Auroville Earth Institute

History:
The Auroville Earth Institute (AVEI), founded by HUDCO, Government of India in 1989, is a non-profit organisation specialising in the research, development, promotion and transfer of earth-based building technologies. Previously known as the Auroville Building Centre/Earth Unit, the former building centre progressively evolved and took the name of the Auroville Earth Institute in 2004. AVEI is registered under the Foundation of Auroville, which is an organisation of the Government of India.

Global leadership:
Over the last 26 years, the Auroville Earth Institute has become one of the world’s top centres for excellence in earthen architecture, a leader in the research, development, promotion and transfer of earth-based building technologies. AVEI has worked in 36 countries to promote and disseminate knowledge in earth architecture, and has garnered 13 awards for its work (two international awards and eleven national awards).

Main activities:
The activities of the institute include research and development of earthen technologies, training and education, publication and dissemination, and the following services offered within India and abroad: consultancy (with priority given to NGO’s, governmental and international organisations), architectural design and construction, heritage conservation, production of materials, and quality control testing.

Global alliances:
The Auroville Earth Institute is the Representative and Resource Centre for Asia of the UNESCO Chair “Earthen Architecture, Constructive Cultures and Sustainable Development”. This Chair aims to accelerate the dissemination of scientific and technical know-how on earthen architecture amongst the higher education institutions, in the following three domains: environment and heritage, human settlements, and economy and production.

The Auroville Earth Institute is part of a world network with CRATerre (The International Centre for Earth Construction, France), ABC Terra (Brazil) and a number of other Indian and worldwide NGO’s. A training convention has been established with the School of Architecture of Grenoble, France, for offering long-term training courses to their students.

The Auroville Earth Institute is also member of Basin South Asia (Basin SA), Regional Knowledge Platform, which is committed to “developing knowledge systems and promoting collaborative action to enable access by the poor in South Asia to sustainable habitat and livelihoods”.