Transcript

Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight. I’m Christy VanArragon.

Voice 2
And I’m Bruce Gulland. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for
people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

Voice 1
What is your house made of? Is it made of wood or stone materials? Or does it have clay
arcilla
bricks, concrete, metal bars or glass? What about plastic or thick, paper cardboard?
carton

Voice 2
Buildings are made of many different kinds of things. Some buildings are strong and
permanent. But other buildings are made to be temporary. Many people around the world live
in temporary shelters. They build their homes with materials that are easy to find - like plastic
refugios
or cardboard. They reuse old materials to make new homes. Usually, these homes are built to
provide shelter for a low cost. They are not strong enough to last for a long time. And they are
not usually designed to be beautiful durar

Voice 1
But now, building designers are thinking about how to reuse these same simple materials to
make stronger and more beautiful buildings. Today’s Spotlight is on buildings made from
unusual materials.

Voice 2
First, we travel to Christchurch, a city in New Zealand. In 2011 a large earthquake shook
sacudio
New
terremoto
Zealand. More than 100 people died in the city of Christchurch. The earthquake caused a lot of
damage to property too. It destroyed the city’s cathedral. Christians have worshipped
adorado
in this
beautiful, old stone building for over 100 years. The cathedral was also a major center for the
city. It was important for many people.

Voice 1
Many other earthquakes had damaged the cathedral over the last 100 years. Each time,
workers repaired the damage. But after the 2011 earthquake, repairs were not possible. After a
long debate, the community decided to build a new cathedral. However, building a new
cathedral takes a long time, and a lot of money. So, until workers complete the new cathedral,
the community will use a temporary cathedral.

Voice 2
Church leaders chose Shigeru Ban to design the temporary cathedral. Ban is an architect from
Japan. He has a lot of experience designing temporary structures. Ban uses simple materials
to build amazing buildings. One of his particular interests is using cardboard. Cardboard is
made of paper, presionado
pressed together. It is often used to make boxes, and other simple containers.
Cardboard does not cost very much money. So, Ban decided to design the temporary
Christchurch cathedral from mostly cardboard.
principalmente

Voice 1
Ban’s Christchurch cardboard cathedral opened in August 2013. It stands
mide
25 metres high. It
looks like a large tent, with a high, pointed roof. Ban used enormes
huge round cardboard tubes to
techo
create the roof. There are more than 98 tubes, each up to 20 metres long! However, cardboard
becomes soft in the rain. So the building includes a large plastic surface which covers the
suave que
tubes.

Voice 2
On one end of the cathedral, there are coloured windows, based on the beautiful windows in
the old cathedral. The design also includes eight recycled metal shipping containers. The
envio
temporary cathedral is large - more than 700 people can sit inside. The building is also
beautiful and strong. The temporary Christchurch cathedral could last up to 50 years! Ban
designed it to be safe during future earthquakes. The materials did not cost a lot of material.
And when the new, permanent, cathedral is finished, the cardboard cathedral can be recycled!

Voice 1
Next, we travel to Taiwan, to the EcoArk. This building was built for the 2010 Taipei Flora
Exhibition, a large plant show. Arthur Huangdirigio
led the design of the EcoArk. The EcoArk building
is large – 24 metres high. It is also strong. It had to resist wind, earthquakes and fire. But
Huang did not use the usual building materials. Instead, he used recycled plastic bottles, called
POLLI-Bricks.

Voice 2
Huang started the company that makes POLLI-Bricks. First, they take old plastic bottles. Then,
theyderretirse
melt and re-form these plastic bottles into a new shape: POLLI-Bricks! POLLI-Bricks look
volver a formarse forma
a little like a plastic bottle. Each brick even has a top that people can remove. But the bricks
superior
also have grooves cut into the side.lado
These grooves make it possible encajar
to fit the bricks together.
surcos
They do not need glue, or anything else, to keep them together. The fit is tight and the bricks
do not move. pegamento apretado

Voice 1
To build the EcoArk, Huang used material from one and a half million old bottles. He built the
POLLI-Bricks around a steel frame. The clear POLLI-Bricks are perfect for plants.plantas
They let the
sun’s light and warmth into the building. Huang also designed the building with open areas, to
calor
bring in air from outside. The building was strong, beautiful and comfortable. It cost much less
than other buildings in the Exhibition. And city official could take it apart and rebuild it
funcionario desarmarlo
somewhere else after the Exhibition.

Voice 2
The EcoArk brought
trajo immediate attention to Huang and POLLI-Bricks. Now POLLI-Bricks are
being used in other building projects around the world. Huang hopes that the bricks will be a
good use for plastic waste - keeping plastic out of the world’s oceans and waste collection
areas. Huang wants to make a real difference, by making buildings that are better for the
environment.

Voice 1
Finally, we travel to South Korea. Our final project also uses recycled materials. But it is
something less serious. Choi Jeong-Hwa is an artist. He creates art using common objects.
These things do not seem to be art materials. But when he puts them together, the result is
special. Many of his projects are public art - art in public places, for everyone to enjoy.

Voice 2
In 2011, Choi created an unusual project on the streets of Seoul. He chose a ten floor building.
It was a normal, simple building. But Choi covered this normal building with bright, colorful
doors! Choi needed many doors
puerta to cover the walls - 1,000 of them! Choi used old doors, but he
chose doors that were colourful and interesting. From the street, the building is a colourful
surprise!

Voice 1
The use of recycled materials to build public buildings is growing. These new designs are
perfect for temporary and moveable structures. They are also lower cost, beautiful and good
for the environment. For these reasons, more and more designers are thinking of fresh ideas
for using recycled building materials. And soon, these unusual materials may appear in your
city too!

Voice 2
Have you ever seen a building made from recycled material? Tell us about it. Leave a
comment on the script page of this program or email us at radio@radioenglish.net.

Voice 1
The writer of this program was Michael Coleman. The producer was Luke Haley. The voices
you heard were from the United Kingdom and the United States. You can listen to this program
again, and read it, on the internet at www.radioenglish.net. This program is called, ‘New Ways
to Build’.

Voice 2
We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye.

Question:
What is your home made of? What materials were used? Would you live in a home made of
plastic bottles, or cardboard?