Sustainable Weaving Centres Design Brief

ETWA Nov 2009

Design Brief for  Sustainable Weaving Center’s

Phase 1. Sketch Design 1

Background: Backgroun d: Weavin Weaving g Sustainable Sus tainable Communities ETWA is a Melbourne based not-for-profit organization run by volunteers. We work to support women in three remote communities on the eastern tip of the island of Timor-Leste. Through the medium of cultural handcrafts, we aim to help women ease the burdens of poverty and maintain their cultural integrity. The highly skilled and motivated women we work with have achieved much and hope for much more. With support from ETWA, they recently came together to form the t he Cooperative for Tais and Cultural Development (CTCD). This relationship is a major strength. CTCD draws its membership from three weaving collectives; one group in central Los Palos and two groups in the mountainous m ountainous sub-district sub-district of Iliomar. CTCD has 86 members m embers who come from the poorest and most disadvantaged families in the t he region; approximately 25% of female members were widowed during the Indonesian occupation and many members have limited access to farmlands. Identified Needs: Central working/ community spaces for each of the three weaving groups Assistance with product design, d esign, development, manufacture, manufacture, marketing and distribution In-country support to enable sustainability of weaving groups and CTCD as an organisation Projects to improve women’s health and well-being well-being Organisational capacity building; literacy and numeracy training Support for local farmers to improve farming methods, increase yields and improve food security • • • • • •

Response to Identified Needs VOLUNTEER PLACEMENT Two-year Community Economic Development Advisor position supported by Australian Volunteers International and ETWA Position critical to supporting community projects and developing long-term economic viability Candidate selected and due to start in July 2010 •

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BUILDING SUSTAINABLE WEAVING CENTRES Critical project to t o build sustainable centre’s for each of the three weaving groups ETWA supports (and later, one larger centre for research and development in Los Palos) Partnership established with Alternative Technology Association to supply solar panels and solar lighting and with Architects for Peace to design buildings Partnerships established with East Timorese Timor ese NGOs PERMATIL and Rural Cooperative Development to support organic cotton farming and the application of permaculture processes to increase food security and propagate medicinal and dyeing plants Completion of the research phase of ETWA’s Health Study. This phase generated comprehensive data, which ETWA will use to design programs p rograms to improve women’s health •

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Design Brief  The buildings will be life changing spaces for the women involved in CTCD. They will help women work towards self-sufficient management of a diverse range of enterprises and also provide accommodation for visiting traint rainers, volunteers and tourists. The challenge is to create designs that will inspire the women to think

beyond hand-

weaving and imagine the possibilities that these buildings present to their communities. From product development to health and agriculture, the buildings will be places where local talents are discovered; where new

ideas

flourish and where practical skills development and training can occur. Handcrafts production, farming of rare dyeing plants and organic cotton, essential oils and wood carving are a few of the proposed programs but the

possibilities are endless. The design challenge is to develop three

designs that inspire and instigate thinking about sustainable community enterprise. The designs will be presented to the communities who will select the most appropriate design for their landscapes, their hopes

and their vision. The villagers will then work together to make their vision a reality.

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CONTEXT Timor-Leste is considered the poorest nation in Asia with riches that lie in its culture and community. Tradition and custom have survived centuries of colonization and war. One such tradition is the practice pr actice of hand-weaving hand-weaving cloth known as Tais. This important practice brings generations of women together, demonstrating the strong sense of community still alive in TimorLeste despite decades of violence and extreme poverty.

Tais are integral to other sacred practices

which aim to sustain the lives of the villagers and maintain ecological balance for future generations. In traditional Timorese society, the shape and structure of a building represents things like strength and balance. It pays homage to nature, the environment, to animals and to the ancestors, all of which are essential to life itself.

Tais weaving achieves two major things for the women involved in CTCD– poverty reduction and cultural maintenance. Within this context economic development projects engage in the perseverance of culture. By applying the same principles to the design and construction of the

weaving centres, traditional and modern architecture will merge for sustainable development in communities where CTCD members live and work.

