An Innovative Concept – The First Bottle School in Asia

A cleverly constructed schoolhouse in San Pablo, Philippines, has become the first of its kind in Asia. Conceived and constructed by Illac Diaz (its executive director) and My Shelter Foundation along with the help of dozens of donors and volunteers, the innovative building not only helps to address a shortage of classrooms in the town by providing a brand new place for the children to learn, it also saves the environment.

The school is made from thousands of discarded plastic bottles (1.5 and two-litre water and soda bottles) that are filled with adobe, a combo that is relatively cheaper than concrete and is actually three times stronger. The empty plastic bottle of soft drinks have been donated to the construction site to help in the country’s building facilities as it struggles to provide universal access to basic education. Instead of throwing them away which could pollute the environment for 700 years, they have been put into extremely good use.

In order to raise awareness about the school building, My Shelter Foundation organized a run in June, where they collected bottles from people. The collection under the project, entitled “Plastic Bottles Mo, Kinabukasan Ko” (Your Plastic Bottles, My Future), has so far resulted in the basic structure of the school, where the bottles serve as walls of the building along with a roof of corrugated iron and concrete posts. The containers are put together with cement, similar to bricks. The school has eight classrooms and is located at Barangay San Jose.

The site, which has been donated by the local government of San Pablo, may well be the prototype of a school that could be a familiar sight in many impoverished villages across the country. The inspiring project is an interesting and sturdy way to turn trash into something positive. And do stay tuned as word on the street is that there are many more schools like this one in the works.

When we talk about creative architecture and recycling, this will be one of the best example. If they can build a school out of old, thrown-out plastic coke bottles, just think of what they can do next.