Recently in About Us Category
January 29, 2014
Whatever Happened to the $300 House?
April 9, 2011
Shraya's Interview: The $300 House
The following questions were sent to VG and Christian by Shraya, a 4th grader in Miss Mancosh's class. Her mentor for this project is Miss Emily Pasquale. Thanks for your questions, Shraya!
We
are not a formal organization - simply a collection of concerned
individuals and companies trying to find a solution to the problem of
low-cost housing for the poorest people on our planet. So our "job" is to
help people come together - across organizations, businesses and
governments - to solve the problem.
How do you plan to get the money to construct these houses?
Does your organization operate all around the world?
Yes
and no. We have members from all the different continents who have
signed on because they are interested in solving the problem. But we
are not a formal organization, so we don't spend any money operating
anywhere.
What are challenges in building houses outside the USA?
Great
question. The biggest challenge for poor people anywhere is money -
they don't have enough money to buy land or to buy a house. Sometimes
they lack the money to even rent a place to live and have to resort to
living in anything they can find that gives them some protection from
the elements.
Our hope is that we can create affordable houses which are comfortable
and durable enough to provide the poor with a safe place to live. Every
country has different issues, and we're going to have to understand what
they are to be successful.
Are you constructing any houses in India currently?
No,
not yet. But India is one of the countries we want to build a few test
houses, to see how they work. Other countries we are thinking about to
start this project are Haiti and Indonesia.
Are you working with other charities? If so what are they?
We
plan on working with charities and businesses. You see, we think
businesses can make money and help poor people at the same time. It's
simply a matter of designing the house at a price that poor people can
afford. We are also working with non-profits like the Solar Electric
Light Fund, and shortly, we hope, with Partners In Health. In India we
are talking to a number of non-profits as well. Of course, we welcome
everyone!
What type of problems have you encountered so far?
What
problems? If it was easy, the problem would have been solved a long
time ago. So we don't really view our difficulties as problems, but
rather as a way to learn. You can't run without falling, and we're
learning to fall quite well!
How has the response been so far about this initiative?
Tremendous.
We have people like you writing us - and we have almost 800 people from
all over the world who want to do something about this issue. It's
great!
What is it like being in this organization?
It's fun to
try to do something that most people think can't be done. And what will
be really cool is if we succeed! Wish us luck - and send in your design
for the $300 House.
VG and I love that kids are getting into this project along w/ the adults. Here's an example of a submission from another concerned citizen of the planet >>
November 27, 2010
The $300 House: About Us
The $300 House was first described in a Harvard Business Review blog post by Vijay Govindarajan and Christian Sarkar.
Initially, we just wanted to put the concept out there, but now, due to the tremendous response, we've decided to see how far we can go toward making this idea a reality.
Our goal is to bring together people, institutions, and businesses in a "creation space" to:
1) turn this idea a reality,
and
2) test it out in the field.
In terms of progress, we've just begun:
The following people and organizations are advisors for the project:
- Gaurav Bhalla, Knowledge Kinetics
- Alex Bogusky, Fearless Cottage
- John Seely Brown, Deloitte Center for the Edge
- Bob Freling, Solar Electric Light Fund
- Vijay Govindarajan, Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College
- John Hagel III, Deloitte Center for the Edge
- Fred Murrell, Chair of Graphic Design/Interactive Media, Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design
- David Smith, Affordable Housing Institute
- Douglas K. Smith, The Rapid Results Institute
- Andreas Stavropoulos, XS | Land Architects
- Greg Thomas, Director of Special Projects, Singapore Management University
- Christian Sarkar
Let us know if you want to join the project! [Use the sign-up form at the top-right of this page >>]
JOIN our Google Group here >>
Thanks for your interest and support,
Vijay Govindarajanand
Christian Sarkar