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The designer should engage with local architecture, integrating traditional and modern design and materials. In the rural areas of Iliomar, houses are generally made with locally available materials such as bamboo, wood and thatch and people usually repair their houses every few years as the need arises. When affordable, corrugated iron, concrete and cement blocks are also used.

The design should conform to the hands-on construction methods used by the local communities (simple hand tools will be used throughout construction. No forklifts and only some power tools). The communities have had little to no experience working with the pre-fabricated steel materials being supplied by Rotary so another challenge is to use design elements to make the construction as simple and as strong as possible. We hope this t his process will be one of learning for the designer as well.

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LOCATIONS One centre will be built in each of the three separate sites in remote villages in Timor-Leste where CTCD members live and work. Two centers will be located in the mountainous m ountainous sub-district of Iliomar; one in the village of Fuat; another in Cainliu village. At a later stage, one

The road to Los Palos P alos

centre will be built in the flatlands of central Los Palos. The aim is that through t hrough this project, the designs developed for Iliomar will be adapted for use in Los Palos at a later date. Los Palos is the capital of the Lautem district, ten hours by bus from the t he national capital of  Dili. The uncultivated flatlands surrounding Los Palos are known as ‘dead earth’ due to extensive deforestation during the occupation. Most residents don’t have running water and Los Palos Kota (city)

electricity is limited to five hours in the evening.

Lospalos Iliomar

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Iliomar is an isolated sub-district, s ub-district, situated high in the mountains (elevation approx 1200ft) on the south-east coast, three hours by bus south west of Los Palos. There is no electricity and very few houses have running water. Although separated only by a short distance and a narrow valley, the villages of Fuat and Cainliu are very different geographically. Fuat sits atop a grassy, wind-swept mountain plateau overlooking the

South coast view from Iliomar mountains

ocean, while Cainliu is located on a hillside, with houses sequentially scattered on cobbled streets surrounded by tall trees. During the wet season, Fuat is cool and Cainliu is warm and humid. The wet season is from December to July with wit h estimated rainfall of 160-270cm, and a mean temperature of 24oC. Access is limited as roads roads are impassable during the wet season. There is no significant rainfall during the other ot her

Above and below: terraces of Cainliu village

months. The months between August and November are hot and dry. Below: Children and traditional House, Iliomar

Below: storm clouds, Iliomar

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TIMELINES PHASE ONE: SKETCH DESIGN (Current—April 2010) In April 2010 an ETWA team will visit the two communities in Iliomar to: 1. Run a series of community meetings/ consultation processes with all stakeholders (the weavers, key community leaders etc) 2. Take selected community members on a field trip to visit Rotary’s Roofing project and a spectacular community house constructed from bamboo in nearby Buccoli. This trip aims to stimulate thinking about design and construction and gather useful information to inform t he final design selection 3. Confirm the sites sit es in Fuat and Cainliu 4. Present and discuss the preliminary designs (prepared by the t he Architect) and select the most appropriate design 6. Confirm costs and source suppliers 7. Formalise local building teams and mobilise the villagers to prepare the sites. This is a great opportunity opp ortunity for the Architect to visit the sites, meet the communities, familiarize themselves with local building techniques and gather information required to draft t he final plans. PHASE TWO: DESIGN DEVELOPMENT (April– August 2010) Armed with all the necessary information, final final plans will be b e developed by the Architect during this phase. Meetings will occur with the Alternative Technology Association and members of the Australian building supervision team during this time. PHASE THREE: CONSTRUCTION (August 2010) Building will commence in August 2010 and hopefully be completed within six weeks. A team of  experienced builders from Australia will supervise construction as the communities have not worked with steel frames, guttering or concrete.

