Cooperation projects for the preservation of earth architecture in Chiquitos, Bolivia

Abstract

Since year 2000 the Universitat Sense Fronteres (USF) association together with the Polytechnic University of Catalonia accomplishes an all-round cooperation for development program in the region of Chiquitos—Bolivia. This region was declared World Heritage Site by the UNESCO in 1990. The cooperation projects are conceived using local materials such as adobe so as to strengthening the important local heritage. These cooperation projects also introduce technological improvements both in production and in later building work, sharing the knowledge with local actors through a participation process. Different built projects have enabled a comparative analysis of the adobe, Compressed Earth Block (CEB) and hand-made fired brick mechanical behavior, on the basis of compression breakage tests.