Warka Water 1 | Architecture and Vision

In rural Ethiopia women and children walk several hours to collect water. Most people collect water from shallow, unprotected ponds which they share with animals and are subject to contamination. ‘Warka Water’ is a 9 m tall bamboo framework with a special fabric hanging inside capable to collect potable water from the air by condensation. The lightweight structure is designed with parametric computing, but can be built with local skills and materials by the village inhabitants. The tower is assembled in sections and installed from top down. The structure can be lifted and fixed to the ground by 4 men, no scaffolding needed. The fabric can be lowered for maintenance. Warka Water 1 is the initial version created and constructed in 7 prototypes along almost 2 years. Of those prototypes only one is still available and it is permanently installed in Bomarzo at the AV workshop outside in the field. This prototype is used to test materials and structure resistance, maintenance and reparation activities needed.