Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering

ISSN: 1346-7581 (Print) 1347-2852 (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tabe20

A Case Study of a Community Center Project

Based on Appropriate Technology as a Community
Capacity Building of Underdeveloped Country

Byung-Yun Lee & In Su Na

To cite this article: Byung-Yun Lee & In Su Na (2019): A Case Study of a Community
Center Project Based on Appropriate Technology as a Community Capacity Building of
Underdeveloped Country, Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering, DOI:
10.1080/13467581.2019.1595628

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/13467581.2019.1595628

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Publisher: Taylor & Francis & Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

Journal: Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering

DOI: 10.1080/13467581.2019.1595628
A Case Study of a Community Center Project Based on Appropriate Technology as a
Community Capacity Building of Underdeveloped Country

Byung-Yun Lee 1 and In Su Na 2

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Associate Professor, Department of Architecture, Chungbuk National University, Korea
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Assistant Professor, Division of Architecture and Urban Design, Incheon National University, Korea

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2lode0826@empas.com, isna@korea.ac.kr

Abstract

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This study is a case study on community center planning in Gondrapa Village of Mymensingh City,
Bangladesh, where the urban poor are densely populated. The goals of the plan are to build the capacity of
the community, improve the local sanitation level, improve gender equality, and create a more sustainable
urban environment. Particularly, this project was judged that the process of project planning and construction
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through participatory design and implementation with local residents contributed to enhance the local
residents’ pride and the consciousness of the residents themselves.

Keywords: Appropriate Technology; Sustainable Architecture; Community Center; Capacity Building

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1. Introduction
In order to respond to rapidly changing city growth, UN-Habitat wants to manage cities by looking at cities as
concepts of settlement space from a subjective viewpoint of production and consumption. UN-Habitat also
emphasizes high-speed urbanization, global environmental crisis consciousness, the gap between rich and poor,
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urban and rural disparity, urban development and regeneration, urban planning and implementation. It has
expanded the problem of urbanization not only to architecture but also to environmental, social and economic
aspects and emphasizes a regional approach. The 2015 UN SDGs aimed to create a comprehensive, safe,
sustainable urban and human living environment that resolves disparities and conflicts between tiers, regions and
races.
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Recently, the international community has continued its efforts to eradicate poverty in low-developed countries,
create a closer interchange among countries and expand citizens’ participation. This has led to the emergence of
research on appropriate technologies to support the development of the ability of poor users, and to create new
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opportunities based on them, as a solution to international social problems. Appropriate technology requires
architectural technology based on the characteristics and capabilities of the local area, but the existing
architectural aid system lacks understanding of local materials and technologies.
This research considers the community center project, applies appropriate technology aiming at improving
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capacity building and hygiene levels of an urban poor community within an underdeveloped state, improves
gender equality awareness and considers the process of realizing appropriate technology.

2. Theory of Appropriate Technology

A discussion of appropriate technology begins with the definition of the term "intermediate technology" from
the book Small is Beautiful written by the economist E. F. Schumacher in the 1960s. Intermediate technology is
said to be located between super technology and raw technology as "technology by the masses." It is popular and
rustic technology, which means that materials and capital can be supplied and demanded locally, emphasizing that
it is a technology that aims to actively participate at the regional level in production activities. On the other hand,
when interpreting this meaning in another way, it is widely used as the term "appropriate technology" in view of
being able to evoke terminological diversion (Lee, 2016).
After all, appropriate technology is technology that helps to develop the capabilities of the poor and to create
new opportunities based on it; that is to say, it is designed to adapt to the environment of the poor. It means
technology that enables them to continue activities to increase their income by providing goods and services

Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering/November 20XX/111 1

necessary for daily living. Appropriate technology is technology that minimizes damage to the environment and
other people by using the technology to emphasize human progress, not technology advancement. In particular,
appropriate technology tries to solve problems that could never be resolved using gloomy, advanced technologies
in poor countries(Mun, 2012). The term appropriate technology is defined as follows; the general definition is
very diverse (Kim et al, 2011).
- Use at low cost and
- Utilize materials available locally.
- Create employment by utilizing local technology and labour.

- The size of the product must be adequate and the method of use must be simple.
- It must be able to be used without knowledge of a specific field.
- It must be able to be created for themselves.
- Draw people's cooperative work and contribute to the development of the local community.

