Pedernales is a canton in the coastal province of Manabi, Ecuador. From being a farming and fishing area, in recent years, it has become quite the popular tourist destination, although the roots remain rural. Agriculture, above all, is centered on cocoa, and it may seem strange that a project with a very high technological ratio is being developed here: Cacao Eco Village, a real tourist village printed for the most part in 3D.
Valentino Gareri, of the eponymous Atelier in Sydney and New York, with a previous experience in Renzo Piano's studio and with BIG - Bjarke Ingels Group, says: "I was stunned when I realized that 80 percent of the cocoa fruit is discarded during the production of chocolate. So, I thought of using the filaments of the shell that, mixed with compatible natural resins, become the foundation for the 3D printing on which the Cacao Eco Village project is based."
Valentino Gareri Atelier was approached by Ecuadorian chocolate manufacturer MUZE Cacao and nonprofit organization Avanti to design a sustainable, carbon neutral village and innovation center for the circular economy in the cocoa industry.
"In the not-too-distant future, we will be able to design buildings entirely made of natural materials and recycle them at the end of their life cycle in order to either create new ones, or to return them back to nature," says Gareri. "The shape of the buildings and roofs will facilitate the collection and reuse of rainwater for crops. In addition, cars will only be allowed to drive through the industrial area; for the rest of the perimeter, the village will be equipped with a dense network of bicycle and pedestrian paths where at most electric service vehicles can circulate."
According to the project's intentions, Cacao Eco Village "will be the ‘Silicon Valley’ for circular economy innovators; a space for inventions and a testing ground for AgTech, FinTech, FoodTech, startups, and companies; manufacturers, producers and researchers. A destination and co-living space for change-makers to connect, co-create, get inspired, and ignite social impact".
If the project proves successful, it will pave the way for an entire network of ecovillages to spring up in Ecuador.