This project is for a refurbished housing community, supported by shared ecological domestic infrastructures which provide a sustainable, collective and affordable way of living for the vulnerable tenants of Terminus House in Harlow, Essex.
Homes account for around 15% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions. Designers and the general public rarely reflect on the underlying ecological issues pertaining specifically to domestic practices. Environmentally-friendly living is often associated with the prerogative of the affluent, especially when things which are 'eco-friendly' tend to cost more upfront. Conventional modes of living and domestic rituals need to be re-evaluated in ways which resonate with the early feminists of the 1850s, such as ideas of shared kitchens in cities.
By deconstructing laundry practices, a way to reconfigure rituals through shared spaces was devised. These principles were brought back to the home and expanded into a new kind of housing cooperative for existing and new populations in Harlow; one that anticipates future economic shifts and developments in the city and addresses the national housing shortage. The tower for offices and residences, as well as the car park refurbishment purports that through collectivised domestic practices and systems, the community benefits from significant ecological and cost savings.