Better Living Challenge

News

We’re launching BLC round two soon!

Dec 14, 2016

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The second round of the BLC aims to demonstrate how a design process can deliver innovations to improve self-build processes. We are concluding a year-long programme of community workshops and stakeholder engagements as part of the preparation for the next Challenge.

According to Lisa Parkes, the Design Support programme manager at the CCDI which project manages the BLC, the research phase for the next round of BLC 2 involved significant work with community-based organisations, intermediaries and community leaders to establish the needs.

“We have done extensive research into community needs, financial research into the informal housing context and affordability, as well as research into innovation models employed successfully by other organisations globally. The BLC 2 aims to deliver impact through working with a large and varied group of stakeholders and will use a cooperative challenge model approach, rooted in collaboration and participation, instead of  a competition format,” says Lisa.

Taking into account the research findings and key stakeholders’ needs that have been unearthed, the following objectives were identified for the project:

  • Expanding home-owners’ capacity to upgrade their homes, including self-build financing and DIY
  • Enabling informal contractors to expand their income capacity, while greasing the cogs of the waste economy, and working with the construction materials supply chains
  • Focussing on the development continuum, including being involved with activities and projects related to incremental upgrading such as the human settlement framework

“We are currently finalising detailed planning for the implementation for the BLC 2,” adds Lisa. “We will be announcing details about next steps soon.”

Check out our new BLC 2 infographic on the website home page here for more on the model. Join our Facebook page here for updates in 2017.