Summer School Building with Earth

In August 2024, we welcomed 36 participants from 22 countries to Brussels for a unique, hands-on experience in sustainable construction. Over five intensive days, the Summer School Building with Earth offered in-depth training in earth-based building techniques—rammed earth, earthen blocks, and clay plasters—paired with lectures, discussions, and local project visits.

Despite being one of the oldest construction materials in the world, raw earth is still underrepresented in modern European architecture. Yet it offers remarkable environmental, structural, and sensory properties—it's local, unfired, reusable, and naturally beautiful. This workshop was created to reconnect future architects and builders with this essential, ecological material.

Learning by doing was central: each day started with a lecture and Q&A, followed by practical, guided workshops led by expert practitioners. We tested earth, moulded blocks, built walls, and applied plasters. In addition, we visited innovative architecture projects in Brussels that integrate geo- and bio-based materials.

Our participants came from diverse backgrounds—students, architects, engineers, and makers—but shared one goal: to gain practical knowledge and forge new connections around sustainable building practices. The atmosphere was open, collaborative, and energizing.

This summer school was more than just a course—it was a launchpad for future projects and networks, sparking new ideas and reaffirming earth’s place in the future of construction.

PROGRAM

Introduction - General introduction to earth as a building material, through lectures, workshops (extended Carazas test) and a presentation of BC Materials’ premises. Field tests of a natural earth mix to recognize its type and assess its possible uses in construction, through lecture and hands-on exercises.

Parallel training workshops - In addition to the technical training itself, each workshop day starts with a 1-hour lecture, including a Q&A session, covering the use of raw earth construction and architecture.

The rest of the day is dedicated to learning one specific earth technique:

• rammed earth
• blocks: adobes + compressed earth blocks + vibro-compacted earth blocks + masonry
• earth plasters
   

Project visits - Visits of relevant recent projects in Brussels that include geo-based (earthen) and bio-based materials. 
 
 

This Summer School was organised by
-BC studies & BC materials 
-ULB, Faculty of architecture La Cambre Horta ULB
-Living lab Earth blocks
 

In collaboration with 
- ACRUMA (Arianna Fabrizi de’Biani)
-Atelier Kara (Timur Ersen)
-Hasselt University (Nijs de Vries)
 
 

With the support of 
Brussels City
Ambassade de France en Belgique
Bruxelles Environnement