Affordable Housing Project 

The Affordable Housing Project retrofitted 48 homes and built three new homes across five different districts in Jordan, demonstrating that sustainable housing is affordable, with fast pay back periods. The project created an opportunity for cohesion between locals and refugees through their engagement and involvement, with notable change in “a greener way of thinking within the society”. 

Habitability and Comfort 

• 10-25% increase in mental performance and memory. 
• 5-14% higher grades in schools and students learning 20-26% faster. 
• 6-12% faster responding to communication. 
• 18% higher activity in workers. 
• 15-40% sales increase. 
• 8.5% shorter stays in hospitals. 

Community and Connectivity 

• 288 people of low-income households from 5 local communities participated in the project, including men, women, children and disabled individuals. 
• 20 local refugee builders were trained on green practices, concepts and standards. 
• 44 local women were trained and supported to develop eco-friendly and economically beneficial upcycling products. 
• Awareness was raised amongst more than 9,000 people, which created significant word-of-mouth and interest on the financial and health benefits of ‘green homes’. This created further job opportunities for the locally trained builders and increased the uptake of sustainable housing in the communities. 

Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Change 

• A focus on installing thermal insulation, double-glazed windows, rainwater harvesting systems and 
• eco-friendly, nontoxic and zero-VOC paint. 

Resource Efficiency and Circularity 

• Shading devices have been produced from locally-sourced recycled materials. 
• Solar water heaters installed. 

Economic Accessibility 

• 60% reduction in monthly electricity costs, 50% less energy used for heating and cooling. 
• 30% reduction in water usage, 49% savings in drinking-water consumption. 
• 5 months total average payback period of all fixtures (e.g. kitchen and shower faucets). 
• An analytical study conducted on the development and operation of 9 sustainable homes in Jordan, indicated that the extra cost needed to build sustainable homes compared to non-sustainable homes was only 0-4% higher, with a payback period of 3-5 years and a 15-20% investment return considering the default age of the housing being 20 years. 

Awards: 

Finalists of 2020 Ashden Awards 

More information: 

Guidelines for Green Affordable Homes’ booklet available via JordanGBC 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7J7idG6CXg 

https://www.facebook.com/ Jordan.Green.Building.Council/ photos/a.213994035321742/2307673005953824? _rdc=1&_rdr 

https://jordantimes.com/news/local/right-green-home-project-builds-energy-water-efficient-houses