nomadologist

Bare House

2011-12-13T18:25:00.005Z

The book documents a project, curated by Annu Wilenius, involving many artists, writers and architects, about "the contemporary experience of dwelling and existence"

Bare Streets

In my chapter, I describe the banners I made for Pori, and their connection to the Bare House project, to the streets of peri-urban Ulaanbaatar, and to this blog about living as an "architect-teacher-trainer" in Ulaanbaatar.

"The future of architecture and streets in peri-urban Ulaanbaatar is in the hands of people like Gursed, Lkhagvaa, Uyanga and Delgerdalai..." (p.83)

The book also features the short film "City of Felt", in the accompanying DVD, and the works of fourteen others.

9 July 2008 with Uyanga and others

Sept 2007; how the year at the college began

Жонон

2011-10-19T07:57:00.000Z

Bare House

Contemporary Mongolian Art

Volunteering

2011-01-23T01:32:00.004Z

Where to go? What to do?
Boloormaa gives her view on what International Volunteers ought to think about before going to Mongolia - she suggests where she thinks they might be most useful, and explains a little about her work with Voluntary Service Overseas in Mongolia.

Listen!

More about my time in Mongolia
Detailed report and story

2010

2010-09-22T14:01:00.004Z

The Bare House exhibition in Pori ended in early September, and the works are on their way back to the contributors or into storage, pending a future exhibition.

The publication for the 2009 Vienna Symposium, 'Along the Great Wall, China and Mongolia' with a paper on this UB architect-teacher-training project, is to be published in the near future.

Paljas Talo - Bare House

2010-05-24T17:30:00.019Z

(Bare House English - scroll down)

Blogi kertojan vuosi elävät Ulaanbaatar toiminut arkkitehti opettajien kouluttajana

Valitut tuo esiin,
Näkymät
Labyrintti
Pyörätuolin Tour
Kestävä matkailu
Live Projektit
Osallistumiskeinojen

Gregory Cowan, Pori 2010

Bannerit alla esillä Porin varten Bare House tehdä viime viestissä Mongolian. Sanat 2008 valmistunut, overlaid minun valokuvat kaupunkimaisema kaupungin muodostavat joukon "postikortteja" päässä Ulan Bator, tehty Ulan Batorissa vuonna 2010

Kaupunkisuunnittelu on jonkinlaista kehitystä
1 - Olemme hyvin, työtä
2 - kesä on tulossa Mongoliassa, lämpenee on mukava
3 - Aion tehdä töitä puolella, vauva on kunnossa
4 - huhtikuun rakennustyöt alkavat Mongoliassa mielestäni
5 - se siitä, hyvin, bye

Porin Taidemuseo Exhibition Catalogue (pdf)

This blog, exhibited Summer 2010 in Pori, Finland, narrates the year living in Ulaanbaatar working as architect teacher trainer (2007-2008).

selected highlights are;

Outlook
Labyrinth
Wheelchair Tour
Sustainable Tourism
Live Projects
Participatory Methods

Gregory Cowan, Pori 2010

The banners, like the one above, exhibited in Pori for Bare House (link below), carry a recent message, in Mongolian. The words of a 2008 graduate, overlaid on my photographs of the urban landscape of the city, form a set of 'greeting postcards' from Ulaanbaatar, made in a printing shop in Ulaanbaatar in May 2010

(bare house, bare street)
Urban design is a kind of development
1- we are fine, working
2- summer is coming in Mongolia, warming up will be nice
3- I will do some work on the side, baby is fine
4- from April building work will begin in Mongolia I think
5- that's about it, well, bye

Pori Art Museum Exhibition Catalogue (pdf)

Bare House - exhibition Pori, May 2010

2010-02-03T14:04:00.020Z

Exhibition curated by Annu Wilenius in Pori

Banners, Drawings, Installation and Highlights of the year-long
'nomadologist' blog
including:
Live Projects
Participation
Sustainable Tourism
and
wheelchair tour of Ulaanbaatar streets

What will be the future for nomadic peri-urbanism in Ulaanbaatar?

Along the Great Wall (Vienna) : цагаан хирэм дагуу

2009-05-17T21:42:00.009Z

In May 2009 I presented this project and my work - and some lessons learned from it- at the symposium, Along The Great Wall: Architecture and Identity in China and Mongolia - at the kind invitation of Vienna University of Technology. Photos of the symposium are here, and the University may publish the proceedings.

learning from Ulaanbaatar

2009-04-06T14:07:00.006Z

My purposes in Ulaanbaatar (2007-2008) were mainly to train architectural teachers, to teach students, to encourage the use of English, and to support the development of the Mongolian association of architects. My experience of professional development in Mongolia was very slow and incremental compared to my experience elsewhere.

I was often approached to work with community and activist groups in Ulaanbaatar,
and the college’s entrepreneurial approach created interesting architectural projects, despite needing to work within difficult constraints. Two ‘live’ studio projects – for Eco-Houses and a Childrens Camp – presented opportunities to study architectural processes of site analysis and brief development.

Over the year I was there, I believe the teachers enhanced their understanding about accessible and energy-efficient construction, about principles of project management, like time management and team planning, about site analysis and project planning, about organising client meetings and briefings, and about researching and writing architectural programme briefs for projects.

It will be a real challenge for these teachers - and for the association of architects in Mongolia - to continue to develop these processes.

In two live projects – ‘Sanzai Eco-houses’ and ‘Yarmag Children’s Camp’- newly trained
architects (like Mr, Lhkagvaa and Mr. Gursed) and architecture students aimed to incorporate participatory practice in their design projects, consulting with clients, and exploring options for site analysis.

Questions raised in an outside analysis of these processes by students at Sheffield University
included, for example;
How is traditional architecture valued by clients and designers of such projects, in the development of these peri-urban areas?
Can traditional Mongolian Gers still be considered an effective option for rapid-deployment, sustainable, informal settlement?
These researches are now being pursued locally by Purev-Erdene Ershuu at MUST and by Michael Fuerst, with the technical support of the international agency GTZ.

There are many lessons to be learned from the issues of peri-urban settlement in Mongolia, and further suggestions could be made on which issues could be further explored in future work on architecture in development being undertaken in Mongolia.

architect teacher trainer

2009-01-24T21:05:00.015Z

Related:
Vienna University of Technology Comparative Architectural Research
Sheffield Lines of Flight (workshop), Alternative Architectural Praxis
London Met MA Architecture of Rapid Change and Scarce Resources
UCL Building and Urban Design in Development
Oxford Brookes Centre for Development and Emergency Practice
Kingston Design for Development

Informal Architectures, Participatory Practices

2009-01-11T01:54:00.011Z

Supreeya Wungpatcharapon of PhD research group Lines of Flight at Sheffield University (and Doina Petrescu) arranged that I present Seminar 09 there: Informal Architectures and Participatory Practices

architectural education... of rapid change and scarce resources

2008-12-04T16:29:00.069Z

[architekturausbildung ... der schnellen aenderung und maengelden mitteln]

Story: Lumen

see course visit:
London Met MA Architecture of Rapid Change and Scarce Resources

Highlights

2008-09-23T07:22:00.009Z

In short, staff "...developed their understanding about Accessible and Energy-Efficient construction, about Project Management principles, like time management and team planning, about Site Analysis and Architectural Project Planning, how to organise client meetings and briefings, and how to research and write architectural programme briefs for projects."
(see Change - 434 words)

The stated project aims were
"to:
1. Support and develop the skills of teachers in the college
2. Teach architecture to architecture students
3. Cooperate on development of the architecture and construction professions in Mongolia
4. Encourage teachers and students to learn English as a tool for professional development
5. Assist in the developing the architecture profession.."
(see the Report -1929 words)

CTC (pictures)

Nomadologist milestone

2008-09-14T04:56:00.007Z

Upon arrival at Pudong Airport, I will have completed my journey from London to the 'Far East', via Ulaanbaatar, which started in July last year. Travelling by train halfway across the world has been a great personal and developmental journey.

The year working on architectural education in central Asia, and learning about and practicing 'international development' is fresh in my mind, and I do not yet know what it will all mean in the long term. I have seen some interesting job opportunities and been offered work on an RIBA project for a week. A new research project on public space in London also caught my attention. I am thinking about how to bring my experience to bear in my future work, and have promised to report reflections on this to VSO one year hence.

"You have achieved nothing" - the farewell from the drunken Director of the college on the day before I left - still irks me, although I know it was meant 'ironically'. I was pleased that an experienced and highly capable Mongolian colleague, someone who is at arms length from the college, has kindly undertaken to translate the final report and my 'significant change' story. But the language alone will not convey the messages of the report to the 'stakeholders'. Understandably, they will be reluctant to consider the implications of sustained investment- much needed time planning, staff development and pursuing processes of organisational change, as they are busy in the everyday life of teaching (and administering) in a growing college, and finishing construction of the new college building.

Correspondents and colleagues have recently written to me and supported the blog project and I look forward to seeing what can come from it. As I leave for a visit to my birthplace, I am reading 'Wolf Totem', a novel about Mongolia which brings ancient layers of animal myth and nomadic practices into focus. With my recent experience I am able to continue learning more about the sedentary and nomadic ways of life and survival.

Accessible, Mobile in China

2008-09-11T03:17:00.010Z

After passing paralympian tourists circling the Forbidden City (pic) on my bicycle in Beijing, I am in Shanghai, a city of 15-20 million whose sheer population density prompts amazing adaptations for mobility of the most diverse modes of transport of goods through the city. The subway system is incredibly complex and the bicycle seems to be for traffic experts, so I have been riding in taxis, trying to comprehend this city's 'urbanatomy'. I visited the Urban Planning museum (Youtube) with its enormous model of Shanghai. The form and the presentations are mostly spectacular, but I wonder about the real cultural processes of renewal, regeneration and 'development' here. I thought perhaps I might take to the river, for another perspective.

After leaving landlocked Mongolia, I have also just read, on Tour Watch, of some soon-to-be published "Waypoint - Backstrom" Principles for accessible maritime architecture, and it reminded me of architects' role in widening the accessibility of environments, not only on land in the developing world but also on water. I enjoyed sailing on the Swan River on my last visit to my home town Perth, where I will visit again this month.

Excerpt from the Waypoint - Backstrom Principles:
1) Begin with Universal Design
The principles of Universal Design are an essential element of seaworthiness. Assumptions of the abilities (physical, mental, or sensory functionality) of crew or passengers as constant over time in any single individual or uniform throughout the population of owners and users of the watercraft throughout its lifespan are to be questioned.

2) Design for Self-Sufficiency
Watercraft are the insertion of a terrestrial into a maritime environment. Pay attention to both social sustainability (Universal Design) and environmental sustainability (green design).

3) Design for Extraordinary Conditions
Maritime practice traditionally assigns clearly-defined shipboard roles and responsibilities. Design assumptions follow. Assumptions about the abilities (physical, mental, or sensory) of the idealized role-holder as they are designed into products, spaces, and practices may prove to be disastrous in emergency situations.

4) Design for Modularity and Revision
While a core tenet of Universal Design is that the design be sufficient "without special or separate design" the frequency of maintenance necessary for watercraft, especially in a saltwater environment, leads to frequent opportunities for upgrade to accommodate the range of abilities in crew and passengers.

5) Design for Seamless Intermodal Transfer
Sophisticated and efficient systems have been developed to load and unload watercraft, haul them ashore, or transport them.

- see Tour Watch
more information:
The Rolling Rains Report
Dr. Scott Rains, Consultant, San Jose, CA srains@oco.net ,
Sherri Backstrom, Director Waypoint Yacht Charter Services
sherri@waypointcharter.com
4648 Lakeway Drive Bellingham, WA 98229

After Mongolia, I have again been appreciating bicycles - a simple and ingenious form of urban transport ;
Some links -
Recently featured in AJ, The Architects Journal
Alex Moulton, creator of Moulton Bicycles a favourite of Reyner Banham and Norman Foster and
Improving London's Bicycle Spaces - an ideas competition
and from Banff's Art Centre; Art on a Bicycle
Songbike - Touring Banff on a bicycle

Forbidden City

2008-09-04T03:27:00.017Z

I read some of Master Chu's 'homilies for families' while in UB, preparing for China. Recently, arriving in Beijing, I also read this, cited in Sidh Sintusingha's noteworthy editorial musings for Architects for Peace; "The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well." (Olympic creed, Pierre de Coubertin) At AfP I also read great news of Sonya Redman's (UNSW) Berkeley Essay Prize win for 'Shaping Identity and Place in Australian Indigenous Housing'.) I read about the list of schools participating in the World Architecture Festival, originally billed as the 'ten of the world's best'. I don't quite understand the criteria for this little league table when I see the list; Bartlett, University College of London (UK); Hafencuty Universitat (Germany) -sic; School of Design and Environment (Singapore); Ravensbourne College (UK); Kazan Architectural University (Russia); Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de la Universidad CEU San Pablo (Spain) (..six schools, not ten...)

Anyway, I am glad I didn't come to Beijing for the Olympic Games, but I feel like I have fought well for the past year, albeit in a far less glamorous way. The city seems relaxed in the calm after the games and in the lead up to the paralympics. I even feel slightly guilty for enjoying the effortless architectural informality of the labyrinthine Beijing Hutongs. In my mind I have been trying to compare them to the ger districts of Ulaanbaatar... Meanwhile I have been to see the Ancient Architecture Museum in Beijing, and the spectacular 'Birdsnest' Stadium, photographed across a highway. I feel 'philosophical' about the year in Mongolia and have made my first speaking appointment to talk about it near Perth on the first of October.

I have realised the old city and the new city of Beijing are at loggerheads, as I experienced while circumnavigating an enormous city block 'under renewal' on foot - in order to get to the beautiful Ancient Architecture Museum, walled deep inside the super-block. Using the internet here makes for another wearying experience, waiting for the many filters and firewalls to check through every site I request. I'm going back to the Hutongs.