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- Utilize renewable energy resources.

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- People using the technology must be able to understand the technology.
- Be able to change according to the situation.
- Does not include intellectual property rights, consulting fees, import duties, etc.

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- Match the culture and interests of local people.
In terms of industry, technology and materials, the above 12 types of conditions can be categorized into six:
feasibility, sustainability, convenience, diversity, regionality and environment.

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Table 1. Categories of Appropriate Technology
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Categories Criteria
Industrial Feasibility
Sustainability
Technological Convenience
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Diversity
Material Regionality
Environment
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3. Process of Community Center Project

Site Selection
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The target area was Gondrapa Village in Mymensingh City, located in the northern part of the Dhaka division,
where the urban poor are densely populated in the area subject to the new master plan, and the population of the
town is 2,715 people. Most of the population of the town maintains its livelihood through daily labour, and this
daily labor become extremely impoverished when the labor is seriously affected by a period of non-utilization of
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the annual labour force. As a result, the area has difficulty withdrawing from long term poverty. Under such
circumstances, local government support is very poor, and the basic sanitation environment is bad. In that area,
some ethnic groups are mobilized and the village community organization is relatively active. The unification and
integration of the community was identified as one of main issues.
In terms of sanitation level, the main source of water supply in the village is a standing column well, and three
tubed wells installed in the village were in charge of the entire town’s water supply. Also, only 8.6% of the total
number of toilets is equipped with drainage facilities. Particularly, the majority of women bathe in an insecure
external space.

Table 2. Site Overview

JAABE vol.X No.X November 20XX 3

Location Gondrapa, Mymensingh City, Bangladesh

Site Area 128 ㎡

- Suburban slum area densely populated

Issues

- Lack of public and community facilities

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- Poor sanitation and water pollution

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Fig. 1. Site Location and Photos

Project Goals and Main Strategies

This project was promoted with the following goals. First, this project aimed to strengthen the capacity of urban
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poor communities through securing community space. In the case of developing countries and under-developed
countries, as the urbanization is rapid and the settlement systems become unstable, the slum areas are produced
widely. Although community activities are active, a public forum for that community space is often very short.
Second, it aimed to improve the community’s hygiene level. For slum areas around large cities, basic water and
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sanitation systems are poor and are very susceptible to disease, so it is urgent to secure basic hygiene levels.
Third, it aimed to improve gender equality awareness at the regional level through the expansion of sanitation
facilities. In the case of slum areas, due to poor hygiene levels, women are exposed to the outside, causing social
consciousness to deteriorate or causing unprotected criminal circumstances. Finally, it aimed to create a
sustainable urban environment. In consideration of the ripple effect of the surroundings and the post-management
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of buildings, this project sought for a scheme that could match the level of technology and labour of the area, and
accordingly, introduction of appropriate technology was considered.
In addition, according to the above objectives, a community center plan was prepared and cooperation with
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diverse entities was carried out to secure the site, plan, design and construct. Gondrapa Village has four ethnic
groups with a total population of 2,715 people, and there are many community-based groups active in the area, so
about 41% of the village population (1,045 people of total 1,111 people, 94.1% are women in the vulnerable
strata) are actively participating M organization which was the most representative community based
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organization(CBO). The M organization is co-chaired by six leaders who work with international NGOs like UN-
Habitat to provide villagers with income growth, educational services etc. Recently, elementary schools have been
opened to promote basic education for children in the village. M organization owned a small site of 128 square
meters in the town, but concrete business plans and execution budgets were not prepared. M organization showed
a very favorable position to the proposal of the community center project, and actively opened various opinions on
detailed programs, proposals and construction methods through consultation.
Meanwhile, in connection with the introduction of the appropriate technology scheduled from the beginning,
the university's sustainable laboratory participated for the implementation of the appropriate technology method
considering the level of construction labour technology within the region, durable construction methods and
techniques utilizing available and utilizable materials were discussed and grown. The program consulted by
architectural company, university’s sustainable laboratory, CBO combines the village community office to
maintain and operate it as the space for women and children who are vulnerable people in the town. A community
center was planned to operate for the CBO office, educational institutions including classrooms and reading rooms
for young children not supported by formal education. The basic design plan initially prepared according to the

JAABE vol.X No.X November 20XX 4

planning of sanitation facilities consisting of water supply facilities, toilets and bathing facilities for the safety and
hygiene of women in a certain area is as follows.

