Vernacular Architecture and the Impacts of Climate Change
Climate change has altered many life events in the past twenty years. Ironically, within the past decade, the impacts of climate change have drastically impacted every country in the world. The implications that have progressed from worse air and water quality have also increased the spread of disease. Throughout the United States, extreme weather events have altered public health safety and welfare. With many hurricanes and tornadoes causing havoc in the south, vernacular design has become a staple within these communities. So what is vernacular architecture? Vernacular architecture is a local or regional construction method using traditional materials and resources from the area where the building is located. In other words, vernacular architecture uses design related to its surrounding context. It is aware of the specific geographic features and cultural aspects transmitted from person to person or generation to generation, reaffirming an identity.
Shifts in climate change impact every ecosystem, function, goods, services, and nature. Each year, millions of people have begun to succumb to the perils of climate by losing their jobs or homes when a substantial storm hits (i.e., any hurricane, tornado, or snowstorm), and they become displaced from their homes. So why haven’t we begun to integrate vernacular architecture within these regions? Retaining this during climate change is essential to live and survive. For example, in 2005, Hurricane Katrina displaced many people in the area, and one local foundation (Brad Pitt’s Make It Right Foundation), built 109 affordable vernacular homes. The goal was to create multiple dwellings through vernacular know-how, giving locals the knowledge to quickly construct homes with local materials and labor. For a couple of months, these homes were a success but eventually became a construction-related disaster from termites, rotting wood, flooding, and mold. They missed the essentials from waterproofing, overhangs, simple rain gutters that are necessary to withstand New Orleans’ subtropical climate, and heavy rainfall. So how can we take this example and create a footprint for effective vernacular architecture during climate change?
The efficiency of performance within a design is knowledge, awareness, understanding, and intuition about the natural environment, climate, topography, natural hazards, and site suitability. To create efficient, long-lasting architecture during climate change, we need to make a process that involves empirical knowledge of the town’s tradition, community lifestyle, ritual, economics, defenses, religion, locally available materials, technology, and humanitarian assistance.
The main goal of vernacular architecture is to recognize historic architecture and integrate man’s needs for shelter through universal design. Protection from climate, privacy, defense, nature, and social factors will always be a drive within the building process. The goal is to continue accessing knowledge and transmitting your skills and values affecting efficiency and performance to create a broad spectrum of vernacular know-how during chaotic climate change disasters. There are two different types of vernacular architecture: tropical and traditional. In either circumstance, their principles achieve the same goal of building needs. Tropical vernacular architecture uses design to adapt to local needs using available materials from the region and reflecting local traditions and cultural practices. Traditional vernacular architecture transmits from person to person verbally and at any level of society, not only by the common people, to attempt to generate energy with contemporary design and construction. Below is a shortlist of critical characteristics to achieve a solid vernacular know-how:
Orientation
Buildings should be oriented to produce advantageous thermal conditions regarding the area in which this building will be located.
Shading
The central aspect of vernacular architecture is overhanging eaves to increase the function of protection and favorable weather conditions.
Ventilation
Currently, this type of character is being used more within areas like Louisiana, Florida, Texas, etc., where humidity is a significant factor and cross ventilation needs to be regulated. It is vital within hot and humid climates.
Shape + Human Movement
As with many simple designs, form is a significant factor in the spatial organization in controlling the overall performance of the building.
Materials and Façade
During these circumstances’ materials are scarce. Access to resources at this time requires a proper understanding of the structural behavior of materials, durability, reusability, recyclability, manufacturing process or access to local retail, and transportation to construction locations.
Surrounding Context
Your design should make sense with the rest of the natural environment. It’s okay to be disruptive as long as the design has a purpose. The main purpose of this characteristic is to design with the intent of preventing future disasters due to hurricanes, tornadoes, snowstorms, etc.
These are just a few characteristics needed to adapt design during a disaster and create a quick response. Each community is different, and the experiences and knowledge within those scales differ significantly. It’s time to reestablish the emergency assistance for effective disaster management and climate change adaptation at local scales from preparedness, response, reduction, recovery, and obtaining the knowledge transmitted through cultural aspects.