Significant Change

2008-08-28T03:47:00.004Z

Architect Teacher Trainer; Small, Significant Change

In the VSO placement with the Mongolian Construction Technology College, development occurred in small but hopefully valuable ways. I was consulted relatively autonomously by the Mongolian Construction Ministry, Mongolian Wheelchair Citizens (МТИХ), World Vision (Bayankhoshuu), and the Gender Centre for Sustainable Development in the 8th Khoroo. But the two live architectural projects we undertook collaboratively in the college, in Sanzai and Yarmag, provided the most concrete opportunities for training architect teachers. The work can potentially have a long term impact with the existing teachers - Bolormaa, Tsenguune, Ariunaa, Hashbayar - and new teachers, Lhagva and Gursed (with their students Delger-Dalai and Tumen Od). The former developed their understanding about Accessible and Energy-Efficient construction, about Project Management principles, like time management and team planning, about Site Analysis and Architectural Project Planning, how to organise client meetings and briefings, and how to research and write architectural programme briefs for projects.

I feel confident that with support from the college, the teachers, Bolormaa, Tsenguune, Ariunaa, and Hashbayar will be able to continue the training we commenced over the past year in
- teaching research,
- languages for internationalisation,
- CV clinics, and
- internet based tools (flickr, blogging, google earth, wikipedia)
apploied to architectural and construction education.

Teachers Bolormaa and Tsengel-Oyun assisted in training with Suvdmaa (English teacher) and Bolortsetseg (Architect teacher) from the Technical and Technology College (TTC) in comparatively mapping degree curricula respectively of MCTC and TTC. This will develop ownership of architecture degree curricula in Ulaanbaatar which will need major reworking in the coming years. The latter college has recently applied to work with VSO. I would strongly encourage these people to continue to work together on professional development, and in future to extend their knowledge to develop the Mongolian Association of Architects.

New teachers have been recruited to MCTC and these will need guidance and encouragement in their professional development from the above trained teachers. I recommend the staff continue to work with Rob van Waardenburg VSO and that new consultants or volunteers will continue the professional development work for which the college and teachers should have ownership and be proud.

The college has been building a new five storey classroom building in the 21st district, with students labouring as practical trainees. The directors and architects agreed in January - among other suggested design and safety improvements - to make the basement and first (ground) levels wheelchair/barrow accessible by ramps. Access to construction and architectural education will not only be physically improved in this case, but also a process has begun for more participative and inclusive building design and college management.

Tsambagarav

2008-08-26T13:23:00.007Z

As a reward for enduring a year in Ulaanbaatar, we made a trip to see Tsambagarav in Mongolia's Altai mountains in the remote west. Flying in to Khovd over the mountains, I read Sunand Prasad's piece about the UIA (International Union of Architects) and remembered that my Mongolian colleagues (Dagshigdorj et al of the Mongolian Association of Architects) visiting UIA Turin had declined an invitation to attend a RIBA reception in my stead - at a beautiful 16th century Palazzo there. Thinking of their reluctance reminded me of my work, my final report in progress and exit interview on the 27th.

After driving by jeep past the impressive snow-capped Tsambagarav (4400m) to stay in a Khazak Mongolian family Ger, I noticed the family's work programme. Six hours of each day - 5am-8am and 5pm-8pm - spent milking thirty yaks for about 100 litres of milk, from which they make various cheeses, curds and yogurt. Yak wool/hair and crafts supplement the income from the milk products. I enjoyed the evening meal "five fingers" of dried and boiled yak meat mixed with pasta sheets just made by a ten year old girl. Delicious yoghurt followed. By the light of a single solar powered lamp in the Ger, I flicked through the letters of RIBA Journal, reading Iain Borden defend the Bartlett, then a review of "Instant Cities".

After giving the farmer host and his saddle a lift to a valley where he thought he might find his horse, we travelled north and stayed a night with another Khazak family in a Ger by a river near Altantsogs village, where thirty goats were milked once a day to produce 18 litres. While I was relaxing in the ger, a farmer slaughtered a goat outside the door and then unexpectedly brought it in to hang in our ger for butchering. A slightly threatening old man - a drunken Khazak relative - argued with me in Mongolian that Australia had been part of Germany. (In vain I painstakingly distinguished Austria from Australia)

Staying in Olgii town centre's 'Green Garden' Ger Park with its delightful gardens provided an opportunity to unwind. It was the farthest point from UB. Reconvening in our ger with two German trans-Mongolia cyclists we had earlier seen climbing Tsambagarav, two Spanish cyclists (project) from the Turkish restaurant and a backpacking English kindy teacher from UB joined in for a little spontaneous party.

Slow Travel

2008-08-19T05:48:00.009Z

After arriving by train from London to Ulaanbaatar a year to the day before starting this blog entry, I was reflecting on slow travel, slow food, slow development and slow tourism in Mongolia. After the exhausting return from Arkhangai 'Art Camp' on a jolting 11 hour bus ride from Tsetserleg, it was a joy to take the night train to Erdenet, shortening the bus trip to Lake Hovsgol. Our cabin mate Gankhuyag turned out to be a (hearing) Mongolian Sign Language teacher. After wandering around Erdenet (10km from the station), we waited four hours for the bus to Mөrөn at the market and took the 15 hour journey. Somewhere by a roadside, as we took a 'comfort stop' in the green mountains by a river, a man on a bicycle held a fish aloft by his ger. I walked over and he showed me his catch of large trout and smaller fish, cleaned and silky to touch. Hours passed in the darkness until we (25 passengers and driver) stopped for 'Tsiuvan' (noodles) at a 'Guanz' eatery with one solar powered bulb. Everyone dozed on the bus rocking through the night, the fat brown farmer next to me leaning on me and nodding off to sleep.

After dawn in Mөrөn, we had a shower at a Batgaal's Ger guesthouse "5-8-7" and lay down for a couple of hours. Later we shared a car with two French tourists, mother and daughter, to Khatgal at the edge of Lake Khatgal. We borrowed bicycles from some local lads. Looking for air for a tyre at the local petrol station, it being a hand-pump affair, the proprietor (of 25 years) took me to her ger nearby, and her husband improvised a way of inflating the tyre.

In the past year I have gained a lot of experience of slowness. Speaking Mongolian has been a slow but rewarding process, but in the countryside slowness is emphasised: seeing the simple and slow way food is often hand-reared and prepared, seeing each joint of boiled mutton apportioned among a party, feeling every bump and creek crossing on the roads, boiling each cup of river water for tea. The hot shower at "5-8-7" was operated by the guest house owner, who boils a pot of water over a fire, then pours it into a tank on the roof of the shower house, mixing it to the right temperature.

XanaduArt Camp with "Blue Sun"

2008-08-12T09:14:00.005Z

I arrived as requested at dawn at the 'Art Studio' in an apparently abandoned building in the industrial west of UB. No one stirred until 7am. Then, while waiting until after 9am for our departure, three of us made a foray to the abandoned Khotsh Bank nearby, and charmed the guard, as he awoke, and gave us a secret tour of this intriguing building, with gallery and sports hall.

The details of the Arkhangai tour became clearer as two Russian ''Пургон" jeeps with drivers appeared and fifteen of us set off toward Khar Khorin in Ovorkhangai. An itinerary was produced, then verbally modified. After camping by the river in Khar Khorin and visiting Erdene Zuu monastery, we drove to Suvragakhairkhain, Chandmanikhairkhain, and the beautiful Tovkhon Monastery. Before camping by a river, a sheep was procured from a family and prepared. I drew, most others painted, sketched, sang and smoked.

Gradually, over three days, we progressed from eating the blood filled intestines and "Гийдэс" of the sheep to various other boiled, smoked, and barbecued parts of the sheep, culminating around the campfire one evening, as leader, Mashbat, presented each person by name with a selected named joint of meat. I somehow followed in Mongolian.

After we reached Tsetserleg, the province centre, I spent a day alone drawing the monastery and other buildings there, and the next morning, began the 11 hour bus ride over dirt racks pitching and jolting my way back to UB.

Going Bush

2008-08-01T09:30:00.006Z

This coming week I will join a group of Mongolian Artists from the Blue Sun group, and my two previously mentioned visiting collegues, on an 'Art Camp' in Arkhangai.

Машбат, Далх-Очир, Бат-Зориг, Бат-Холбоо Од-Гэрэл, Ганбаатар, Энхболд, Бадраал, Орхон, Авид, Өсөх Баяр, Анхцэцэг and Магнай with Ana and Annu, will be my travelling companions in two Russian Пургон jeeps over 2200km.

After a long discussion about food and accommodation today, the financial arrangements seem clearer. Машка jokes about 'communism'. But many aspects of the trip remain "sketchy". Have sketchbook, will travel - watch this space.

Report

2008-07-31T07:12:00.025Z

In my role as architect teacher trainer at the Mongolian Construction Technology College, from 18.08.2007 to 28.08.2008, (VSO placement number 784033) the agreed project aims were to;
1. Support and develop the skills of teachers in the college
2. Teach architecture to architecture students
3. Cooperate on development of the architecture and construction professions in Mongolia
4. Encourage teachers and students to learn English as a tool for professional development
5. Assist in the developing the architecture profession

Key Dates
20 Aug Began Language training and In-Country training/orientation
24 Sep Began work at College
27 Sep Architecture Staff Meeting 10 staff attended
16 Nov Staff Continuing Professional Development training CPD 1; postponed
07 Dec Staff Continuing Professional Development training CPD 2; 13 staff attended
14 Jan Architecture Subject Curriculum Development, Prof. Dagshigdorj
18-20 Feb State Construction College assisting Asia-Pacific Accreditation annd Certification Council (APACC) accreditation submission
June- Curriculum analysis workshops
July- Participatory Teaching Methods Training for staff, several attended
January-August; Live Projects, with two teacher trainers, two architect teacher trainees and four students
Eco-Houses Selbe Khadad Sanzai and
Conference-Hotel-Childrens Camp Yarmag
August- Art Camp Arkhangai with several Mongolian professional artists
and recreational leave in Huvsgul, Khovd, and Ulgii

In order of the above aims, the main outcomes are described as follows;

1. Support and develop the skills of teachers in the college;
(Коллэжийн Багш нарын ур чадвар, арга барилыг дээшлүүлэх сургалт, сэминаруудыг зохион явуулах) see Mongolian below.

Working with staff at the college, Rob van Waardenburg VSO construction adviser and teacher trainer had prepared the college very effectively before my arrival. Working in coordination with Rob, my aim of supporting the teachers' development was continually pursued through the year, including during most of the summer recess, and some progress was achieved. I worked within and also beyond the MCTC; I collaborated with and assisted MUST, State Construction College ("4-zam"), Darkhan Orgoo, Darkhan Vocational Training Centre, and the Technical and Technology College (UB), and advised the Construction Ministry on Human Resource Development in construction.

The strongest participants in my work with MCTC were G. Ariunaa, D. Bolormaa, Tsengel-Oyun (Tsenguune), new teachers Gursed and Lkhagva, and co-director / counterpart Hashbayar. Prof. Dagshigdorj, a senior teacher and member of the architecture profession who initally showed interest in working together with me later had very limited time and interest, and teachers Densmaa and Enkhtungalag found limited time for developing their professional skills. Seminars and informal training sessions for staff were held in December, January, February, March, April and also July, with attendances between one and twenty people.

For example, training was held for teachers in using the Internet as a research tool for finding teaching materials e.g. in the English language. Some techniques discussed were taken up by Tormandakh, Enkhbold and Enkhzaya (Venturi VVH text analysis) Training was continued with English teachers, developing teaching materials for English teaching. English teachers Enkhzaya, Enkhbold und Boloorma successfully facilitated the staff training with my support on Fri 7 December. Enkhzaya developed her skills quickly and in February gained a better paid job at the state construction college.

In early June I arranged a joint training seminar on course structures between our college and the Technical and Technology College architecture teachers. This was useful in mapping the courses and analysing the subject teaching components streams and continuity, opening the possibility for architecture teachers to gain an overview of the curriculum and undertake curriculum development.

From January to August a 'live project' approach was adopted, to run three real ('live') architectural design projects with a multi-disciplinary group of staff in a team;
i. World Vision Bayankhoshuu,
ii. Eco Houses in Selbe Khadat, Sanzai (Sukhbaatar District) and
iii. Conference Hotel Childrens Resort in Yarmag (Bogd Uul)
These projects were a good way to support and develop skills of teachers and construction professionals, and to train train new architecture teachers ursed and Lkhagva. Although the first project was initially well organised, the consultant Myagmarsuren's work was not used effectively and the partner NGO unable to continue.

The latter two projects, for private developers, were pursued with a delicate balance between a traditional 'pattern book' approach to drafting service and a more participatory and investigative approach to professionally developing the work teams, by exploring up to date site analysis and design generation methodologies, which take into account environmental awareness, universal accessibility, and client options and feedback cycles. In these projects, Ariunaa, Bolormaa and Tsenguune helped train newly qualified architecture graduates Gursed and Lkagva as team leaders, with students Delger-Dalai, Tumen-Od, Uyanga and Tumen-Gerel. Hashbayar assisted the live project financially and logistically. All participants learned a great deal about process in architectural design, and improved energy efficiency / ecological sustainability, accessibility, effective site analysis and architectural programming were all broached.

2. Teach architecture to architecture students - especially Diploma students completing in 2008.
(Архитэкторч мэргэжлээр суралцаж буй оюуутнуудад архитэкторын хичээл заах)

The architecture three year bachelor course curriculum was analysed early in the placement and it was discovered that the structure, similar to all such courses in Mongolia, is primarily technical and lacking in cultural design and synthetic- design studio- live project approaches typical of international undergraduuate building design and 'Part 1' courses.

Within the limitations of the technically oriented curriculum, assessment means were discussed and it was agreed examination and attendance might be complemented with more assignments, workshops, excursions etc as assessable knowledge indicators. Participatory teaching methods were felt lacking in the college, and a series of workshops on these were held with Tsenguune and Bolormaa, who I recommend should help to train the 25 newly recruited teachers due to commence in September.

