BRIDGING MATERIAL LIVES
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Willow Technologies is a sustainable materials and building technology company founded in 2017 to drive the research and development of biobased, agricultural by-product and earthern materials into building technologies.
Willow collaborates with local and global partners — from start-ups, private institutions and govermental organisations— to accelerate the research, development, exhibition and deployment of low carbon technologies across sectors.
Willow works across a range of research, development and diffusion projects using biobased technologies including material prototypes, research publications, exhibitions, buildings, testbed/sites and regenerative farming practices.
Featured Work
2022+ El Anatsui Studio**
2022+ Building Materials & Climate Report
2021 Flood Control Project
2021+ Oryza Glaberrima Indigenous Rice **
2019 Nairobi Ecological Pavilion
2017+ Global Mamas FTZ
2018+ The Ghanaian Dining Table and Plate
2017-18 Prototype 0
+ ongoing
** project page under development
Future by Design
︎Accra, Ghana︎Helensburgh, Scotland
︎2021
︎Partners: Cove Park Scotland, Tom Morton (Arc Architects), Ashesi University D-Lab, Macintosh School of Architecture (Glasgow), The Midunu Institute
︎Funded by: British Council ADP “Future by Design”and Art and Business Scotland
Supported by the British Council’s Future by Design program, Willow worked with Cove Park and Tom Morton of Arc Architects, Scotland to explore how design can address flooding caused by climate change in two sisters sites across the Atlantic.
The design of a landscape installation in response to flooding conditions in the southwest corner of Accra’s largest public green space, Efua Sutherland Children’s Park. Responding to the shifting urban water flow and change in rainfall patterns, the installation aims to slow down, store and use water discharged into the park using high water retention soil media and flood tolerant flora. An experimental demonstration “bioswale” was built at the Efua Sutherland park in a section of the park that is prone to flooding due to the changes in the surrounding urban context waterways. Bioswales are systems used throughout cities around the world particularly in hardscaped urban areas, to slow down and absorb water runoff before draining into the municipal water system. Typically bioswales are composed of different grades of permeable stones, soil retention media as well as a range of flood tolerant flora that are able to absorb water according to rainfall patterns onsite.
In collaboration Scottish architect Tom Morton, of Arc Architects, Willow participated in the design of a hybrid, eco-sustainable ‘open classroom’ for Cove Park, developed collaboratively with a multi-disciplinary cohort of young people from across Scotland and Macintosh School of Architecture.
Featured Links:
British Council, Future by Design Winners
Future by Design Panel Discussion
Cove Park Classroom
Prototype 0
︎Accra, Ghana︎2017
︎Partners: GeoIntell Housing, Hive Construction, Bamboo for Integrated Dev. Ghana, SpaceAccra
> Funding: Willow Technologies, Atlantic Climate Control Ltd., Ramon Grendene, Orthner & Orthner and donors.
In 2017, Willow initiated and developed a built showcase for innovative building products and technologies in Ghana. The structure was envisioned to become a long-term research platform for testing and understanding the performance of Ghanaian building technologies as well as an interactive education and programming space for children at Mmofra Foundation Park, Dzorwulu.
‘Prototype Zero’ is the first in a series of building projects by collaborative Ghanaian startups aimed at showcasing and improving the use and design of local materials as an affordable, high-quality alternative to imported building materials for construction. In partnership with research universities and industrial partners, Prototype 0 is envisioned as an open research and showcase public platform, providing educational programming and a physical testbed for players in local building sector to brave experimentation and dialogue around the economic, cultural, environmental and technical challenge and opportunities for local material technologies and design.
Featured Links:
MESH Ghana’s “Building with Local Materials in Ghana”