Belize Eco-Village Housing Project and Lord Neil B Gibson

Belize Eco-Village Housing Program

Overview Ecovillages are people-based initiatives to model sustainable, low-impact, human settlements. They are applicable to both rural and urban settings and accessible to all. Eco-villagers utilize green energy technology, ecological building techniques, and human-scale design to reduce exploitation of natural resources, facilitate community self-reliance, and improve quality of life. Medical clinics will be included in the development of each village. These medical clinics can assist in the care management of other local villages and expand the Belize Healthcare footprint. They are about the creation of new settlements as well as retrofitting existing villages and urban areas. An ecovillage is designed in harmony with its bioregion instead of the landscape being unduly engineered to fit construction plans. By thinking in terms of bioregions, sustainable settlements are planned considering water availability, the ability to grow food, and accessibility.  Many projects use the principles of permaculture for creating integrated, interactive and efficient systems for structural planning, food production and social needs in their community. Ecovillages are human scale, (somewhere where you can feel you know the others in your community), fully featured settlements, (comprising housing, businesses, agriculture, culture, etc. as appropriate to the local setting), in which human activity is integrated harmlessly into the natural world, supports human development and can be continued into the indefinite future. There are hundreds, maybe thousands of ecovillages around the world that have been living true to their values, even if it means not quite meeting the building codes or zoning laws according to their local government. Global Ecovillage Network defines ecovillages as “Alternative experimentation laboratories, with food production, ecological buildings, a resources center, a reception place, or artistic workshops. The aim is to create, together, a convivial and fair way of life, with a minimal ecological trace becoming more socially, economically and ecologically sustainable.” There are examples of Ecovillage Zoning and Sustainable Development Testing Sites in Taos, NM, Portland, OR, Eugene, OR and British Columbia. There are many more with pending legislation across the globe.

Modular in design and scalability. There are a number of benefits in using ISBUs – inter-model steel building units – for home building or residential projects.  Otherwise known as shipping container houses, these sturdy, steel structures are a captivating idea.                                                Shipping containers are made from special steel in order to be strong enough to withstand rough conditions at seas and long exposure to outside elements while being able to protect the goods stored inside.  They are made to a standard set of measurements in order to be stackable the world over.  There are three sizes – 20 feet long or 40 & 53 feet long.  Each shipping container has a width of 8 feet and a height of 8 feet 6 inches or 9.6 in high cube versions.  Because of their uniform size, large number, and the fact that they were built to last, it became important to consider alternative uses for containers that began to stack up in back lots and shipping docks.  Years ago, the military explored their potential for portable operation centers.  It wasn’t too long, however, before their low cost and ready availability attracted the attention of architects and builders with a unique need – safe, fast, inexpensive construction for hospitals, office space, apartments, and homes. Besides the obvious quality of building material, there are several eco advantages to the use of this component.  Globally these containers are discarded after their service life is finished. They are then used for artificial reefs, thrown in landfills or melted for scrap.  The availability of these containers globally reduces our need to manufacture from virgin materials which are precious resources for the future of the world.