Chile suffers natural disasters almost every year since earthquakes and volcan eruptions are frequent in the region. For this reason, there is a need to design and develop architectural prototypes for emergency and postdisaster situations in vulnerable areas such as Chile.

In that sense, The Cardboard House is an architectural protoype made of cardboard, designed to offer a flexible space for sheltering and neighbourhood encountering. The sense of community is a key determinant in post-catastrophic situations, so the prototype offers a space for solidarity and mutual understanding that fosters the strength of the social community.

Since there isn’t a specific location, the architecture of this protoype has no other references to its context than the sense of community itself. Because of that, the proposal has a geometric center from within the spatial and construction elements are placed and configured.

The efficiency in the use of materials and construction timing becomes highly significant in emergency architectural prototypes, as well as the endurance of the structrual and construction elements. Therefore, this proposal is built with prefab structures made of cardboard tubes, wood joints and steel tensors. These structures can be stacked, defining a circular space that is covered with tent fabrics attached with tensed ropes to the prefab structures. As a consequence, all the structural elements collaborate in the global rigidness of the building, providing a powerful unity to the overall scheme.