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DESIGN PROCEDURE The designer must have three preliminary design sketches to present to t he communities in April 2010. The aim of these drawings is to inspire the communities’ imagination to think beyond the intended use of the space s pace and see the potential that the space brings in terms of other sustainable development opportunities. Although the sites will not be selected until April 2010, the designer could include sketches of things like: •

Women weaving

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Community meetings and discussions

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Permaculture gardens and composting toilets

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Dyeing gardens

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Sections for cotton dyeing, spinning and weaving

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Internal fireplace or clay ovens

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Composting toilets

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External shaded workshop space

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Trees, animals etc

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Landscape / seating benches / planting

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Accommodation for tourists and trainers

Potential Use of Space •

Weaving (inside and outside)

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Storage (inside)

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Cotton dyeing (outside)

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Teaching / training (inside and outside)

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Community gatherings gatherings (inside and outside)

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Literacy and numeracy classes (inside and outside)

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Product design and development (inside and outside)

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Accommodation for trainers and volunteers

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Weaving workshops for tourists (inside and outside)

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Accommodation for tourists (inside)

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Sales (inside and outside)

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Community gardens and permaculture

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Adolescents study space in the evening

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Delivering health education programs

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Community bank

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And MUCH more….

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LOCAL MATERIALS Roofing: There are two main types of local organic roofing materials available. ‘Tali metan’ (black thatch), which is for used for sacred houses due to its water-resistance. However it is difficult to find at specific times of the year and is labour intensive. Palm thatch uses a variety variety of leaves such as palm and coconut, depending on the location and environment. Above: Black thatch roof and below a combination of black and palm thatch, with the black thatch adding extra water proofing.

DESIGN ELEMENTS: NECESSARY DESIGN ELEMENTS The designs must include the following: •

Simple construction integrating traditional and contemporary building technique t echniquess and materials

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Multifunctional spaces

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Utilises environmental elements to maintain a cool and light environment

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Lockable and secure office space

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Large clear space for weaving and meetings

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Water tank and guttering

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Solar powered directional track lighting for weaving/ working at night

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SPECIFICATIONS:

Approx floor space: 48sq mt

Most materials will be produced within the communities or available locally. The corrugated roofing iron, steel trusses, t russes, water-tank water-tank and guttering manufactured by East Timor Roofing and funded by R otary will be delivered to t o nearby Los Palos. Sand, timber and stones are sourced locally and brought in by trucks.

THE BUILDINGS WILL HAVE: •

Raised mud floors (not concrete)

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Stone and concrete foundations

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Palm rib/ spine (piku/ bebak) or o r bamboo strip (hadak) external cladding

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Bamboo and/ or timber battens/ rafters

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Steel purlin studs

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Timer framed, glassless widows

LOCAL MATERIALS Cladding: Palm rib or spine, known locally as ‘Piku’ or ‘Bebak’ is made by stripping strip ping away the smaller fronds of large palm leaves to expose the strong triangular shaped spine in the centre. It is then

PIKU or BEBAK CLADDING

fitted by aligning and alternating the flat and pointed sides. Piku is preferred due to it’s wind resistant and long-lasting properties. However, the manufacture process is time tim e consuming. Bamboo external cladding (Hadak) is made by slicing lengths of bamboo into thin t hin sections, which open out into flat board-like segments.

HADAK CLADDING Specs from Rotary: C section for trusses, purlins, lateral braces etc. 100mm and 150mm x 40mm x 1.2mm Galvaspan G500  Z350. Wind bracing is 30mmx1.2mm high tensile strip. Trusses using 100mm max span around 7.0m and 150mm section 12.0m. For ease of transport trusses can be made in 2 sections to be screwed together on site.

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POSSIBLE DESIGN ELEMENTS The following two floor plans are suggestions made by community members. The Architect may like to use these design elements when developing preliminary designs for the centres: DESIGN SUGGESTION 1: •

L-shaped building used for accommodation, storage and meetings; clad with corrugated iron for water collection

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Large clear work space with traditional roof used for meetings and community gatherings

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Bamboo interior roof beams to cut costs

Corrugated iron roof 

tank Accommodation and/or work space

Fire Place & external kitchen

Work space/  Acm Large, clear work space with traditional thatched roof 

Storage and office

8 mt x 8mt

3mt

DESIGN SUGGESTION 2: •

Sections of the front wall may open up and out

office

tank 

like a shutter to let in extra light and create create shade and extra space during the day •

Stone exterior side wall with external fire place for preparing dye mixtures and cooking

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workroom

External enclosed office with entry off workroom directly opposite entry entry with corrugated iron roof for collecting water

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Detachable/ movable internal woven bamboo walls

