From the ‘Living IN Technology’ department:

A German architect has unveiled what may be the answer to housing migrants, refugees, the urban poor and people left homeless following natural disasters such as tsunamis, hurricanes and tornadoes.

Gerd Niemoeller says his 36 sq. m / 390 sq. ft. Universal World House (UWH) is light, weather resistant, environmentally sound and easy to build. And very inexpensive.

What’s more interesting, from a technology standpoint, is that it’s made of specially-formed cardboard. But not just any cardboard. The UWH is constructed using materials made from resin-soaked cellulose fibre from recycled cardboard packaging material and newspapers.

The House features eight built-in double beds and a sealed-off bathroom space. The limited space inside the UWH multi-tasks much like a mobile home, with tables and other furnishings that either fill multiple roles or fold up out of the way when they are not needed. The entire exterior wall of the kitchen module can be tipped out for ventilation purposes.

Neimoeller’s first customer, an oil development company operating in Angola and Nigeria, have placed an initial order for 2,000 UWHs.