Hunnarshala Foundation
A not-for-profit organisation based in Bhuj, Gujarat, working towards sustainable habitats. Founded by Sandeep Virmani, an environmentalist with training in Architecture. Has been working with communities all over India for over 30 years, celebrating their traditional knowledge in water management, food production, animal breed and seed conservation.
Sandeep Virmani
For over three decades, Sandeep has been living and working with indigenous communities in Kutch. An environmentalist at heart, he has trained as an architect and worked with communities all over India, building with natural materials and revitalizing their traditional building crafts.
He has set up two institutions – Hunnarshaala Foundation which works on built habitats, and Sahjeevan, which has enabled marginalized communities to regenerate and conserve the ecologies and reinvigorate their livelihoods, including conserving traditional water management systems, wildlife conservation, pastoralism, organic farming and crop seed conservation. Sahjeevan has set up the Centre for Pastoralism that works through partners in eight states in India and hosts the Living Lightly – Journey’s with Pastoralists exhibition.
Hunnarshala Foundation has over the last two decades pioneered a vocabulary of architecture that uses natural materials, harnesses the diverse traditional building skills of artisans and strengthens the voice of the marginalised in cities and villages.
Sandeep looks to painting, story-telling, yoga and the fascinating world of insects to fuel his forays at work.
مؤسسة هونارشالا
منظمة غير هادفة للربح مقرها في بوج، غوجارات، وهي تعمل من أجل الموائل المستدامة. أسسها سانديب فيرماني، عالم بيئي متخصص في الهندسة المعمارية، حيث تعمل المؤسسة مع المجتمعات في جميع أنحاء الهند منذ أكثر من 30 عاماً لتحتفي بمعارفهم التقليدية في إدارة المياه، وإنتاج الغذاء، وسلالات الحيوانات، والحفاظ على البذور.
Sharjah Architecture Triennal Website