Student architects to build residence from of recycled boxes

January 30, 2012 by Rochel Leah
Goldblatt 

Constructing building models with materials from Rebel
Recycling saves green in two ways

Architecture students plan to use 25,000 recycled boxes this
semester to build models — and construct a full-size house.

Rebel Recycling donated hundreds of cardboard boxes to the UNLV
School of Architecture and the students are using the boxes to
build all their models throughout this semester.

At the end of the semester, the class hopes to submit a
life-size living space built out of recycled cardboard to
RecycleMania, a competition among universities in the United
States.

The project will be completed by Earth Day and the final model
will be displayed in the Student Union courtyard.

“I don’t know how far we are going to go with this project,”
said graduate assistant Nathalia Ellis, “but we do have
furniture designs made out of cardboard.”

Using old boxes shrinks the students’ carbon footprint, but it
increases their workload because the cardboard is more
difficult to work with than the modeling board they are used to
using.

However, that doesn’t stop the students from trying their
hardest.

“It’s like a challenge,” said junior David Magdaluyo. “If we
can do this, we can do whatever we put our mind to.”

He said that the partnership between the architecture school
and Rebel Recycling benefits students in that it lets them
“deal with recycled goods hands-on.”

And in a field where sustainability is a major focus, that
means a lot.

“This will assist our architectural careers by being
environmentally friendly and responsible,” Magdaluyo said.

The first project the students undertook was to build
four-by-four cubes out of the cardboard. The task was made more
difficult by inevitable inconsistencies in the material that do
not exist in the typical modeling board.

Despite difficulties with using the material, students have a
positive outlook on the project.

“I was a little bummed out at first,” said freshman Josue
Arevealo. “[But] if anything, I am glad to be using some kind
of material instead of using a book.”

The cardboard also saves the students money, because they are
not responsible for buying their own material to use in the
models.

Any unused cardboard will be re-recycled through Rebel
Recycling.

Contact Rochel Leah Goldblatt at
rochelleah.goldblatt.ry@gmail.com.

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Student architects to build residence from of recycled boxes