A proudly South African home for a climate-impacted future
Going green is increasingly being adopted across the globe , especially by younger generations born in the digital age who are more socially aware and environmentally responsible .
While many believe the transition to a net-zero carbon footprint is expensive , a R300 000 home that won Cape Town ’ s My Clean Green Home design competition , shows it is doable if you are willing to scale down .
The eco-friendly home , which was transformed into a popup project exhibition in the Mother City earlier this year , incorporates solar power generation , energy-efficient appliances , passive cooling , rainwater harvesting and a food garden .
While described as a “ house in a box ”, it has a lounge , kitchen , bedroom , bathroom and courtyard . It was designed by Team Mahali , a group of recent graduates and young African professionals .
“ We were inspired by using the principles of a tree . ( The ) wooden pallets all around and the roof all provides shade for the building just as the tree has a shade footprint . We are completely off-grid for all our appliances ,” says Shawn Alimohammadi , who is a member of Team Mahali and a social entrepreneur .
“ All of the water that falls on the roof of the building gets caught into a gutter system that flows into a rain bladder … and that rain bladder also provides additional insulation for the building .”
Cape Town aims to achieve carbon neutrality , which is netzero carbon dioxide emissions , by 2050 in line with the rest of the country . The city wants all buildings to be net-zero carbon by the end of this decade .
“ Carbon neutrality is very , very important for the City of Cape Town . Seeing the innovation that shipping container could become a type of housing is remarkable ,” says Mayor Dan Plato .
The competition called on professionals and students to build a home that illustrates sustainable living in action .
Considering that the country is one of the highest emitters of greenhouse gasses in the world , with around 90 % of the country ’ s energy generated from coal , this kind of living is a way South Africans can start taking climate change seriously .
It also offers a multitude of job and business opportunities for graduates and SMMEs in the green economy , which has been identified by the government as key to boosting the country ’ s sluggish economy .
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