Woodless construction: the training of trainers and builders
Practical Action
work that they do. Many builders lavishly
and imaginatively decorate their new
homes with paintings and individual wall
finishes and forms. And with the
revenues that they bring in, they improve
their lives, buying donkey carts, mobile
phones and even televisions. Woodless
construction not only protects the
environment, it changes the quality of
life for the people who build and live in
these buildings.
The promotion of Woodless Construction in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger won the World Habitat
Award in 1998
Selected references
Woodless Construction 1: An overview J. Norton
Woodless Construction 3: Change and Adaptation to Local Needs J. Norton
Building with Earth, 2nd Ed., J. Norton, Practical Action Publishing, 1997 (Order online at Practical
Action Publishing)
Woodless Construction – Unstabilised earth brick vault and dome roofing without formwork. J.
Norton, Lund University Centre for Habitat Studies, Vol 9,N°2, 1997 (Download at www.dwf.org)
Mud as a Mortar, Practical Action, Technical Brief
The Construction of the Timberless House Model, Practical Action Sudan, Technical Brief
Mud Plasters and Renders, Practical Action Sudan, Technical Brief
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