com, inhabitat.com, youtube.com