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entry Shutter

Mezzanine floors for storage 12

Shutter

THE WEAVING PROCESS Cotton: The first step to making Tais starts with wit h raw cotton on the vine known as ‘kabas’. Before cotton can be spun into yarn, the raw fibres are separated from the seeds in a process known as ginning. The cotton is then hand spun and wound into balls prior to dying or weaving. Dying: All weavers have their secret recipes to create desired tones and a good dyer is seen to be similar to a medieval alchemist. Colours are specific to local areas and the t he plant life. Bark, roots, soil, mango skin and leaf of potato, cactus flowers and turmeric are but a few of the organic materials used to create the vibrant colours of traditional Tais. The Warp: Two sets of threads, the warp or vertical threads and the weft or horizontal threads are interlaced during the weaving process to create the cloth. The weaver needs help to wind the t he first lot of threads known as the warp (vertical threads). Balls of cotton are placed inside coconut shell dishes, passed back and forth and wound in precision p recision around a simple warping frame. The warp threads are then transferred to the loom and the weaving process begins. st rap Back-strap Loom: The warp is attached to a strap which hugs the weavers’ lower back, hence the name ‘back-strap loom’. With the warp stretched out in front of her, the weaver maintains the tension on the cloth by leaning back and keeping her legs straight and extended during the weaving process. The pressure on her legs and lower back creates intense pain if  the weaver sits at the loom for too long. As the women we work with are poor in a monetary sense, the looms can be assembled using local timbers, often at no cost. 13

TWO POTENTIAL SITES IN FUAT VILLAGE Fuat Village sits atop a grassy, wind-swept mountain plateau overlooking the south

Site A

coast. Houses are are situated around a large

oval

circular area with a soccer field and two

Fuat Village

community centres in the middle. The winds come off the ocean.

Site B

To site B

To Ocean

To site A

Site A

swamp

Building location

Ocean/ South

Above: looking on to the swamp lands from the front of potential building location. 14

Site A (above)– Back of village on private land Characteristics: Protected by surrounding hills and trees, large area will accommodate extensive projects; water drains to low lying area creating swamp in rainy season (potential to plant out), fertile soil, large rocks, good drainage, community concerned about isolation of site.

Site B– Highest point in village on communal c ommunal land (previous Church site) Characteristics: Very panoramic, overlooks ocean and mountains, unprotected, very windy site (Church blew down in storm), existing foundations, rocky soil, some shade, large area will accommodate extensive projects; shallow top soil, potential collaboration with the Church.

SOUTH

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Building location

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Building location 5 6 Ocean

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Further Reading and Useful Resources •

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A Permaculture Guide Book from East Timor, produced by PERMATIL (Permaculture Timor Lorosa’e), a fantastic resource illustrated by local artists, containing heaps of information about sustainable agriculture and culture. Copy on shelf at the t he ETWA office. Heru Ini Lafu: Weaving Life, 26 minute documentary film about weaving and tradition in Timor-Leste, produced by ETWA in conjunction with Djemilla Films.  Arquitectura Timorense , excellent resource developed by Portuguese Siviculturalist Rui Cinnati in the 1960’s. 19 60’s. Written in Portuguese but includes an extensive range of  photographs depicting the diversity of  traditional architecture in Timor-Leste. An ETWA member has a copy of this book. Reluctant Saviour : Australia, Indonesia and the Independence of East Timor. Detailed account of Australia’s role in the independence struggle by Dr Clinton Fernandes. Copy on shelf at tthe he ETWA office.

Websites ETWA: http://www.etwa.org.au http://www.etwa.org.au Architects for Peace: http://  www.architectsforpeace.org/index.php Alternative technology Association http://www.ata.org.au/  Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/w htt p://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/  iki/  East_Timor East Timor Profile: https://www.cia.gov/library/  https://www.cia.gov/library/  publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tt.html

 Acknowledgments: The majority of the photographs in this document are courtesy of Sally Gray and other  ETWA members. We acknowledge and appreciate their continued contributions. contributions.

Government portal: http://  www.easttimorgovernment.com/  East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) http://www.etan.org/  16