The architecture final year diploma students I supervised gained some benefit, although their attendance and committment levels were erratic and insufficient. Diploma students Nerentsetseg, Oranbileg & Khanburged all failed to attend agreed lesson appointments and I helped others, particularly Gursed and Lkhagva and their studio colleagues. The local 'canon' of teaching materials (eg Neufert Architects Data, Russian Edition 1965) was identified in November as requiring revision and updating, however experienced staff (Prof Dagshidorj, who advised on Bat Od. 2005 rev 2007) expressed reluctance to review the canonisation of this textbook. The use of the Mongolian accessibility norm MN 31.101.04 and Construction Ministry expertise (Mongolian Energy Efficient and Accessible Pattern School - with GTZ) were resisted or ignored by staff. Relevant new literature (Bat Od. 2005 rev 2007, Ching 2006, internet based resources etc. - some in Mongolian, some in English and German) were introduced, and dynamic young staff showed interest in developing material based on K. Do et al 2006, as well as local senior Mongolian students' work, and the College's own live projects. Two graduates, Lkhagva and Gursed began training as architect - teachers.

3. Cooperate on development of the architecture and construction professions in Mongolia -
(Тус сургуулийн хамтран ажиллагч байгуулаг түүншүүдэд зөвлөгөө өгөх )

After initially working with Professor Dagshigdorj, establishing a context from his senior architect perspective, I also met some other professionals (Amgalan Sukhbaatar, Munkhzhul Choiljiljav, Purev-Erdene Ershuu) and gained an appreciation of the outlook of newer practitioners of architecture in Mongolia. In November I met with a representative board member of the Mongolian Association/Union of Architects, Purev-Erdene Ershuu, lecturer and architect, at the Centre for Architecture and Design Research. This Centre had been in involved in a conference called The Current Situation of Ger Area in Ulaanbaatar City in 2007 which suggests some research activity and international collaboration on Urban and architectural development in Mongolia. However the Mongolian Association/Union of Architects, or architectural association of Mongolia, would not cooperate with Prof Dagshigdorj's idea of holding a meeting, nor was it able to provide any information about the need to develop the association. Colleagues in the fields of Contemporary Art, International Development, Disability Rights, Health, and Non-Government Organisations Sectors concurred that there was difficulty contacting or working with any Mongolian Association/Union of Architects, or association of Mongolian architects. I offered to provide international introductions and to support developing means of extracurricular professional development for Mongolian architects Prof Dagshigdorj, E. Purev-Erdene, N. Tormandakh and others.

In the recent UIA (International Union of Architects) meeting apparently to be attended by Dagshigdorj and others from Mongolia, my invitation arrange a meeting with RIBA delegates at a reception there was declined. RIBA also recently became more closely involved in the UIA system of international validation of architectural education.

As I advised the Mongoian Construction Ministry in December, I would encourage the Mongolian Architects Association to build its profile for professional development for Mongolian professionals, and to internationalise to serve the advancement of the profession in Mongolia.

4. Encourage teachers and students to learn English as a tool for professional development -
(С Д М багш оюуутнуудын англи хэлий мэдлэгийг дээшлүүлэхэд дэшжиж ажиллах)

Teachers and colleagues with whom I worked regularly benefited, including many national volunteers attending the English Speakers' Club, informally established with English Teacher volunteer Ruth Powell at the University of Humanities and my building neighbours' children, whom I taught English lessons voluntarily over twenty weeks.

The college administrators, directors and many teachers exclusively using Mongolian did not find time or interest to make use of the encouragement in English language usage. One first year (female) student called Lkhagva attended an English Walk and Talk in November at Chinggis Khuree with volunteers from the University of Humanities, and encouraged others to come to some lessons at the college. She also presented the walk and explained her motivation to learn English to teaching staff and college vice-director Hashbayar. I would like to see this kind of activity encouraged in the college, as the previous online and book-based Staff English training has been ineffective. Although senior staff Prof. Dagshigdorj and his assistant architect Enkhtungalag, like the college directors, do not show interest in using spoken English, many staff such as G. Ariunaa, D. Bolormaa, Tsengel-Oyun have developed advanced skills in spoken English, and there is potential for new teachers Gursed and Lkhagva, and college co-director / counterpart Hashbayar.

Conclusion; Small, Significant Change

Following some consulting with the Construction Ministry, World Vision and the Gender Centre for Sustainable Development in the 8th Khoroo, where counterparts did not benefit from participation, the live architectural projects (Sanzai and Yarmag) provided the most concrete exercise in the placement in terms of training architect teachers. This work will potentially have a long term impact with the existing teachers - Bolormaa, Tsenguune, Ariunaa, Hashbayar - and new teachers, Lhagva and Gursed (and in future maybe Delger-Dalai and Tumen Od?) The former learned about Accessible and Energy-Efficient construction, about Project Management principles like time planning, about Site Analysis and Architectural Project Planning, and how to organise client meetings and briefings, and how to research and write architectural programme briefs for projects.

I strongly encourage the teachers Bolormaa, Tsenguune, Ariunaa, and Hashbayar to continue the training we commenced over the past year in
- teaching research,
- languages for internationalisation,
- CV clinics, and
- internet based tools (powerpoint, flickr, blogging, google earth,wikipedia)
for architectural education.
Bolormaa and Tsenguune assisted in training Suvdmaa (English teacher) and Bolortsetseg (Architect Teacher) from the Technical and Technology College (TTC) in comparatively mapping degree curricula respectively of MCTC and TTC. The latter college has recently applied to work with VSO. I would strongly encourage these people to continue to work together on professional development and in future extend their skill sharing to the Mongolian Association of Architects.

I understand that about twenty new teachers have been recruited to MCTC and these will need guidance and encouragement in their professional development from the above trained teachers. I hope that the staff will continue to work with Rob van Waardenburg VSO and that new consultants or volunteers will continue the professional development work for which the college and teachers should have ownership and be proud.

The college, with labour of students as practical trainees, has been building a new classroom block. The directors and architects agreed in January - among other design improvements - to make the basement and first (ground) level wheelchair/barrow accessible. This approach to widening access to construction and architectural education is literal as well as setting the tone for more participative and inclusive college management.

Mongolian version

translation by courtesy of Ch. Munkhzul
note - special Mongolian font characters are missing

Томилолтын эцсийн тайлан (гар бичмэл)

ВСО-гийн 784033 тоотын дагуу, архитектор багш сургагч х_н намайг 2007.08.18-аас 2008.08.28ны хооронд Монгол Улсын Барилгын Технологийн Коллеж(МУБТК)- д томилж ажиллуулахдаа доорх зорилтуудыг хэрэгж__лэхээр харилцан тохиролцов:
1. Коллежийн багш нарынур чадварыг х_гж__лэхэд туслах
2. Архитектурын оюутнуудад архитектурын хичээл заах
3. Монгол Улсын барилга архитектурын мэргэжлийг х_гж__лэх зорилгоор хамтран ажиллах
4. Мэргэжлээ дээшл__лэхэд тус болж чадахуйц англи хэлний чадвар эзэмш__лэхэд дэм _з__лэх
5. Архитектурын мэргэжлийг х_гж__лэхэд туслах

Гол чухал _др__д
8-р сарын 20 Хэлний болон орон нутагт хийх сургалтаа эхлэв
9-р сарын 24 Коллеж дээр ажлаа эхлэв
9-р сарын 27 Архитектурын тэнхимийн уулзалт 10 х_нтэйгээр
11-р сарын 16 Тэнхимийн CPD 1 хойшлогдов
12-р сарын 7 Тэнхимийн CPD 2 хойшлогдов
1-р сарын 14 Архитектурын сэдэвт хичээлийг Дагшигдоржтой хамт
2-р сарын 18-20 State CC assisting APACC accreditation submission
6-р сар Хичээл т_л_вл_лт_нд д_н шинжилгээ хийх семинар
7-р сар Сургалтын арга барил семинар
1-8-р сар; Бодит Т_сл__д, Эко хаус Сэлбэ Хадад Санзай ба Бага хурал –Буудал –
Яармаг дахь Х__хдийн зуслан
8-р сар Архангай дахь урлагийн групп болон Х_всг_л, Ховд, _лгийг__р хийсэн аялал

Дээрх зорилтоос гарах _р д_нг доорх байдлаар тайлбарлавал:

1. Коллежийн багш нарын ур чадвар, арга барилыг дээшл__лэх сургалт,
ВСО-гийн ажилтан барилгын багш, сургагч Роб Ван Ваарденбург намайг ирэхээс _мн_ коллежид маш олон з_йлийг амжилттай хэрэгж__лж амжсан байв. Робийн хамтаар, багш нарыг х_гж__лэхэд туслах зорилго б_хий _йлс маань б_тэн жилийн турш, тэр дундаа зуны турш идэвхтэй _ргэлжилж зарим нэгэн амжилтыг дагуулсан билээ. Миний бие МУБТК- той хамтран ажиллахын сацуу ШУТИС, Барилгын Коллеж, Дархан _рг__, Дарханы Мэргэжлийн Сургалтын Т_в, Техник Технологийн Коллеж,УБ болон Барилгын яаманд Барилгын салбар дахь Х_ний Н__цийн Х_гжилд з_вл_г__ _гч, тусалж байв.

МУБТК-д хийсэн ажилд маань хамгийн их оролцож байсан х_м__с бол Г. Ариунаа, Д.Болормаа, Цэнгэл-Оюун(Цэнг__нээ), шинэ багш нар болох Г_рсэд, Лхагва, дэд захирал / хамтрагч Хашбаяр, ахлах багш буюу Монголын Архитекторуудын Эвлэлийн гиш__н профессор Дагшигдорж эхэн _едээ надтай хамтран ажиллах х_сэлтэй байгаагаа хэлж байсан хэдий ч хожим нь цаг болоод сонирхлын хувьд багасч хувирсан юм. М_н багш Дэнсмаа болон Энхтунгалаг нарт __рсдийн мэргэжил ур чадвараа х_гж__лэх цаг тун бага олдсон. Ажиллагсдад зориулсан семинар, мэдээллийн сургалтууд Арванхоёр, Нэг, Хоёр, Гурав, Д_р_в болон Долдугаар саруудад нэгээс хорин д_рв_н х_ний оролцоотойгоор зохиогдов.

Жишээлбэл энэх__ сургалтыг, багш нар хичээлийн холбогдолтой Англи хэл дээрх материалуудыг интернэтээр хайж сургах зорилготой зохион явуулсан. Зарим нэг арга барилуудын талаар Т_рмандах, Энхболд, Энхзаяа нартай ярилцсан. Уг сургалт маань Англи хэлний сургалттай холбоотой материалуудыг сайжруулах зорилгоор Англи хэлний багш нарт зориулж зохиогдсон. Англи хэлний багш Энхзаяа, Энхболд ба Болормаа нар Арванхоёрдугаар сарын 7-ны Баасан гаригт зохиогдсон сургалтыг амжилттай явуулах н_хцлийг б_рд__лж _гс_н байгаа. Энхзаяа __рийнх__ мэдлэгийг маш хурдан дээшл__лсэн б_г__д Хоёрдугаар сар гэхэд Улсын барилгын коллежид сайн цалинтай ажил олж авсан билээ.

Зургадугаар сарын эхээр, курсын б_тцийн талаар манай коллеж болон Техник Технологийн Коллежийн архитектурын багш нарын хооронд хамтарсан сургалт зохион явуулсан. Хичээлийг тоймлох, заах арга барилын талд д_н шинжилгээ хийх, _ргэлжл__лэх, хичээлийн програмыг ер_нхийд нь ойлгож авах бололцоо _гч, хичээлийн х_т_лб_р__дээ боловсронгуй болгоход нь тусалж _гсн__р__ их ач холбогдолтой байв.

Нэгээс Наймдугаар саруудад “бодит т_с_л” хийх оролдлого маань хэрэгжиж гурван бодит ('амьд') архитектур дизайны т_слийг олон янзын х_м__сээс б_рдсэн багуудтай хамтарч хэрэгж__лсэн. __нд:

i. Баян хошуун дахь Дэлхийн з_н,
ii. (СБД__ргийн) Сэлбэ, Хадат, Санзай дахь Эко Хаусууд
iii. Конференс зочид буудал, (Богд уул) Яармаг дахь х__хдийн зуслан
Эдгээр т_сл__д нь багш нар болон барилгын мэргэжилтн__дийн ур чадварыг х_гж__лж, дэмжихэд их тус болсон б_г__д залуу багш нар болох Г_рсэд, Лхагва нарын хувьд сургалт болсон. Эхний т_с_л маань зохион байгуулалт сайтай байсан боловч з_вл_х Мягмарс_рэнгийн ажил идэвхг_й б_г__д т_нш ТББ _ргэлжл__лж чадааг_й юм. Хувь х_м__сээс зохиосон дараагийн хоёр т_с_л бол

Дараагийн хоёрыг хувь х_м__с зохион явуулахдаа з_вх_н зураг зурж _йлчилдэг уламжлалт аргыг багаар ажиллахдаа талбай дээрээс цаг тухай б_рд хийсэн д_гнэлтээ задлан шинжилж, байгаль орчинг анхаарч, захиалагчийн боломжийг харгалздаг, н__ц бололцоондоо тулгуурладаг, олон янзаар ашиглаж болдог технологуудыг ашиглах оролдлого хийдэг орчин _еийн арга хоорондын тэнцвэрийг олсон т_сл__д болсон.

__нд Ариунаа, Болормаа, Цэнг__нээ нар оролцож шинэ т_гсс_н архитекторуудад тусалж багийг ахалсан б_г__д оюутан Дэлгэрдалай, Т_мэн-од, Уянга, Т_мэнгэрэл нар оролцсон. Хашбаяр бодит т_с_л санх__гийн болоод материаллаг байдлаар тусалсан юм. Б_гд л архитектурын явц, эрчим х_чний хэмнэлттэй, экологийн хувьд тэнцвэр б_хий, олон талаар ашиглаж болдог, _р д_нтэй талбайн д_н шинжилгээ ямар чухал болох талаар ил__ сайн ойлгож архитектурын програмыг б_гд сайжруулах талаар суралцсан.

2. Архитектор мэргэжлээр суралцаж буй оюуутнууд, тэр дундаа 2008 онд дипломоо авах оюутнуудад архитектурын хичээл заах
Архитектурын бакалавр зэрэг олгох 3 жилийн сургалтын х_т_лб_рт д_н шинжилгээ хийхэд миний хугацааны эхэн _е зориулагдсан б_г__д эндээс би нэгэн з_йлийг ойлгож мэдсэн юм. __р__р хэлбэл, Монголд баримталж байгаа эдгээр ижил т_стэй курсууд б_гд адилхан голдуу техникийн сургалт б_г__д соёлын дизайн, синтетик дизайн, студи буюу амьд бодитой т_с_л хэрэгж__лэх оролдлого хийдэг бусад олон улсын жишиг б_хий их сургуулийн дээд боловсролын _ндсэн шатны сургалтаас энэ тал дээр нэлээд дутмаг болох нь харагдсан.

