Transdisciplinarity in rammed earth construction for contemporary practice

For centuries rammed earth has been a method of construction in various parts of the world. It is an economical building technique as earth is an abundant cheap resource. It is durable, safe and a desirable building technique for hot climates. This paper is discussing a workshop activity in building with sustainable rammed earth construction methods in Egypt. It adds to previous research in vernacular rammed earth a transdisciplinary and participatory dimension. Believing that they are assets to promote for rammed earth benefits and applicability in contemporary practice. The central philosophy of this workshop is to enable researchers, practitioners, decision makers and interested laymen from different disciplines to interact in a transdisciplinary action approach to awaken the importance of adopting green affordable building practices. This paper shows how to initiate a low cost and an energy efficient earth buildings and discuss the criteria on which rammed earth structures is assessed. ? 2015 Taylor Francis Group.