Projects by the students of the
Bachelor Major in Art, Major in Design,
and the Master in Eco-Social Design

Hempcrete Brick

Student
Lecturer/s
Course/s

MA Practice Based Course

Year

2022

semester

BRICK FOR THE FUTURE – Hempcrete for the repopulation of corals and fishes.

Over the past few decades, we have lost over 40% of our natural coral reefs. The World Resources Institute predicts that 90% of coral reefs will be endangered by 2030 and all by 2050.

A rough texture of the material encourages coral larvae to attach and thrive, subsequently attracting multiple marine species. Currently, all the statues and underwater museums are mainly made of concrete, a material responsible for around 8 % of global CO2 emissions. For this reason, new materials are being researched that can replace concrete while maintaining its characteristics suitable for the regeneration of coral reefs.

The hexagonal shape is often recurrent in nature for this reason the idea arises from the possibility of recreating an “underwater hive” in hempcrete that acts as a shelter for smaller fishes and at the same time as an anchor point for corals and algae.