More DW Blogs DW.COM

Generation Change

Young Chilean architect builds houses to last

Earlier this year, fires tore through Chile’s port city of Valparaíso, killing 15 people and burning nearly 3,000 homes to the ground.

Since then, 28-year-old Carolina Moraes, an architect who specializes in social and sustainable housing, has been volunteering her time to help some of the families who lost their homes.

She’s not settling for short-term solutions, but is teaching the locals to help themselves.

Listen to the report by Eilís O’Neill from Valparaíso, Chile:

Carolina Moraes is building houses that are better than what local residents live in before the fire (Photo: E. O'Neill)

Carolina Moraes is building houses that are better than what local residents live in before the fire (Photo: E. O’Neill)

Cerro Merced is a hill in Valparaíso that was hit particularly hard by the fire (Photo: E. O'Neill)

Cerro Merced is a hill in Valparaíso that was hit particularly hard by the fire (Photo: E. O’Neill)

Many of the families affected by the fire had no legal title to the land they were living on (Photo: E. O'Neill)

Many of the families affected by the fire had no legal title to the land they were living on (Photo: E. O’Neill)

Adobe and stucco are essential materials (Photo: E. O'Neill)

Adobe and stucco are essential materials for volunteer Per Johansson (Photo: E. O’Neill)

Date

Tuesday 22.07.2014 | 12:42

Tags

architecture, chile, Latin America, sustainability

Share

Previous Post

|

|

Next Post

Related Content

Chilean teen fights homophobia with education 04/01/2014

Chile is one of South America's most socially conservative countries, and discrimination against gays and lesbians is still widespread. In March 2012, 24-year-old Daniel Zamudio was tortured and murdered after his attackers learned of his sexual orientation.

Hope for Chile’s poorest 11/12/2013

Emil Schneider, a 19-year-old from Germany, was shocked to see with his own eyes that the poorest of the poor in Chile are not having their basic needs met. That's why he signed up as a volunteer with TECHO, an organization that works with at-risks family in the slums.

Village children planting a future 06/13/2012

High up in the Andes, a new climate project called "Valley and earth for our children" is teaching young village children how to grow plants and get to know Mother Nature and how to better protect her.

Tags
employment sports Africa gender environment human rights education Germany refugees Canada Asia culture poverty South Africa women youth Kenya art China Portugal Berlin children orphans Afghanistan violence France Argentina activism health Latin America school teacher politics music dance agriculture India Middle East recycling democracy
Recent posts
Blogroll
- 52 Projects A Canadian proves sustainable living is possible by making one new thing a week for a year.
- Africare Africare’s programs focus on four principal interrelated areas: Food Security, Water, Health, and Emergency Response.
- Amnesty International's Youth and Student program AI is a global movement committed to defending those who are denied justice or freedom.
- Be the Cause Be the Cause is a Network of individuals who not only wish to make a difference in the world, but also wish to change their own lives in the process.
- Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative DNDi is a collaborative, patients’ needs-driven, non-profit drug research and development organization that is developing new treatments for neglected diseases.
- envision Young people making a difference.
- European Youth Forum For the rights of youth.
- Futuro Si Initiative for children in Latin America.
- Global Fund for Women Promoting women’s economic security, health, education and leadership.
- Global Youth Connect Empowering youth to advance human rights and create a more just world.
- Hedwig and Robert Samuel Foundation The Hedwig and Robert Samuel Foundation is a non-profit organization which supports socially deprived children and youths in the areas of education and vocational training in Central America and Asia.
- Internation Citizen Service (Facebook page) ICS, launched by the UK government, is a global volunteering experience which supports young people from all backgrounds to make a real difference to some of the world’s poorest people.
- International Peace Institute Promoting the prevention and settlement of conflict.
- John Dau Foundation The John Dau Foundation is fulfilling the dream of Lost Boy and genocide survivor John Dau to provide healthcare in the war-torn region of South Sudan by building and sustaining medical clinics and training community health workers.
- Nano Control Nano-Control has got involved with healthy indoor air as well as research and elimination of the risks and helps people harmed.
- Open Doors An organization helping orphaned children in Romania
- PCI – Positive Community Impact PCI is a nonprofit health and humanitarian aid organization dedicated to preventing disease, improving community health, and promoting sustainable development worldwide.
- Singing for Change Fabian and Viv want to raise money for charities all over the world by taking singing challenges from donors.
- Taking IT Global The largest online community of youth interested in global issues and creating positive change.
- The Art of Non-Conformity Unconventional strategies for life, work, and travel.
- The Free Child Project The mission of The Freechild Project is to advocate, inform, and celebrate social change led by and with young people around the world, especially those who have been historically denied the right to participate.
- Turtle Foundation blog Volunteers on Cape Verde protect endangered giant sea turtles.
- What Kids Can Do Voices and work from the next generation.
- YMAD Youth Making a Difference – Worldwide
- YouthNet Celebrating 16 years of supporting young people online.
Archives
Archives