Техник талаа баримталдаг сургалтын програмын хязгаарлалтаас болоод д_гнэх утгыг ярилцаж, шалгалт, оролцоо зэргийг ил__ олон тест, семинар, экскурс зэрэг мэдлэг сорисон з_йлсээр баяжуулж авах нь з_йтэй болсон. Сургалтын арга барил коллеж дээр дутмаг байгаа тул хэд хэдэн семинарыг Цэнг__нээ, Болормаа нартай хамтран явуулж, цаашид тэднийг шинээр ажилд орсон 25 багшид 9-р сард хичээл эхлэхэд туслаарай хэмээн захисан.

Миний удирдаж байсан архитектурын т_гс_х курсын оюутнуудтай ажиллахад тустай з_йл олныг мэдэрсэн ч гэлээ тэдний оролцоо, амлалт нь х_ндхэн байсан юм. Дипломын ангийн оюутан Наранцэцэг, Уранбилэг, Ханб_ргэд нар хичээлд суугааг_й б_г__д бусад нь ялангуяа Г_рсэд, Лхагва болон группын гиш__дэд тусалсан. Сургалтын материалын хуулбар _.х Ньюферт Архитектурын _г_гд_л, Орост 1965 онд хэвлэгдсэн) -ыг Арваннэгд_гээр сард хийсэн ба эргэж шинэчлэх, сайжруулах хэрэгтэй байсан ч туршлагатай ажилтнуудын з_гээс __рчл_х х_сэлг_й болохоо илэрхийлсэн юм.

Монгол Улсын норм MN 31.101.04 ба Барилгын Сайдын экспертиз (Монголын Эрчим Х_ч Хэмнэлт Ашиглалтын Сургууль - GTZ). Холбогдох шинэ номууд (Бат од 2005, 2007, Чинг 2006, интернэтийн материал. – зарим нь Монгол хэл дээр зарим нь Англи, Герман хэл дээр)- ыг танилцуулсан б_г__д эрч х_чтэй залуу багш нарт К.До 2006 болон Монголын ахлах оюутнуудын хийсэн ажил, бодит т_сл__дээр материал бэлдэх нь сонирхолтой байсан. Хоёр т_гс_гч Лхагва, Г_рсэд нар архитектор-багш болох сургалтаа эхлэв.

3. Монгол Улсын барилга архитектурын мэргэжлийг х_гж__лэх зорилгоор хамтран ажиллах
Анх эхлээд Профессор Дагшигдоржтой хамтран ажиллаж байх _едээ т__ний ахлах архитекторын _зэл санаанд _ндэслэсэн ойлголт б_хий байсан бол м_н саяхан мэргэжлээ эзэмшсэн х_м__стэй уулзаж(С_хбаатарын Амгалан, Чойжилжавын М_нхзул) архитектурын боловсролыг туршигч шинэ х_м__сийн талаар ил__ х_ндэтгэлтэй хандах бодол т_рс_н юм. Арваннэгд_гээр сард би Архитектур, Судалгааны Т_вийн лектор, архитектор, Монголын Архитекторуудын Ассоциацийн т_л__л_гч болох Эрш__гийн П_рэв Эрдэнэтэй уулзсан юм.

4. Conclusion; Small, Significant Change

4. Мэргэжлээ дээшл__лэхэд тус болж чадахуйц англи хэлний чадвар эзэмш__лэхэд дэм _з__лэх

Х_м__нлэгийн Ухааны Их Сургуулийн Англи хэлний багш, сайн дурын ажилтан Рут Паулийн санаачлагаар Англи хэлээр яригчдын Клубыг албан ёсны бус байдлаар __сгэн байгуулсан б_г__д __нд маш олон багш нар м_н __рийн х_слээр олон х_м__с ирсний дотор манай байрны х_рш__д зэрэг х_м__с байсан ба би тэдэнд ойролцоогоор хориод хичээл орсон юм.
Коллежийн удирдлагууд, захирлууд болон бусад олон багш гэх мэт байнга Монгол хэлээ ашигладаг х_м__ст цаг буюу сонирхол бага байснаас тэд Англи хэлийг хэрэглэх талдаа тун идэвх муутай байв. Нэгд_гээр курсын нэг \эмэгтэй\оюутан Лхагва Арваннэгд_гээр сард Чингис Х_рээнд Х_м__нлэгийн Ухааны Их Сургуулийн сайн дурынхантай хийсэн Англи хэлний Алхаа ба Яриа сэдэвт арга хэмжээ зохиогдоход оролцож коллеж дээр болсон бусад хичээл__дэд бусдыгаа уриалан оролцуулсан юм. М_н тэрээр явцын дунд __рийнх__ Англи хэл хэрхэн сурч байгаа талаараа багш нар болон коллежийн дэд захирал Хашбаяр нарт тайлбарлаж _гс_н. Багш нарт зориулсан англи хэлний онлайн болон номоор заах _мн_х сургалтууд идэвхг_й байсан тул коллежид иймэрх__ _йл ажиллагааг дэмжиж идэвхтэй хэрэгж__лээсэй гэж би туйлаас х_сэж байна. Хэдийгээр ахлах профессор Дагшигдорж болон туслах Энхтунгалаг нар коллежийн захирлуудын адилаар ярианы Англи хэлээ сайжруулахыг хичээж байгаа нь харагдааг_й ч __р олон багш ажилтнууд тодруулбал Г.Ариунаа, Д.Болормаа, Цэнгэл-Оюун нар __рсдийн англи хэлийг дээд т_вшний хэмжээнд сайжруулж чадсан б_г__д Г_рсэд, Лхагва м_н коллежийн туслах захирал хамтрагч Хашбаяр нарт цаашдаа маш их бололцоо бий нь харагдсан юм.

Д_гнэлт: Маш бага боловч чухал __рчл_лт
Барилгын Сайд, Дэлхийн З_н ба 8-р хорооны Тогтвортой Х_гжлийн Жендерийн Т_в зэрэгтэй з_вл_лдс_н ажил маань аль аль талдаа ач холбогдол муутай байснаас д_гнээд дараачийн удаад архитектор багш нарыг сургах зорилготой хичээл__дийг ихэнхдээ бетоны сэдвээр архитектурын бодит т_с_л маягаар явуулсан. Энэх__ ажил нь хуучин ажиллаж байсан багш нар болох Болормаа, Цэнг__нээ, Ариунаа, Хашбаяр болон шинэ багш нар Лхагва, Г_рсэд(ирээд_йд магадг_й Дэлгэрдалай, Т_мэн-од нар ч оролцох байх) нарт маш удаан хугацаанд _р шимээ _г_х боломжтой. Хэрэгж__лж болох б_г__д Эрчим х_ч хэмнэсэн барилга, талбай дээрх цагийн менежментийн зарчим, Т_слийн менежментийн аргууд, Архитектурын т_с_л т_л_вл_лт, захиалагчтай хийх уулзалт, анхны танилцуулга зэргийг хэрхэн зохион байгуулах, т_слийг архитектурын талаас хэрхэн д_гнэж бичих зэрэг тухай энд заасан.
Би хувьдаа багш Болормаа, Цэнг__нээ, Ариунаа, Хашбаяр нарыг _нг_рс_н нэг жилийн хугацаанд доорх салбаруудад явуулсан сургалтаа _ргэлжл__лээсэй гэж х_сэх байна. __нд:
- Сургах арга барилын судалгаа
- Олон улстай харьцах зорилгоор хэлээ судлах
- CV клиник \намтараа хэрхэн бичих аргуудыг сурах\
- Архитектурын боловсролтой холбоотой мэдээллийг интернэтээр (powerpoint, flickr, blogging, google earth, Wikipedia зэрэг вэб сайтаас) хайх чадвар эзэмших.

Болормаа болон Цэнг__нээ нар Техник Технологийн Коллежийн багш Сувдмаа(Англи хэлний багш) болон Болорцэцэг(Архитектурын багш) нарт МУБТК ба ТТК-ын зэрэг олгох хичээлийн х_т_лб_рийг харьцуулан системчлэх талд тусалж байсан. С__лээр коллеж ВСО-той ажиллах х_сэлтээ _гс_н. Би эдгээр х_м__сийг мэргэжлийн т_вшинд онцгой анхаарч ажиллаасай гэж зоригжуулж буй б_г__д ирээд_йд __рсдийн ур чадвараа нэмэгд__лж, т__нийгээ Монголын Архитекторуудын Ассоциацтай хуваалцаасай гэж х_сэх байна.
Миний ойлгосноор бол МУБТК шинээр 20-иод багш ажил авч байгаа гэсэн тул тэдэнд дээр дурдсан багш нар маань мэргэжлээ сайжруулж х_л__ олоход нь тус болоход хэрэгтэй. Багш ажилтнууд цаашдаа ВСО-ийн Роб Ван Ваарденбург болон шинэ з_вл_х, сайн дурын ажилтнуудтай хамтран ажиллахаа идэвхтэй _ргэлжл__лж __рсдийн мэргэжилд улам сайжирснаар коллежийн эзэд байх б_рэн итгэл бий болж мэргэжлийн хувьд бардам алхаж чадна байх.

Коллежийн оюутнууд дадлага хийх зорилгоор талбай дээр __рсд__ ажиллан шинэ анги барьж байгаа гэсэн. Захирал болон архитекторууд дизайныг сайжруулах зорилгоор нэгд_гээр сард зоорийн болон нэгд_гээр давхрыг тэргэнцэр орж болохоор хийх шийдвэр гаргасан. Энэх__ оролдлого нь барилга болон архитектурын боловсролд хандах хандлагаа сайжруулж байгаа хэрэг т_дийг_й коллежийн менежментийг ил__ идэвхтэй, оролцоо _нд_ртэй болгоход _ч__хэн ч атугай хувь нэмэр болж байгаа явдал юм.

please comment!
Manaixan messej bijeree daa!

Glamorous work

2008-07-28T09:17:00.008Z

Today I spent a good hour talking to Chicago architecture student Sarah Bassett on US-Mongolia connections - architecture, urbanism and research - including ACMS, GTZ, Fulbright scholars and other researchers and projects I have seen here. Like Melitta Kuglitsch's work with savings groups in Bayanzurkh Ger District. I chuckle comparing my work here with 'Dreamspaces'... with the helicopter circling David Adjaye's glamorous trio on a rooftop...

A video piece was one good suggestion for my блок / blog (draft). Meanwhile, one former student blog-reader Farisayi Utete (Conservation architect, Harare) suggested a radio piece on the BBC, and another, James Webb (Ueber-Designer-Architect, Amsterdam), encouraged me to publish a book.

The summer weather in Mongolia has been changeable, with some strong downpours causing flooding in the western peri-urban "twenty-first microdistrict" around the college. Many colleagues are making the most of the greenness, thanks to the rain, to holiday in the countryside.

Since their arrival on the Trans-siberian train last week I have hosted Ana Rewakowicz (Canada) and Annu Wilenius (Finland), musing about moving space, the state of Ulaanbaatar, and planning for this years' Blue Sun Art Camp with Yondon Dalkh-Ochir and others.

On Saturday at VSO I met over thirty Mongolian Deaf people who are learning American Sign Language with a Mongolian trainer and Nickson Kakiri. It was a basic training for a video conference/ cultural exchange conversation between deaf America and Mongolia in September. In a three hour training session, I learned many terms, and met two Norwegian Deaf tourists with their Mongolian Guide, Nemekhbayar Batnasah (UNV, see p.2) Afterwards, I was the only hearing person, besides a professional MSL/ ASL Mongolian-English translator, joining a large group which went on to a cafe. There were many discussions, several simultaneously crossing one another on a long table, and the most arcane conversation I have yet witnessed in my new experience of deaf culture, as two Mongolians discussed signing and deaf culture in Mongolia in Mongolian Sign Language. *

Week 45

2008-07-24T04:30:00.009Z

Yesterday, reasons given for slow progress of the teams included 1) One team leader has a new child, some others were not available, 2) Another college project - building a house, about which I had not previously heard - was running into lateness penalties and team members had to be re-deployed there, 3) our director was waiting for money from investors, in order to pay our team members, etc.

Arriving at our college with some brochures about EcoSan toilets (pdf) and energy efficient heating, I suggested a visit to the office of co-authors, the Construction Ministry with GTZ (German Technical Cooperation). A small deputation, Gursed and Dalai, Bolormaa and I, called in to the Construction Ministry in the city centre. I hoped we might ask to see the plans for the new (energy efficient and accessible) Mongolian pattern school. I explained our school had instead been referring to the 1965 Russian edition of Neufert for planning diploma projects. Our Ministry contact person Gantsetseg was on holiday (until...?) and no-one else there could help us. We decided to try the GTZ project office (1 Ikh Toryuu) and Tumen Od joined the group from his adjacent workplace.

By now most GTZ staff were at lunch, but after happening upon a friend Mathias Pretzsch, I was fortunately able to speak to programme manager Frau Ruth Erlbeck, between meetings. She showed me an impressive masterplan for the new Eco-City near UB Airport, and was able to provide more brochures, and promised a presentation of current projects to the college. I explained my vision - that Mongolian architecture teachers would desire to be conversant with the Pattern School, and other examples of contemporary and internationally benchmarked practice in architecture.

