Bangladesh's 'tiny houses' tackle giant flood challenge
An award-winning architect in Bangladesh, one of the nations most at risk from flooding driven by climate change, has developed an ingenious two-floor housing solution to help people survive what scientists warn is a growing threat.
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The "Khudi Bari" or "tiny house"—resilient homes made on bamboo stilts rising out of the floodwaters that are also easy to move to safer locations when needed—offer hope to millions.
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Winner of the Aga Khan Award for architecture for her design of the Bait-ur-Rouf Mosque in Dhaka, and designer of the country's Independence Monument, Tabassum developed prototype shelters to test them against flash flooding and storm winds.
"It can be assembled and disassembled very easily," she told AFP, calling it a "climate preparedness" project, with each house costing around $450 to build, including labor.
"It's a mobile modular system, so that's why it can be moved from one location to another," said Tabassum, the winner of Britain's Soane Medal for architecture in 2021, including for her tiny house work.
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