The foundations have now been completed on the community medical center and school in Tatiba Baraibura, Jharkhand, India that combines local materials, traditional craftsmanship and modern technology. The project is being hand-built by a group of local volunteers (trainees) and stakeholders, together with a team of professionals from architecture, mining and management.

Four thick parallel walls are built using locally sourced laterite stone. Aligned along the slope of the terrain, these walls define the structure and shape of the complex. The footprint is limited to 45 x 135 meters, leaving most of the site in natural condition.The building is oriented along north-south axis and the roof has a substantial overhang – both features reduce the amount of sunlight directly hitting the walls. The walls also serve as the primary structure for defining the movement routes, open courts, and access to the complex.

Although traditional building materials such as earth and locally-sourced wood are highly sustainable, the locals typically prefer materials such as brick, concrete, steel, and galvanized iron sheets if they can afford it. The challenge of this project is to meet the sustainable needs and aspirations of the locals in an economically- and ecologically-sustainable way. The project has two objectives: to create a center for human development to benefit the local population, and also to create a replicable model of community participation that can be used for creating other social infrastructure across the region.