The project is an architectural research and design project investigating how regional raw materials — particularly local soil — can be utilized in West Jutland as sustainable building materials for a new neighborhood center in the heterogeneous district of International Kvarter in Esbjerg. The project begins with a comprehensive analysis of the bioregion and its geological, climatic, and social conditions. Since the site includes the planned construction of a stormwater retention lake, special attention was given to exploring how the excavated material from this intervention could be transformed into a valuable building resource. In collaboration with Bauhaus Earth, extensive DIN-standard-related analyses and tests of the local clay soils were conducted, ultimately leading to the development of a concrete architectural ensemble.

At the core of the project is an open, multifunctional neighborhood center conceived as a social hub and place of encounter. The building is based on the innovative concept of a circular, self-contained “field factory” for producing earthen bricks directly on site using the excavated material from the retention basin. All structural components of the pavilion are simultaneously part of this preceding production infrastructure. After the construction process is completed, the workshop halls are not dismantled but instead repurposed and made accessible to the community. In this way, the project creates a lasting architectural remembrance of the collective production process and establishes a strong local identity.

Attached greenhouses, initially used for the solar-powered, climate-neutral drying of the clay bricks, later assume a passive climatic function during the building’s operation. In winter, they channel solar heat into the building, while in summer they enable effective natural ventilation through the chimney effect.  The neighborhood center is complemented by a student housing complex consisting of three building volumes with 90 micro-apartments, intended to support the neighboring university and reactivate the district. Through a split-level spatial organization and inserted bathroom modules detached from the primary structure, the apartments achieve a high level of living quality within a minimal footprint. Access is provided through external gallery walkways that create semi-private threshold spaces and deliberately encourage social interaction and community. Structurally, the ensemble is based on an innovative hybrid system: load-bearing earthen bricks produced in the field factory from the excavated soil of the retention basin are combined with reused reinforced concrete segments from former wind turbine towers in the ground floor structures, transported from the nearby harbor. As many of these towers can no longer be used for energy production due to the limited lifespan of other turbine components, the project gives them a new structural purpose. In this way, the project links local material cycles with the reuse of industrial components while significantly reducing emissions and resource consumption.

The three buildings frame a central public square activated by communal and public uses on the ground floor. These zones form the social heart of the neighborhood and intentionally open the project beyond the student community to the wider public. Overall, the project presents a prototypical approach to resource-conscious, site-specific architecture that brings together material, construction, use, and community within a circular system. 

The full project booklet with amazing reasearch, documentation and and all the other information can be found here.