Work Plan, Sanzai - Санзай Ажил

2008-07-18T12:16:00.004Z

1. Site plan, site analysis (A2)
2. Site sections, site analysis (A2)
3. EcoHouseI sch. plan section facade (A2)
4. EcoHouseII sch. plan section facade (A2)
5. EcoHouseIII sch. plan section facade (A2)
6. Captioned Site Photog. Use "Participatory Presentation" method in team for selection and captioning. (A2)
7. Sketches, Collage
8. Accommodation Brief incl int, ext, roads, gardens, ecol. features, ecol. footprint.
9. Precedent Studies; BedZED, Hockerton

Work Plan, Yarmag - Ярмаг Ажил

2008-07-18T11:50:00.010Z

1. Site plan, site analysis (A2)
2. Site sections, site analysis (A2)
3. SiteI alt.1 (Baatar) Staff Accomm. sch. plan section facade (A2)
4. SiteI alt.2 (Khaasha) Play sch. plan section facade (A2)
5. SiteII Hotel Conference Fitness sch. plan section facade (A2)
6. SiteIII alt.1 (Baatar) Play sch. plan section facade (A2)
7. SiteIII alt.2 (Khaasha) Staff Accomm. sch. plan section facade (A2)
8. Captioned Site Photog. Use "Participatory Presentation" method in team for selection and captioning. (A2)
9. Sketches, Collage
10. Accommodation Brief
10.1 Hotel
10.2 Conference
10.3 Staff Accommodation
10.4 Play
incl int, ext, roads, gardens, ecol. features, ecol. footprint.
11. Market Appraisals; UB wide, International; Russia, China, Khazakstan etc
12. Precedent Studies; Structure, Roof of Beijing Airport (Foster)
13. Precedent Studies; Programme, Eden Project Cornwall (Grimshaw)
14. Precedent Studies; Conservation, Camley Street London Kings Cross
15. Precedent Studies; Theme Parks, Butlins Family Holiday Camps (UK)

Cherry

2008-07-18T06:17:00.003Z

Walking in the dusty heat through Khangai this morning, I noted the names on fences; streets or lots (Khangai 2, Khangai 4, Khangai 1). People were collecting water. As I passed the depot, a family came walking on the track towards me. As I nodded a greeting to a grandmother, she paused and extended towards me a polystyrene-plated parcel of dried fruit from which she had been eating. I selected a glace cherry and said "bayarlalaa" (thank you).

Today I drafted the skeleton of a work schedule for the team for the next week while I take leave. I made fifteen points for Yarmag. These include nine A2 drawings, including site analyses and options for two of the sites, a programme brief, and case studies for Roof Structure (Fosters Beijing) Programme (Eden Cornwall) Conservation Education (Camley Street) and Theme Parks (Butlins).

For Sanzai I noted nine similar points, with an 'ecological footprint' study and case studies of Hockerton and BedZED. For each project, I also started project discussion groups on the college Flickr group.

Yarmag Khaan Uul, participatory methods

2008-07-17T07:21:00.007Z

Architect teacher trainee Lkhagva, vice-director Hashaa, Bolormaa and I together visited client Baatar and three female family members, at Bilig Law Institute on Tuesday afternoon. Baatar, a London based Mongolian businessman, was not unfamiliar with accessible and energy efficient principles, but was less clear on the business model for the conference centre and youth recreation park. Mongolian and international markets for these touched upon. The thirteen year old Mongolian girl advised on youth recreation.

A wish list was drafted in a brainstorming discussion, with cursory reference to the site analysis and photos. Three unattached pieces of land are to be developed after all, but the wish list is bewildering, spanning from skate park to climbing gym. The first three of four main parts of the new brief - Staff Accommodation, Conference, Hotel, and Recreation - were allocated to Uyanga, Lkhagva and Tumen Od respectively. It looked exciting.

Vice-director Hashaa today excitedly shared his idea about adapting the form of roof structure from Fosters' new Beijing Airport. Although I was quietly sceptical, at any rate, the Foster Oevre is of greater educational interest than the Fisher "Dynamic Architecture" tower. (Foster Bulgaria in AJ)

Meanwhile we continued with a teaching workshop on more participatory methods;
Focus Group Discussions - Бүлгийн Хэлэлцүүлэл
Participatory Presentations - Орон Нутгийн Шийдвэр
Picture Stories - Зурган түүх
Problem Tree - Асуудлын Мод
Thought Shower - Санаагаа Илэрхийлэх.
I discussed my London colleague's architecture careers case study with Tsenguune.

After Naadam

2008-07-16T08:03:00.004Z

After the team members attandance dwindled approaching the annual Naadam, I had a nice break, watching colleagues in the archery at a new stadium, getting a dose of sunburn in the bright white arena, and scoring tickets (thanks Uriana) for the opening ceremony at the National Stadium. Rising early on Saturday for the journey to the Horse Races in Хүй Долоон Худаг was worthwhile. A much needed Sunday rest was eschewed in favour of the Pinoy Picnic in a beautiful Хангайт Зуслан.

On Monday I had been asked to to advise Chingeltei Health on their hospital planning, and I went along with Tuya of MNFDPO, Nickson kakiri from VSO and Bolormaa from my college. Gecca, a VSO, works advising the hospital there, and arranged for us to meet the director Tungalag and her deputy Ulanbayar. No drawings were available to see, and it emerged that the architectural planning was being done by a second year MUST student 'volunteer'. The directors claimed they were unable to afford - or not aware of - Mongolian expertise in hospital planning, nor of aware of the disability umbrella org (MNFDPO), nor aware of the Mongolian accessibility norm. The concepts of preparing an architectural brief and of (Mongolian) professional support for the project and volunteers were discussed. I noted 14 action points, many involving working with Mongolians - watch this space.

The Yarmag and Sanzai client meetings were rolled over to Tuesday. After waiting (in vain) for a college plumber at home on Tuesday morning - following the invasion of a neighbours plumber to disable our toilet and shower at almost midnight on Saturday - I held a full team meeting at the college, to take stock of progress and prepare for the meetings.

Live Projects

2008-07-09T11:30:00.007Z

Yarmag team members (Tumen -Gerel, Uyanga and Ganbold from right-left above - team leader Lhagva has family leave) had made a good start with a plan for the Childrens Camp and conference centre (by Bogd Khaan Mountain) accompanied by some environmental data, but as yet lack a written brief. The accommodation requirements (200 conference goers, 200 restaurant seats , pool, sauna etc) had been established verbally, in conversation between the college Vice-Director Khashaa and the developer client.

Meanwhile the remainder of the team, Gursed and Tumen-Od (incommunicado with the others) have a sectional schematic and the basis of a Site Analysis. If only they would all talk to each other...

Everybody came together before the Naadam festival break, but team members complained of flooding, power cuts and lack of daylight hindering progress on drawing. I suggested what each group lacked respectively, in terms of a client presentation for Monday, and referred Tumen Gerel to our VSO conference and Equal Step Camp (via my blog - in Mongolian).

grotesque wheelchairs

2008-07-09T08:42:00.006Z

I was appalled on BBC World news this morning at seeing the grotesque joke of 'spouses' of world leaders testing some electric wheelchair-like vehicles at the G8 summit, in the name of ecologically sustainable transport. I despair about the developed world's contribution to transport contra climate change. These educated people with their little handbags should be capable of riding ordinary bicycles. But rather, it is their built environment that is often ill-suited to their journeys (even for shopping). More Segway-like devices will only superficially (and very expensively) 'green' the environment, while cheap individual means of human powered transport are plentiful, but unfashionable.

Leaving work yesterday, I saw a man sprawled face down in the mud outside the college, whom at first I thought may be dead. The slow writhing of his limbs at very odd angles, suggested to me at first they might have been broken in an accident. After a few minutes' close observation (at a distance) I could see he was breathing, probably paraletic, and might survive. This morning there was no trace of him, the entire area was flooded and inaccessible after heavy rain. I had to access the college by climbing a fence and clambering through our building site.

MonZED (эко-мэко хаус-маус)

2008-07-08T09:47:00.006Z

Yesterday, I presented online material (translated into Mongolian with Bolormaa) about the design and technology of BedZED (Beddington Zero Energy Development) as a case study; solar orientation, passive thermal design and ventilation, green roofs, water harvesting and recycling, central heating and power plant, insulation values of materials, etc.

BedZED (as one possible form of Eco House.. "эко-мэко хаус-маус") seemed to get their creative juices flowing, and Gursed and Dalai today produced a sectional schematic. Meanwhile Dalai's attempts to investigate the EcoSan toilet by phoning Boojum Expeditions were in vain.

Soberingly, I found the two poring over the daily newspaper Өнөөдөр's half page story in Mongolian on David Fisher's (senseless) 'Dynamic Architecture' Dubai Tower. As an alternative impromptu brainstorming exercise, I had them find (by reading pictures) ten relevant technologies / ideas from ten copies of RIBA Journal I had brought in. Their ten ideas ranged from sewage tanks, to roof lights, to wall insulation, to metal wall cladding(??), and will form the basis of drawings which would substantiate an 'eco-house' brief.

Deutsch?

2008-07-07T09:00:00.006Z

"Deutsch?" called out a European-looking youth sitting by our Орц (building entrance) with a Mongolian-looking contemporary.
"Nein, Australisch... Wir beiden sind Australier, aus London... Wo kommst Du her?"
"NRW... Nordrhein-Westfalen" he said. "Also, Tschuess" I said.

Манай хажуу орцны урд сууж байсан монгол найзтай европ залуу намайг "Дойч? " гэж дуудсан.
"найн - Аустралиш (Үгүй ээ - Австралчууд) ...Бид хоёр Лондонгоос ирсэн Австралчууд байна... Чи хаанас ирсэн?"
"НРВ... Нордрайн-Вэстфалэн" гэсэн. Би "За, Чөөс" гэсэн.

*translation assisted by D. Bolormaa

'Eco'...

2008-07-04T07:56:00.005Z

The project team met today to report back on progress since Tuesday's meetin g. No-one had looked at the examples, at first appearing to have forgotten Tuesday's discussion, then claiming language difficulties for studying websites.

So, (again) we reviewed considerations which might be taken into account as a framework eco-design:

Design
1 Solar - passive thermal design principles, orientation
2 Air / wind / ventilation / breeze principles
3 Water collection and disposal

Technology
1 Solar - Photovoltaic cells / panels
2 Wind power, direction temperature - including passive ventilation..
3 Insulation (U or K values) composite values for materials / walls, floors / roofs
4 Toilets dry / wet technology eg. EcoSan in Mongolia (Renchinhlumbe Hospital, Khatgal Ger Camp)

We will see what emerges...

Sustainable Tourism

2008-07-04T07:21:00.003Z

Equal Step Camp has made good progress on beginning to devise some ecological sustainability standards for the childrens camp at Point 290, as I previously mentioned here and on Tour Watch and Rolling Rains. Ruth Richardson VSO from the camp met with VSO Secure Livelihoods tourism adviser Brian Watmough and I - and a dozen good action points emerged for the camp's sustainability plan;

1. Transport; explain the ecological and social benefits of using rail transport in Mongolia.
2. Waste; packaging of all supplies purchased (food, consumables etc) should be studied, and bulk purchasing benefits analysed. Separation of waste (participatively & educationally) into organic/ non-organic or combustible/non-combustible is a good principle.
3. Toilets; management of a) flushing disabled accessible pedestal toilet and b) pit toilets may be studied with alternative c) ecosan composting toilet (ecosan.org) - for future consideration.
4. Rainwater harvesting (collection from a roof gutter) from one building roof.
Grey water collection from food preparation areas, possibly for garden / greenhouse use, in buckets.
5. Solar; collectors, photo-voltaic panels, one per ger. Painting shower header tanks black, to absorb some warmth from solar radiation.
6. Tree planting; Consider Sea Buckthorn and also trees, vis a vis carbon offsetting, VSO community forestry, see also literature on Ecological Footprint (GFN, NEF)
7. Fire evacuation procedure; first aid and safety train volunteers, also as fire marshalls.
8. Local land management; River and Water Pollution training for staff and volunteers.
9. Accommodation (adaptations for children and for conference guests - beds, food etc)
10. Recreation; Horse Riding, Milking Goats, Walking, Swimming
11. Community Liaison with the Local Shop; catering for guests, e.g. conference groups
12. Information; about the history of the camp and its social and ecoogical aims, and the Equal Step children - photographs or drawings of or by the children of the camp, volunteer participation in establishment and ongoing maintainence of the camp.

Ulaanbaatar

2008-07-02T09:43:00.006Z

Suddenly today, worldwide attention has been drawn to Ulaanbaatar* as riots broke out yesterday over the election results. Although I was aware of the many election posters and roving loudspeakers in the streets, I was unaware of the tension brewing around Sunday's election.
(*note English transliteration of Mongolian name meaning Red Hero, the old 20thC Russian name Ulan Bator being as poor an anglicisation as 'Bombay' is for Mumbai)

In the current state of emergency, five have been killed near the central square, and we are instructed not to go out. I postponed today's meeting with the projects team, along with planned training on Participatory Teaching Methods with Bolormaa and Tsenguun, and advice to Technical and Technology College on recruiting an architecture volunteer.

Some colleagues in UB suggest the election result was illegitimate, but more likely, the electoral process had its own difficulties. Some friends who are not registered in a permanent place, for example, are disenfranchised from voting. Lonely Planet journo Michael Kohn on BBC news was attributing some of the tension to the provocation of seeing Humvee SUVs in the street, while so many are poor and homeless. Widely felt frustration about issues such as poverty and government corruption, but also alcohol abuse, must have contributed to the events.

Site Analysis; initial discussion

2008-06-29T07:26:00.011Z

A meeting was held on Friday, to discuss our projects with two visiting advisors I had invited to the college; Ruth Richardson VSO of Equal Step Childrens' Camp (recently featured on Rolling Rains), and Barbara Goss, of Treetour / Reforestation of Northern Khentii. Our new CTC project leaders, Gursed and Lhakgva, displayed the drawings they had prepared - after considerable coaxing to ensure consistent drawing labelling, scales and orientation, and to properly mount and label photographs ("is it really necessary? - YES") - for the discussion. 1:500 site models were produced by students.

Sanzai /Selbe Khadad Eco Houses
For the Eco-Houses in Sanzai /Selbe Khadad, the as-yet unclear ecological standards and proposed performance for the eco-house designs were questioned. Separately saleable cottages seemed preferable in principle to an energy efficient triplex building.

some reference examples;
Hockerton Eco Houses
BedZED Beddington UK
Eco-Homes Standards (UK) - pdf Guide

Yarmag Children's Camp
For the Childrens' Camp in Yarmag, the standards of nature protection for the surrounding reserve seemed unclear, despite the detailed consultants report which had been provided. A low impact temporary camp seemed in principle to be less appealing and feasible than permanent buildings for up to 200 people on 1000m2.

reference examples;
Eden Project, Cornwall
Camley Street Natural Park, Central London
Childrens Day Camp (Ontario CA)

Projects on the drawing boards

2008-06-26T08:54:00.012Z

Upper: Selbe Khadad (Sukhbaatar district, North of UB)

Sanzai Eco-Houses Project

Lower: Yarmag (South of UB)

Yarmag Childrens' Camp Project

These two photos (from my phone camera) and linked pages describe the two projects we are currently developing with Gursed and Lhagva, two trainee architect teachers, with four students; in the first case, in Selbe Khadad, for 'Eco-houses', and in the second case, in Yarmag, for a Childrens' Recreational Camp in a nature reserve.