Table 3. 1st Planning Summary and Basic Design

Site Area 128.0 ㎡

Floor Area 120.9 ㎡
Coverage Ratio 47.4%
FAR 94.50%
Program
1st Floor Community 25.7
Sanitation 35.0
2nd Floor Library 19.6

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Classroom 21.8
Etc. 18.8

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JAABE vol.X No.X November 20XX 5

 Fig. 2. Basic Design and Perspective

4. Design Development and Construction

After the basic design plan was confirmed, a design workshop was held in which three experts from the project
team, CBO, residents and local government entities participated together. The first workshop was held for
cooperative and sustainable construction through user participation. The second workshop was heading to make a
detailed design of the center by experts. The third workshop was for the residents' maintenance of community
center.
In the first workshop on space composition and the sustainable construction method, the placement and scale of
the space were determined. The project team made two proposals with an alley and courtyard as their central
concepts, and selected a fair type preference, which is highly utilized in multiple gatherings and event spaces in
the community. In the arrangement of the detailed space, the community office, the bathing facility and the

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educational facility were adjusted to reflect the needs and culture of the residents. The community conference

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room is located in the first floor where contact with residents occurs easily and several groups such as M
organization organize various programs such as basic economic education, hygiene education and civil society
education for the residents. In the case of a sanitary facility, the scale of the bathing space for women and children

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who are socially vulnerable is applied at 150 percent compared to men, reflecting the direction of the toilet, the
type of toilet, bath action etc.
Educational facilities are planned according to the necessity of the classroom and after school learning space in

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classrooms and libraries, but make maximum use of the limited area by creating a mezzanine space utilizing
bamboo. The University's sustainable laboratory and international NGO can provide local residents with profit by
their participating in the production and use of compressed interlocking earth blocks (CIEB) as an
environmentally friendly material to minimize energy use in natural drying, and an adopted construction method
using wood and bamboo produced locally.
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Fig. 3. Final Design and Plan

JAABE vol.X No.X November 20XX 6

 The second workshop was to combine of the CIEB block and tree fittings, to join waterproofing and utilize the
bamboo for courtyard roof, classroom mezzanine, library bookcase. Local materials were for excellent utilization
and on-site construction for natural light. In the third and last workshop, the management staffs and organization
that ensures the community center is not dedicated privately as a common space, in order to ensure sustainable
operation of the community center.

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JAABE vol.X No.X November 20XX 7

 Table. 4. Final Program after workshops

Site Area 128.0 ㎡

Floor Area 127.1 ㎡
Coverage Ratio 57.1%
FAR 99.30%
Program 1st Floor Office 26.8
Sanitation 21.0

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2nd Floor Library 10.7
Classroom 23.2

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Etc. 18.8

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JAABE vol.X No.X November 20XX 8

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Fig. 4. Design and Field Workshops

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Fig. 5. Construction and Completion
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Acronym
SDGs Sustainable Development Goals
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CBO Community Based Organization

NGO Non-Governmental Organization
CIEB Compressed Interlocking Earth Blocks
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5. Conclusion
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During a period of design and construction we could find three issues through this project. Firstly, this project
applied appropriate technology for sustainable management. Community center must secure community office,
library for young children and sanitation facilities for women. Mixture of CIEB and bamboo were optimal
alternative for residents because materials are available locally and construction method are manageable by
themselves. Secondly, this project aims to collaborative design and construction process. The four times
workshops consist of design and construction also which included sanitation, governance and economy education.
All those program was heading for enhancing community capacity for low income and less educated people.
Thirdly, this project showed a model of role allocation of each participant. There were four sectors which were
university’s research lab, architectural company, NGO and CBO. University’s lab and architectural company led
design and construction and NGO held workshops and proceeded approval process. CBO was a active negotiator
between professionals and residents. It is judged that appropriate technology, collaborative process and
participants’ cooperation are key factors of completion of this project.

JAABE vol.X No.X November 20XX 9

Acknowledgement
This work was supported by Incheon National University Research Grant in 2017.

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