The document discusses Good Earth Malhar, an eco-village project in Bangalore, India developed by architecture firm Good Earth. Good Earth aims to create sustainable communities through green design principles. Their Good Earth Malhar project covers 50 acres and includes compact, open-plan homes built with locally-sourced materials like compressed stabilized mud blocks. The development emphasizes minimizing waste and environmental impact through renewable energy use, rainwater harvesting, wastewater recycling, and preserving existing trees. It seeks to enhance community and respond to residents' needs through shared spaces and amenities while reducing each home's footprint.

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GREEN
PROJECT
Code
Green
The language used to express
sustainable design is rapidly
developing with an evolving
grammar and vocabulary.
Architects are not only
rendering artistic implications to
sustainability but are also building
it up as a viable and practical line
of design.
A glimpse of the network of paths winding around green patches and mud houses, offering a convenient way
of communing with nature.
Text By Kanupriya Pachisia
Photographs Courtesy Good Earth

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Architects today are most adeptly
eliminating the practice of waste through
the concept of good design. Good Earth,
a firm managed by a core group of
professionals has been a pioneer in the field
of alternative architecture and environment
friendly development. Its expertise in
creating sustainable neighbourhoods has
been recognised by Asia’s largest Green
Design competition in Singapore: The Future
Arc Green Leadership Award 2015.
Good Earth Malhar, an eco-village spread
over 50 acres of land and located in
Kengeri, Bangalore is one of this firm’s
recent projects. The masterminds behind
Good Earth Malhar – Stanley George,
Parthsarthy S, Jeeth and Natasha Iype
have been experimenting with alternatives
in architecture and exploring concepts
of holistic development through various
ventures in their long journey of twenty-
eight years.
Good Earth unequivocally takes the effort within the design to create complacent and convenient spaces that tread ever so lightly on Earth.
A therapeutic calm may be experienced all through the day.

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Good Earth Malhar - a slice of nature in its rustic glory reinstating that nature never goes out of style.
Natasha Iype, Director on behalf of Good
Earth states that, “Design has the power to
change the way we live. It enhances and can
reinforce the intention of any community.”
Sustainability lies in creating spaces for the
soul by integrating the individual home
into a community. The sharing of spaces,
amenities, renewable resources and most
essentially values becomes the nucleus of
the community. It engages every participant
in a process of continual involvement.
Good Earth Malhar Patterns based in
Bangalore is the fifth community of the
Malhar eco-village and is set amidst 13 acres
of land. The community is divided into two
sections – Patterns A and Patterns B, each
having its unique salient character. The open
plan homes are cleverly designed spaces
with minimal walls or no walls.
The interior space seems to flow seamlessly
from the entrance verandah, through the
living and dining areas, to the rear verandah
and into the retral garden. This facilitates a
sense of spaciousness into a compact plan
making it easy to appreciate the beauty of
nature from within the home.
The architecture advocates comfort without
opulence, not abandoning the fact that the
space be a celebration of nature and earth.
The space responds to basic requirements
through a multi-use solution. Large
windows, wide verandahs, air channels
for circulation and thermally conducive
materials respond perfectly to reduce the
necessity of artificial light and ventilation.
Provision for connecting solar power
heaters and photo-voltaic panels for
power are fixed on the roof.
All houses have wiring that is linked to an
inverter which has a conduit laid on the
roof. Solar geysers are installed on the roofs
to ensure hot water.
In addition to all the green measures,
rainwater from the roofs is collected
through a network of pipes and then filtered
into the main water tank. Sewage treatment
plants recycle all the waste water via a series
of bio-filters. This water is then reused to
flush toilets and irrigate gardens. Materials
used all over are sourced locally and are
used in their natural form.
All Malhar homes are built using
compressed stabilised mud blocks that are
scientifically developed to be strong and
durable. It is the only project in which
almost about 4 lakh square feet of space
has been constructed using mud blocks.

5. 110 Home Review June 2016110 Home Review June 2016
A rock lit by warm sunbeams poses as a perfect spot to relax in; tree branches
hanging above give it the right balmy effect on a sunlit afternoon.
The masterminds behind Good Earth Malhar – Stanley
George, Parthsarthy S, Jeeth and Natasha Iype have
been experimenting with alternatives in architecture.
These mud blocks help in reducing indoor
temperatures by a marked 2-3 degree
centigrade. A network of streets and
landscaped courtyards encircle the homes.
Water bodies present in between the homes
double up as rainwater collection and
recharge zones. Underground service ducts
take care of electricity and communications
and also provide for broadband connectivity.
Quiet groves which can evolve over the
years as untouched natural habitats have
been created to help experience the
environment and composting biodegradable
solid waste within the community is one of
the many thoroughly thought over steps
that have been adopted in order to reduce
the carbon footprint.
In the words of Natasha Iype, “Tree planting
needs a careful study of the species and
the composition of soil. Timber species,
grown within the property is used as an
aesthetic sustainable source for adding
elegance and panache to the homes.
This also aids in negating the use of high
energy consuming steel and aluminum
for the doors and windows. Good Earth
most consciously took to planting ten
trees for every tree cut in the construction
of Malhar.

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The space responds to basic requirements through a multi-use solution. Large windows, wide verandahs, air channels for circulation and thermally conducive
materials respond perfectly to reduce the necessity of artificial light and ventilation.
As Jeeth Iype, Director defines himself, “I
am passionate about innovation and
translating ideas into architecture,” and as
Stanley George, Director, puts it, “My goal
in life is to work towards a sensitive and
equitable world.”
Malhar is a reflection of beliefs and ideals
of the brains behind it. Good Earth’s
architectural departures are totally
environment driven. It reinstates that green
technology comes after green design -
one does not look for green solutions to
problems cropped up by insensitive design.
Good Earth unequivocally takes the effort
within the design to create complacent and
convenient spaces that tread ever so lightly
on Earth.
www.goodearth.org.in
www.ecoandfriendlyhomes.com