Essential Skills - Суурь чадвар

2008-06-25T05:01:00.009Z

To begin the projects for Yarmag and Sanzai, with two architecture graduate trainees, Lkhagva and Gursed, and four students, I began by setting out for agreement six main steps for approaching design projects, based on a book by (my former student) Do* et al;

Суурь чадвар - Essential Skills

6 stages
1. Товч ойлголт (The Brief): Төслийн товч санааг дүрсэлнэ. Үүнийг хийхэд ямар зүйл сурах шаардлагатай, ямар онцгой ур чадвар /бодох, зурах, харилцааны/ байх хэрэтэй вэ гэдгээ төлөвлөнө.

2. Тайлбар (The interpretation): Товч ойлголтоо тайлбарлан зарим онцгой хэсгийг нь дэлгэрүүлэн тайлбарлан ойлголмжтой болгоно. Төслийн сэдэвтэй хамаатай судалгаа хийн, тайлбарлаж чадахгүй байгаа зүйлээ буруу эхлэхээс нь өмнө бүх зүйлийг тодорхой болгох хэрэгтэй.

3. Дэлгэрүүлэх (The inspiration): Энэ хэсэгт чи ямар утга санааг илэрхийлж байгааг илүү чиглүүлж тайлбарлана. Энгийн түвшинд чиний санааны илэрхийлэл нь юу юм? Дээд түвшинд чиний санаа архитектурын ямар байр суурь, загварын философийг агуулж байгааг тайлбарлана.

4. Шинжлэн судлах (The exploration): Шинжлэн судлах нь нарийн нягт процесс бөгөөд загвар, зураг, санаануудаа өөр ур чадвараар хөгжүүлэн сайжруулах явц юм. Эцэст нь өөрийн дизайныг амаар болон биетээр /архитектурын зураг ба загвар/ товч байдлаар тайлбарлахыг шаардана.

5. Боловсруулалт ба илрэл (Refinement and Expression): Сайн дизайнер нь хамгийн шилдэг гэсэн санаагаа гүйцэлдүүлэхэд хэр зэрэг хугацаа шаардлагатай таамаглаж чаддаг.

6. Хангамж ба гүйцэтгэл (Delivery and Execution): Энэ хэсэгт чиний бүх ур чадварыг шаарданана. Энд сайн зурсан төслийг харахаас илүү муу зүйл гэж байхгүй. Магадгүй санаа нь хүчтэй ч гэсэн илтгэх арга барил нь дизайн хийх процессын туршид сурсан ур чадварт хүчтэй нөлөөлдөг.

Trans. Bolormaa Davaadorj based on * Do K. (Khoa), Siew A. (Adelyn), Schreven L., Lena, Loo R., Holmeseth K., Iu W. (2006) Point of Reference, First Edition, Perth, WA, Curtin University of Technology, 80 pages (ISBN 1 740 67455 3)

Site Analysis - Орчны тойм шинжилгээ

2008-06-25T04:58:00.006Z

Before departing for the visits to the two sites yesterday, on Monday we carefully went through these notes on site analysis with the team.

Site Analysis - Орчны тойм шинжилгээ

1. Хүрээлэн буй орчин ба байрлал:
•Хүрээлэн буй орчин: Энд барилгын байршилын асуудал илүү хамаарна. Чиний барилга байр зүйн өвөрмөц онцлог /гол, мөрөн, далай г.м/ эсвэл байгууламжуудтай /хот, гүүр, далан г.м/ хэрхэн холбогдон байршиж байна?
•Байрлал: Энэ нь барилгын орчин тойрны асуудалтай шууд хамаарна. Газрын өндөр нь хэр зэрэг юм? Суурийн тогтворжилт нь ямар юм? Тэнд ямар ургамал ургадаг юм? Ямар төрлийн барилга байгууламж зонхилож байна? Барилгын маштаб, хэмжээ нь ямар байх юм? Нийгэм болон соёлын асуудлыг нь яаж авч үзсэн юм? гэх мэт.

2. Хүрээлэн буй орчны төрөл: Захын хороолол, хөдөө, тосгон, захын байрлал/ус ба газрын/, усан дээр /гол, мөрөн, тэнгис г.м/, хад цохио.

3. Хүрээнлэн буй орчны хүчин зүйлс ба агуулга:
•Арга барил ба хандлага
•Өдөр ба шөнийн уур амьсгал
•Нарны тусгал
•Байгууламжаас үүсэр сүүдэржилт
•Далайн түвшинээс дээших өндөр
•Барилга дотор болон гадна талаасаа хэрхэн харагдах үзэмж

4. Орчны шинжилгээ хийхэд юу авч явах хэрэгтэй вэ?
•Харандаа, бал г.м
•Ноорог дэвтэр
•Шугамдсан цаас
•Маштабны шугам ба хэмждэг тууз
•Газрын зураг /хэрэв боломтой бол байр зүйн газрийн зураг/
•Камер

5. Бичлэг зурагнуудаа хэрхэн яаж ашиглах вэ?
Олж авсан мэдээллээ газрын зураг дээрээ маштаблан зурж тамдэглэн түүнийгээ өөрийн газрын шинжилгээн дээр хэрхэн авч үзэхээ мэддэг байх хэрэгтэй. Нэмэлт материал /фото зураг, тэмдэглэл/-ууд өөрийн зурагтай чинь холбоотой бол ашигладаг байх хэрэгтэй.
•Байрлалын төлөвлөгөө / байршил/
•Газрын төлөвлөгөө: Эргэн тойрны байгууламж, ургамал, газрын өндөр гэх мэт.
•Байрлалын хэсэг
•Гудамжны өндөржилт /өндөр/
•Зарим деталь /материйл, барилга байгууламж, хүрээлэн буй орчин гэх мэт/

Preparing the Location Plan and Site Plan for each project would be the first steps, accompanied by site models made of card - critical given the topography in each case.

Trans. Davadorjiin Bolormaa based on based on Do K., Siew A., Schreven L., Lena, Loo R., Holmeseth K., Iu W. (2006) Point of Reference, First Edition, Perth, WA, Curtin University of Technology, 80 pages (ISBN 1 740 67455 3)

VSO annual Volunteer Conference

2008-06-21T14:21:00.008Z

VSO Mongolia volunteers and staff extricated ourselves from work for a couple of days to go to a green valley in the Mongolian countryside to take stock of what we have achieved, in our annual volunteer conference.

Gathering over thirty volunteers from Africa, The Philippines, The Netherlands, Canada, Australia and Britain, with placements as far afield as Bayan Ulgii, Choibalsan and Darkhan, everyone seemed pleased to get together. On the second day I assisted Nickson Kakiri in leading a session on mainstreaming disability in all of our work here, and we discussed and (re)discovered issues of disabilities, rights, exclusion and working with various challenges. We reflected on some positive work done in the last year, including work on universally accessible buildings, and a recent accessibility audit of the Equal Step Camp, our conference venue, in this remote village apparently known only by its train siding, 'Point 290'.

The camp had recently installed a ramp and accessible toilet, and its generous volunteers, on our arrival, had also erected a ger and made us some great meals, a horhog, and a bonfire. VSO's scarce funds seemed in this case to have been directed towards a very promising locally owned and highly sustainable enterprise.

Most of the conference sessions were held in a wooden hall, which worked well with improvised flipcharts and the occasional powerpoint presentation. As Secure Livelihoods Programme volunteer coordinator, I led a session - on a grassy riverbank - which included an update of all livelihoods volunteers' work, where we later returned at dusk to wade in the river, like the local horses.

Жил бүр VSO-ын Монгол дахь салбарын ажилчид болон сайн дурынхны дунд зохион байгуулагддаг бага хурлын үеэр бид өөрсдийн юу хийж бүтээсэн, ямар ололт, амжилттай байснаа ярилцан дүгнэж хэдэн өдрийг хөдөө, цэвэр агаарт амарч цагийг зугаатай өнгөрөөлөө.

Африк, Филиппин, Голланд, Канад, Австрали, Британи зэрэг улсаас, мөн Баян-Өлгий аймаг, Чойбалсан, Дархан хотоос нийт 30 гаруй сайн дурын ажилтан цуглаж хуралдлаа. 3 өдрийн хурал амжилттай, үр өгөөжтэй болсон юм. Хурлын 2 дахь өдөр, би Никсон Какири-н хариуцсан “хөгжлийн бэрхшээл” сэдэвт хэсгийг удирдан зохион байгуулах ажилд тусалж, бид хөгжлийн бэрхшээлтэй хүмүүсийн эрх зөрчигдөх, нийгмээс гадуурхагдах зэрэг тулгамдсан асуудлуудын талаар ярилцаж, тэдгээрийг хэрхэн шийдэх талаар ярилцсан. Өнгөрсөн жил бидний гол ярилцаж байсан сэдэв бол бүгдэд хүртээмжтэй барилгын тухай байсан бөгөөд бидний хурлаа зохион байгуулсан ‘290-ийн цэг’ гэсэн нэртэй газарт байрлах Тэгш Алхам зусланг барихдаа тэрхүү санааг маань барилгынхаа ажилд тусгасан байлаа.

Энэхүү зуслан саяхан налуу зам барьж, ариун цэврийн өрөөгөө хөгжлийн бэрхшээлтэй хүмүүст зориулан тохижуулсан байв. Биднийг очиход тэндэхийн сайн дурын ажилтнууд гэр барьж өгч, сайхан хоол, хорхогоор дайлан галын наадам зохион байгуулсан. VSO-с гаргасан өчүүхэн санхүүжилтыг ашиглан энэхүү орон нутгийн аж ахуйн нэгж чамгүй амжилттай болоод тогтвортойгоор үйл ажиллагаагаа явуулж буй нь харагдаж байсан.

Хурлын ихэнх хэсгийг зуны модон байшинд зохион явуулсан нь powerpoint, flipcharts зэргийг ашиглахад тохиромжтой байлаа. Миний бие Баталгаат амьдрал хөтөлбөрийн удирдагч (сайн дурын ажилтан)-аар ажилладаг бөгөөд өөрийн удирдсан хурлын хэсгийг голын эрэг дээрх ногоон зүлгэн дээр явуулсан. Харин дараа нь орой буцахдаа тэр голоо гаталсан.

Thank you to Indra Oyunbaatar, MUST, for this translation.

Summer, Screams, Selbe Khadat - Сэлбэ Хадат

2008-06-15T06:23:00.009Z

It feels like summer, warmer although a little dusty and windy at times. The building site for the new college is progressing with formwork for the ground floor (in Mongolian "first floor") almost complete, and barrowloads of on-site batched concrete being poured into the floor beam forms.

Yesterday (uncharacteristically for a Saturday) I was working at the college office, after leaving some things behind on Friday afternoon, and heard screams of pain and crying from the building site, which moved into the building. We emerged to find a trail of blood and a young female construction student nursing what I feared from a distance might be an amputation or a deep cut, which was rapidly being wrapped in bandages. We established that a doctor and ambulance had been summoned, but that then, after quite a scene with colleagues and students in the college, the patient was driven to hospital in a jeep by Shari, our builder. I later learned the student had caught her left little finger in the roller of a large concrete mixer and that it would be likely to be rehabilitated with a splint.

The previous day I was away from the college on a building site visit, in a small summer resort village called Selbe Khadat - Сэлбэ Хадат, (Сухбаатарийн Дураг 16-р Хороо) about 25km north of the city. We collected the client developer for the Eco-houses from his office at a hotel and went via Sanzai to the Sukhbaatar district, finally over several kilometres of unsealed roads to the site on the gentle north slope of a mountain, looking over a pleasant valley of holiday houses. There was a nice stand of Blackwood trees on the site and many more on the southern boundary where the mountain rose up. We discussed putting three ecologically sustainable permanent dwellings on the site, and considered the land value (about 25M MNT) and potential for capitalisation of the land in relation to the adjacent summer houses.

Architecture and transition after socialism

2008-06-10T06:37:00.006Z

I thought of posting some project references with architects' website links for study by Mongolian and international colleagues (at least for perusal of drawings / pictures) . I recently read an interview with Hungarian architects, Bence Turanyi (b1974) and Gabor Turanyi (b1948) of T2a discussing, among other things, the changes to architects working methods since 1990 in the context of political changes in Eastern Europe.

They noted how architecture work has moved from "centralised plan factories" to privately owned architectural practices. How the souls of "state" architects were "liberated when they were able to go freelance"... how "new assignments and technologies had brought new possibilities"... how architects had previously lacked structural and material resources but now can build almost everything from anything." (European Architecture May/June 2008 p.19)

My related selection of projects showcased in the journal include;
Office Building, Sofia, Bulgaria by Aedes Studio
Shipping Terminal, Herceg-Novi, Montenegro by Studio Grad
Churches, Litomysl and Cernosice u Prahy, CZ by Zdenek Franek
Sports Hall, Jurmala, Latvia, by Substance
Commercial Centre, Zagreb, Croatia, by Igor Franic
Office Building, Ankara, by Cira Koglu Architecture
Academy of Performing Arts, and Bridge and Square, Sarajevo by various inc. Archipelagos

How has architectural practice changed since Perestroika? How are these projects relevant to post-socialist Mongolia's situation now?

Training continues

2008-06-03T07:25:00.006Z

Following the departure of TTK colleagues from the day's training, we seemed to be on a roll, and a further architect teacher training workshop followed spontaneously. Lkhagva and Gursed, having graduated with architecture diplomas on Friday, had been selected as future teachers. They happened to be plastering a wall in the college on Monday, and agreed to join Bolormaa and Tsenguune and I for training on participatory teaching methods. The VSO handbook on that subject with its array of methods (here an alternative resource) had attracted great interest from the latter two experienced teachers.

