How to Build a House (and a Neighborhood)

15:15 - 15:45

La Centrale, Nuvola Lavazza

A new home (and a new neighborhood) designed in an open and shared way, to create a new community respecting common values.

In the Almere Buiten district of Almere, Netherlands, Wouter van der Wal and Daphne Lamberts did much more than just build a house: they gave life to a radically new model of living and dwelling, together. It was a collective journey, where self-building and participatory design became tools to rewrite the rules of architecture and strengthen neighborhood bonds.

At the heart of this project lies the WikiHouse platform: an open-source system that allows anyone to download, modify, and assemble highly efficient timber houses. It’s a democratic revolution, where experts and residents work side by side. Every detail is co-designed and built “in-house” with support from families, friends, and volunteers—transforming construction into a collective ritual that forms new communities.

Today, de Stripmaker—27 homes built in two phases, customized by future residents and designed to minimize environmental impact—is the first community with houses entirely realized through the WikiHouse approach. It has become an international case study, reported by the media and watched by those seeking new models for cities.

Almere WikiHouse
Almere

Wouter van der Wal & Daphne Lamberts Founders

Almere WikiHouse

"Wouter van der Wal and Daphne Lamberts present their self-built WikiHouse in Almere's "WikiHouse de Stripmaker" community, a project exploring a DIY approach to building a house and participatory design. Featured multiple times on national television, their home stands as a compelling example of accessible, open-source architecture with a community-first approach. During their talk, they will alternate between close-up details and broader perspectives to demonstrate how this housing model fosters creativity, ownership, engagement, and resilience in urban living.

WikiHouse is an open-source building system that empowers communities to design, download, and construct sustainable timber homes using CNC-cut components. Focusing on local fabrication and zero-carbon design, it enables people to build energy-efficient structures affordably with minimal environmental impact. By freely sharing knowledge and supporting collaborative, community-led construction, WikiHouse redefines home-building as democratic, low-impact, and inherently resilient."

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