Technology meets ecology

Elsa Zaldívar takes leftover pieces of a vegetable sponge and mixes them with other vegetable matter and recycled plastic to form strong, lightweight panels that can easily be assembled into simple structures, including houses.

"We want to find sustainable housing alternatives for the poor, while also discovering new markets for their agricultural products. This is a perfect combination.”

Her technological, eco-friendly solution to her nation’s housing shortage will help save what remains of Paraguay’s rapidly diminishing forests.

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Design solutions

Zaldívar’s passion for helping the poor led to an invitation to participate in Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum’s latest exhibition

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Ancient Giant

New formula for loofah housing

By shredding loofah sponge and mixing it with cassava scraps, Elsa Zaldívar has created a plaster that can be applied to existing houses

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