After contemplating the whole matrix of participatory methods offered*, Tsenguune chose the method called 'Answer Cards' and I quickly composed an exercise in order to practically demonstrate how to use the method. After explaining the purpose and process, I distributed three answer cards each (A4 paper torn into A6 quarter-sheets) and requested in Mongolian simple responses to three simple questions about Ulaanbaatar buildings, colours and transport. I collected the participants' enthusiastic responses and facilitated the groups shared analysis and collation of all of the different information on the answer cards. Although Gursed and Lkhagva left unexpectedly to return to their plastering, all had learned something at first hand about one participatory way of exploring a subject lesson.

* Some online resources about participatory methods
Pacific Skills Link
SPARK, Sharing and Promotion of Awareness and Regional Knowledge
Partnerships UK

architect teacher training

2008-06-03T06:45:00.009Z

I made it home tired after the Baga Bayan excursion, and having resisted Batbileg's (mathematics teacher and ger district neighbour) insistent invitations for one more drink at the rough-looking local bar at Sapporo.

The time had finally come for architect teacher training, almost by accident. Suvdmaa of the Technical and Technology College sms-messaged me on Sunday night to confirm our Monday 11am training meeting. I agreed, and in the morning rallied our teachers at CTC. The TTK teachers called at 11.45am trying to postpone, while CTC teachers waited, but I called Suvdmaa's bluff, and they finally arrived after midday. Suvdmaa brought Bolorchimeg, a young architect teacher graduate of MUST. I demonstrated mapping a typical Part1 architecture course. I gave each of the two pairs of teachers an A4 sheet and they set to diagramming the architecture courses at CTC and TTK respectively, the basic year progression, semesters, and some of the subject areas.

I have established a great rapport with CTC teachers Bolormaa (Maths) and Tsenguune (Computing teacher), and with their excellent translation abilities and now developed curriculum design interest, they became fine teacher training collaborators.

The purpose of mapping became clear as we explored the complementarity and continuity of the Mongolian course subjects in comparison with the 'typical part1' course. The technical bias of the courses, at the expense of culture and communication, was also discussed, in what was agreed as deriving from the Russian style legacy of these two (largely similar) Mongolian courses. The roles of various teaching methods - lecture, seminar, studio, workshop, assignment, excursion - were compared and contrasted. The Mongolian teachers all took great interest in 'Point of Reference' (Khoa Do ed, 2006) a handbook produced by Perthian architecture and interiors students with Khoa Do. They scrutinised the Curtin course structures, but also teaching and learning tips, and model and project examples with great interest. I wondered aloud whether they could do something similar with their students. I proudly recounted my history with Khoa Do, from his first year as architecture student to teaching colleague, architect collaborator and passed master.

The course comparison showed that the Mongolian architecture courses were comprised of 4 years, eight semesters of 16 weeks each, loosely comparable with the 3 year 'Part1'. Practical experience, they suggested, however, is most problematic, because of the tendency for exploiting student labour and its dubious educational value. I carefully touched on the principle of a 'Professional Experience Record' to monitor the quality of professional experience, but urging the participation of a professional body... (such as the currently 'dormant' Mongolian Architects Association, through committee chair Purev-Erdene Ershuu.)

Bolorchimeg initiated a discussion about professional education for Architects and Urban Designers and I compared the continental European / German-language / perhaps also 'Russian' integral approach to Urbanism, with the Commonwealth / British tradition of Town Planning as a separate discipline. Particularly interesting in this post-socialist context is the Peri-Urban condition, which Purev-Erdene Ershuu's 'Centre for Architectural Design and Research' at MUST addressed in its conference with Vienna University of Technology last year.

The Russian legacy in the Mongolian architecture curriculum and literature was discussed in light of my experience of the generation of Russian-trained Mongolian architects - some still believe the 1965 Russian edition of Neufert to be suitable for 21st century Mongolia. Bolorchimeg begged to differ and wrote down references we discussed, to Bat-Od (UB 2007) and Ching's 'Form Space and Order', whose publisher Wiley has kindly offered a free chapter download. Bolorchimeg also copied down my hand-made wall chart where Mongolian architecture students mapped in Mongolian the equivalent of the 'RIBA' work stages of an architectural project - from go to whoa.

Ziemlich muede nach unserem Ausflug, und nach dem ich Einladung im denkwuerdigen Lokals von Batbileg - meinem Mathematik-lehrer kollege und Ger-bezirk nachbar - entkam, ging ich nach Hause.

Endlich- fast zufaellig- kam eine chance fuer das 'Architekten-innen-lehrerinnen-tranieren'. TTK lehrer Suvdmaa hatte mich Sonntag am Abend ein sms-message gesandt, um unseren montagiges Termin zu bestaetigen. Einverstanden, rufte ich dann die CTC Lehrerinnen zusammen. Das TTK-partie telefonierte um 1145, um verschub zu versuchen, da war ich aber nicht einverstanden - da kamen Sie dann trotzdem nach dem mittag. Suvdmaa brachte Bolorchimeg mit, eine junge beim MUST absolvierte Architekturlehrerin. Ich stellte das aufzeichnen eines typiches Part1 Architektur-kurs vor. Dann gab ich die zwei Lehrerinnen-paare je ein Blatt A4, und sie begannen die Architektur-kurse - jeweils CTC und TTK - in Diagrammform grob zu zeichnen - einfache fortfolge, semester-struktur, und einige fachbereiche.

Graduation and Excursion

2008-06-03T06:23:00.006Z

On Friday the graduating students were all dressed up and assembling in the college courtyard from about 10am. I almost missed the start of proceedings at midday, and speeches and diplomas were presented against a 'colourful' backdrop. After many photographs and a ceremonial final lesson, where a basic idea is taught as a graduation ritual, accompanied by drinking warm milk (!), the students dispersed and the staff waited for departure to a rest camp from 3pm. At 8pm we finally departed in several jeeps, to a forested valley on the far northern UB periphery, 33km from the centre in Sanzai. The Baga Bayan Rest Camp is a former Soldiers' Retreat.

Of all the ensuing 24 hours' activities, from vodka-fuelled celebrations to a forest walk and a delicious Horhog barbecue lunch on the following day, a speech by a director - which I had not fully grasped on Friday night - and which was recounted in English by Ariunaa on Saturday - most impressed me. All my bewilderment about Mongolian men and alcohol was called up when the director frankly recounted his personal history in parallel with the formation of the college. As a tertiary educated man in his late twenties he had been lost and constantly drunk. When he met his business partner and friend, the enterprise of establishing the college over the last several years had brought purpose to his life and coincided with establishing a family. His second son had been born the previous day and the college was also now building its own premises, with the help of the students and the first graduating cohort from the architecture course.

A Powerful Point

2008-05-28T04:59:00.007Z

Last week two of our teachers were asked by a college director to prepare a training session about MS Powerpoint, using Multimedia Flash player to put the pesentation on the web. As someone who has used PP (MS Powerpoint) in teaching for over 10 years I offered some tips.

The first was that as I have been finding in my work in Mongolia, (call me a luddite! but...) sometimes a presentation can be made more clearly using simple technology, like pencil and paper scotch taped to the wall, chalk on a blackboard, or overhead transparency. I navigated to a technical point in Edward Tufte's essay on "Powerpoint does Rocket Science" demonstrating six hierarchical levels on a single slide, exemplifying 'bureaucratic hyper-rationalism'.

We discussed the recent lecture competition I had attended with the college director at the Food Technology College, where experienced Mongolian lecturers seemed to have the same problems in designing their presentation slides as we find world wide; few clear illustrations and way too much text. Additionally cyrillic fonts were a problem in the presentations, with gratuitous or irrelevant use of special effects. Together, we looked at similar slideware software on the Wikipedia page for context.

For learning to use Macromedia flash player, as with most software, there are clear tutorials (in English) available in the help window, and these collegues would use these to make the MM Flash Player presentation.

I wondered if the tutorial on MS Powerpoint would convey key principles, i.e.

introduce the overall objective of the presentation
carefully arrange the information - graphic and verbal- for the presentation in chronological order
keep the main points simple and clear
finish on time and allow time for questions

But would this make for a marketable piece of training? Or is there enough of this sort of thing in Mongolia already? Is it a language issue?

Since lunchtime, there is another project soon to be on the board, for a family resort eco-complex. I would work with the third year students over the summer, to develop a 2 hectare site in Yarmag, just out of Ulaanbaatar, which at first glance on google map appears to be on the north side of the Bogd Mountain Range...

Keeping Busy

2008-05-22T10:57:00.007Z

My 'counterpart' / College vice Director Hashbayar last week suggested we revive the Energy Efficient House project. What had happened to the consultation, I asked? The World Vision area director had decided - after terminating the planned professionally prepared community consultation - that there was no suitable community member in Bayankhoshuu. Now, Hashaa said, could the college draw our own model Energy Efficient house? Towards whom should it be directed? What location? I asked. We would just do it generically as a model, Hashaa suggested, then solicit interest. I said I felt the UNDP Mongolia Energy Efficient Housing 'pattern book' was already filling that need.

Hashbayar said he also had a client wanting to build town houses, not unlike those the college's company has previously built. I suggested noting down some client requirements at his social meeting planned for the Thursday evening. He chuckled - that's "not the Mongolian way". I was introduced to a student who would help with drawing (and who would learn something), and waited in vain for the call which was to follow the next day.

English-speaking club has been in spontaneous recess, perhaps because of the Enterovirus-71 causing quarantine confinement for children under 16, and also my little neighbours are out of contact for lessons, and we are getting our laundry machine washed at a guesthouse instead of at the neighbours'.

A German-speakers' meeting was arranged so I could introduce Mandukhai, (the hard-working daughter-assistant of my lecturer colleague) to Jo, a German teacher intern from Vienna; a friend of a friend working here in UB. Mandukhai has expressed interest in studying in German-speaking Europe. With Ariunaa along to make four of us, we met at Sacher, the Viennese cafe in the city centre, and I paid exorbitantly for a bad coffee. Meanwhile my college companions were tricked by the two lines on the menu; Apple juice 1500, large 2500. They each ordered apple juice, and when leaving, were informed (embarrassingly) that these had been 'large' - and about three times the price of lunch in the West where we work. Meanwhile, we had mostly spoken English, but had discovered some things about opportunities for foreign students in Austria.

Толгойт Халуун Ус - Bathing in Tolgoit

2008-05-20T04:16:00.015Z

Many of the students I have met at this college live in nearby Tolgoit, a western peri-urban informal settlement of Ulaanbaatar. There are two main community bathing houses there in the 3rd Khoroo (informal village) of our Songinokhairkhan district, so when I was invited by the Gender Centre for Sustainable Development there, I was interested in visiting one, with regard to accessibility. (website unreliable - alternatively see this.)

Миний ярилцаж байсан коллежийн ихэнх оюутнууд Улаанбаатарын баруун хэсэгт орших хагас хотожсон суурин болох Толгойтод амьдардаг. Сонхинохайрхан дүүргийн 3-р хороонд хоёр нийтийн халуун усны газар байдаг. Нийгмийн Хөгжлийн Жендер Төвөөс намайг тэнд урьсан. Би бүх хүмүүст нээлттэй эсэхийг мэдэхээр нэгэнд нь очиж үзэхээр болсон. (вебсайт боломжгүй байгаа тул эндээс үз.)

Bayarsgalan and Enebish (of GCSD) met me punctually at our college and we drove to Chimbat's bath-house, the newer of the two, where the community NGO had secured a room - donated by the proprietor - to be adapted for 'universal accessibility'. Encouragingly, the community workers had sourced and photocopied the Mongolian Norm MN 301-04-01. Chimbat herself and a staff member watched as we inspected the tiled 2.3 x 2.6 metre room she was offering for the project. Currently there is a hand-shower in one corner (with a high mounting) and a wooden duckboard.

Баясгалан Энэбиш (НХЖТ-ийн) хоёр надтай манай коллеж дээр цагтаа уулзаадЧинбатын халуун ус руу машинаар очсон. Тэндхийн эзэн нь хандивласан нэг өрөөг ТББ-нхан хүн бүрт хүртээмжтэй өрөө болгохоор авчихсан байсан. Мэргэжилтэнгүүд Монголын стандарт MN 301-04-01-ийг үндэслэсэн байсан ба түүнчлэн хуулбарыг нь байрлуулсан байсан. Чинбатын төсөлд зориулж өгсөн 2.3 x 2.6 хэмжээтэй өрөөг биднийг хянаж байхад тэр ажилтантайгаа мөн тэнд байсан. Өрөөний нэг буланд гар угаагч болоод шалан дээр тавьдаг модон хавтан байсан.

Certainly some wall hooks would be useful, but Bayarsgalan's proposal for a new bath and an internal wall and seemed ambitious, especially when I learned of a nine-day deadline, and negligible budget. The access to the centre entrance up steps and over a 150mm high pipe in the corridor would present greater accessibility challenges. (At 1:12, over 3m of temporary ramps, which could also present a lifting hazard for staff..) I explained that enlarging the 680mm door opening would involve considerable business disruption and some skilled labour or supervision in order to replace it with a wider one. Textured wall guide strips for blind users may be given a lower budgetary priority, given the narrow corridor width. I reflected on my own bathroom adaptations when I was temporarily wheelchair bound. Perhaps some reliable secured handrails would be a practical adaptation.

Ханын өлгүүрүүд тэнд байх нь дээр боловч Баярбаясгалан зөвхөн шинэ банн болоод тусгаарлах хана санал болгож байсан. Сүүлийн хугацаа нь 9 хоног бас санхүү бараг байхгүй гэдгийг нь би мэдээд түүнийг өөрийн сонирхолын төлөө байгааг ойлгосон. Орох замд 150мм-ийн өндөртэй усны хоолой байдаг нь хүмүүст саад болдог. ( хэрэв 3м-н урттай байнгын бус налуу шат байрлуулбал үүнийг зөөхөд ажилчдад хэцүү байх болно). Хаалгыг 680м болгон өргөтгөвөл бизнесд таатай бус төдийгүй энэ тохиолдолд ажиллаж чадах ажилчид хэрэг шаардагдах болно гэж би тайлбарласан. Хараагүй хүмүүст зориулсан тэмтэрж болох барзгар хана, өргөн багатай коридор зэргийг тэд чухал шаардлагатай бус төсөвт оруулж магалгүй байсан. Би тэргэнцэртэй байсан үеэ эргэн санаад магадгүй бариул байх нь илүү тохиромжтой гэж бодсон. (to be continued soon)

It seemed time and money limitations might work against the potential for a community project for vocational students, but I suggested a proposal be put forward to local people and students to engender participation over a longer period. I was told that some research on disability and accessibility needs in the area had already been done. Could a user be found, I now persisted, who might be consulted before and after the alterations, and who might collaborate as a future champion / advocate for a wider programme- I was lobbying for grassroots participation. Next, spontaneously, I was taken to visit a local person with disability.

(Mongolian version to be continued...)

The car was parked a few dusty blocks away at a Ger compound, with a ramshackle building. The ubiquitous guard dogs in this case were mere pups and a dusty mop of a terrier. We passed a ger with children sitting outside in the gravelly yard, and approached Enkhsaikhan's shack. I followed into the dirt floored lobby over a high wooden threshold and then stepped up into a darkened but richly furnished room, with carpets and tiered suitcases, as is customary. Enkhsaikhan a man who looked about thirty, was lying on a bed in a corner with only his head visible. Introductions were made, and when no limb was extended from under his bedsheet I firmly touched his shoulder in an attempt at greeting. I was told the man had no arms and legs. But later in the conversation about the bathhouses, including Khataanbaatar's, where he had previously worked, he showed an arm with amputated fingers. Two young boys sat and listened. Enkhsaikhan said that in his opinion the main issue for the bath house was the water temperature and the hard water due to a shallow well. He bathed weekly at Khataanbaatar's, separately from his able seven year old son, who currently was sitting at the foot of the bed. He did not feel he could comment on wheelchair accessibility, as he had (understandable given the environment, I thought) rarely used the wheelchair he had been given. It reminded me of winter here (...December blog) when afterwards I heard that the man had previously been sleeping rough in the cold, alcohol afflicted, before the amputations to his hands and feet for frostbite.

(Mongolian version to be continued...)

City Farm

2008-05-14T04:07:00.010Z

Compared to the emergencies in China and Burma, development in Mongolia seems trifling. After the aggravation expressed last blog, it was nice to take a short break to visit the peri-urban MWFA city farm, in Bayankhoshuu, for the first time this year, and remember my arrival in UB. Although my friends Yugaana and Beitsanda (director) were not about, we were able to see the new building and well-equipped information centre. The recently published MWFA handbook about organic city farming (or similar in Mongolian) and showing how to grow veggies and flowers was available in the little shop along with seeds, tools and other goodies.

My friend and I looked around the property, at the healthy chickens, the greenhouses and newly seeded planterbeds. We were told it would be some time before the cabbages would be ready. We sat in a grassy spot in the sun and enjoyed the air and the view of the nearby mountains.

Im vergleich zur Not in Burma und China, scheint der Entwicklung in der Mongolei unwichtig. Nach der aufregegung letztes mal, ganz schoen war es wieder beim MWFA in Bayankhoshuu ein kurzer Besuch einzulegen. Ich dachte an den Tag meiner ankunft. Ob wohl meiner bekannten Yugaana und Beitsandaa nicht da waren, meine Beglieterin und ich konnten ein neues Haus und ein neuesUnterkunftskiosk besichtigen. Vorhanden auch neben Samen, Werkzeug usw., im neuen Mini-Laden war das neu-erschienenes MWFA Handbuch ueber Bio-Anbau (auf Mongolisch) und wie man Gemuese und Bluemen baut.

Wir schauten sowohl den Khaashaa (Stadtfarm), die gesunden Huehnchen, die Wintergaerten-haueser als auch den neu-gepflanzten Grundstuecke an. Einige zeit wuerde es noch dauern, hiess es, um Gemuse kaufen zu koennen. Wir sassen auf eine sonnigen stueck Rasen, und der Luft und der Blick auf der nahen Gebirge geniessten.

More Diplomatic

2008-05-12T11:29:00.010Z

I was aggravated this morning (like a self-righteous foreigner?) when I saw Professor E.....-... again stagger drunkenly in to the college, to be received neutrally by our uniformed Security Guard. How can our college tolerate this, I wondered, when at the same time, the administration will dock good teachers' pay for arriving later than 9am - besides their working three or four hours' unpaid overtime in scheduled lessons after 6pm? What example does this Professor set for the students and other teachers? My colleagues requested that I turn a blind eye, because they say there is a shortage of good staff.

A presentation by Diploma students yesterday was followed by an (uncomfortable) discussion with architecture staff. The students had all done a lot of work, each presenting several boards of drawings at AO or larger. These are customarily done on white paper, wet stretched onto wooden frames.

1. Uranbileg had drawn a straightforward College building of about seven storeys in a symmetrical Y-form plan. Drawings, at scales from 1:1000 to 1:50, were competent, although no site analysis was evident. She promised to change the drawings for accessibility by ramp and for WCs on the ground floor only. The meaning of the blue glass, in anotherwise practical and well made 1:100 model, was a mystery, and the central circulation / stairwell showed promise despite an apparent lack of daylight.

2. Gursed (m) had also produced a thorough technical report for his College proposal. The facade and perspectives were engaging. The proposed landscaping intriguing.

3. Lhagva (m) had drawn a twelve storey dormitory, but seemed unsure of its exact size and capacity. Our teachers' quick estimate showed a 3,400m2 building with only 2,600m2 useable / lettable area. Besides, at USD$750/m2 the aggregated sale value of about 1.97 million would not even cover the construction cost, of about 2 million.

4. Gantulga (m) had a project for a 300 seat restaurant near the Wrestling Palace in the 10th district. On request, there was a workable commercial kitchen plan in the report. He had omitted to draw an important transverse section. When I offered to help adapt the drawings with a wheelchair accessible entrance and restaurant toilets, he vaguely suggested "Маргааш" (tomorrow) so instead I hurriedly pencilled improvements onto the plans.

5. Enkhbat's (m) Secondary School showed a reasonable courtyard, but no site plan, model or details. I asked the teachers about Mongolian standards of accessibility and energy efficiency for public buildings.

6. Khanburged also had designed a two storey school building. I asked if he had seen the Mongolian Government Construction Ministry's pattern school, which I had recommended he study last December. He claimed the Ministry had refused to allow him to see it. The proposed building was a rectilinear concrete framed building similar to examples shown in Neufert's 1965 Russian edition.

7. Otgonbaatar proposed three Cinemas, the central one of 400 seats flanked on each side by 200 seat cinemas. The centre of the ensemble was surmounted by a replica of Sydney Opera house. The clerestoreys would provide light into the auditorium until the movie started. Given that only one of many former Cinemas remains operational in Ulaanbaatar (and that Otgonbaatar had been unable to interview the Manager with whose contact I had provided him in December) I questioned the teachers on the business case for such a complex. Would a 'town hall', 'concert hall' or 'Opera House' perhaps better suit the main auditorium? How ironic that the Sydney Opera House replica might be subverted to its proper use...

8. Enkhtsetseg's dormitory building, on which I had assisted her often remained incomplete. I suggested a modelling workshop, along with Gursed, for the following day. She returned empty handed the next day, having left the 1:100 model at home. I showed examples from Curtin architecture students own guide book, and suggested we try a 1:500 mass model right now. "Маргааш" (tomorrow) she said.

When Professor Dagshigdorj enquired about my reflections, I was diplomatic.
Firstly, could not the architecture teachers, I suggested, with the support of the Mongolian Institute of Architects, please consult with the Construction Ministry about the accessibility and energy standards of the new Mongolian Pattern Schools? This was now being outsourced to GTZ, because of the lacking professional capacity of Mongolian architects. Professor Dagshigdorj dismissed this as 'corruption'. Meanwhile the 1965 Russian translation of Neufert seems to be the standard.
Secondly, could students be encouraged to consider the environmental and even financial feasibility context of their projects? There was no simple answer. But for now, it seemed that the calculation of concrete reinforcement was a higher priority. The graduation ceremony this Friday is being postponed.

Diplomatic

2008-05-07T08:58:00.006Z

Diploma students presented themselves with their work on Monday, only hours after I had arrived on the dawn train from the Gobi and showered to remove the fine dust.

Preliminary diploma work was presented by Altangerel, Samdan-nyam, Myagmar, Altanchimeg and Javkhaa-bayar, all building engineering students. On close examination, a neutral-looking four-storey block turned out to be a rehabilitation hospital; with a lift but no accessible entrance. Drawing orientations were 'front, side' etc. rather than 'south, west' etc. Reinforcing steel had been carefully considered and calculated. A carparking structure was calculated, but not yet drawn. An airport had not been plotted due to a computer failure. A multi-storey farm was not presented because a teacher had questioned its viability. This prompted a peek with the student at Pig City (MVRDV 2001) A project for a school building was the exact replica of our planned new building, currently under construction outside. However the advice I had given last month to the architect, engineers and teachers, including accessibility, room uses, orientations, and fire egress, had not been taken into account by the student.

UB favourites

2008-05-07T06:49:00.005Z

A meeting with Enkhtungalag's Second year architecture diploma students on the 29th, who were due to show their favourite UB buildings, was cancelled. I tracked down the young architect and teacher to help her with her research on the Petronas twin towers for a presentation, and had prepared ten points in Mongolian, with diagrams, for discussion. This, she said was not detailed enough, and she would prefer a full script in Mongolian. I declined to 'spoon-feed' her on this occasion.

Somehow, the message had got through to her students by the following week, and these had printed the seven page English-language Wikipedia article for the following week's lesson, although they still had not prepared any information about their favourite buildings in UB. When they attempted to hand over the Wikipedia article for translation (the Mongolian version is yet to be written) I suggested we discuss a few aspects which interest the students most. After much coaxing, they came up with height, lighting, materials, skybridge and commercial interiors. To the first, we agreed they would diagram the Twin Towers' height relative to Mongolia's tallest building alongside our current 2 storey schoolhouse and the new 5-storey one being built in front. This would be drawn at a suitable scale - as large as possible - on the classroom wall. The night lighting of the building in its city context would be demonstrated by a photograph to be researched and cheaply printed from a flash drive at a photo kiosk. The materials would be investigated, especially the metal cladding and the so-called "super-high-strength reinforced concrete" frame (apparently popular throughout Asia) which had replaced an intended steel one. These SHS RC columns would be drawn and compared to the ordinary ones on our building site outside. The flexible sybridge and its fire egress shortcomings discovered after the World Trade Centre disaster would be discussed. Finally further discussion of the interior would be postponed pending a discussion of presentation techniques including collage (C20 Western art is little known here) which I would prepare (with Ts. Uranchimeg's help) for next week.

The day following the first cancellation of CTC students favourites, I had arranged something similar as a guest at the languages institute of the State Uni of Science and Technology. The language students were mostly unprepared, but two of the group had brought materials which they could read. They agreed to prepare during the lessn and make short presentations on 'Mongolian architecture' after I 'firmly' organised them into two random groups. One group prepared a presentation called "Mongolian Architecture in Socialist and Contemporary Times", featuring one (Russian educated) Chimed, who in 1948 had begun a movement for an authentic national architecture, and comparing Choiljiljav's modern Urguu Apartments. Some footnotes offered verbally on architectural education were promised in an email by the group rep, Undram.

The second group produced a lineage of traditional Mongolian architecture, in particular, the Ger, from the C13 to the present, and covering herders' Gers, Monastery Gers and the distribution of urban settlements, in what could have been a very interesting topic.

During the remainder of the week, I took in the amazing kitsch film "The Conqueror" (USA 1953) at the ACMS Mongolian Studies film series, 'starring' John Wayne as Chinggis. On the weekend our group of nine made our overnight train visit to Sainshand in the Dorno-Gobi and to Danzanravjaa's Khamar Monastery in the desert.

Independent Living

2008-05-07T06:01:00.004Z

On Tuesday 29 came the long-awaited follow-up meeting for the 'Independent Living' project of the Mongolian Wheelchair Citizens Association, МТИХ. Chuluundolgor had gathered nine people into her office at the Federation (MNFDPO aka Үндэсний Холбоо). Four from МТИХ, including advisor and engineer Avirmed, a new volunteer translator Uyanga (fresh from English speakers' club) and new VSO Aliyyah. Nickson of MNFDPO and myself joined as further VSOs, with Ariunaa translating, and Tsevelmaa (new volunteer recruitment NGO - Windows to Development Хөгжлийн Цонх) I translated from English into handwritten notes and read out notes in English with and on behalf of Nickson, whose offer to train the group in fundraising strategies were frustrated for the time being. An oversupply of opinions and translating made for some tensions and conflicts.

The main outcomes of discussion were that МТИХ would need to plan, organise and fundraise for an Independent Living Centre Project. Despite their reservations, they would need to communicate and cooperate with МТИХ members and other NGOs and stakeholders such as MNFDPO who provide their accommodation. A plan, the first step needed to begin fund-raising, had not yet materialised on paper. Previous advice from myself and a 'needs analysis' had not yet been documented. The need to discuss and develop the plan with the 60 МТИХ members was reiterated in light of an approaching 2 May general meeting. Member support for the plan and steps taken to date, it was suggested, would be vital for the project's future.

While Chuluundolgor and Avirmed are both on the MNFDPO board, they criticise its constitution, financial management and transparency. However their 'own' МТИХ is not demonstrating these 'desirable and essential qualities'. I truly hope that the МТИХ will develop - I am very interested to see how the Independent Living Centre project will proceed, in aiming to help (especially adventitiously) disadvantaged Mongolians to develop independent lives, and I want to pursue ways in which I (and others) might practically support the project.

Languages

2008-05-07T05:26:00.004Z

Today was the first time I have been asked for paediatric advice. My young cleaner colleague has bought some baby nutrition formula for the youngest of her five, and was unable to read the advice in German. Through translation in English, via Ariunaa we were able to establish the preparation method and danger to teeth and infants under eight months.

English speakers club on 26 April met at the Stupa at the Buddhist Centre, then went in two taxis to a newly established Czech-funded social work library in the National University. Host, Erdenechimeg had gathered social work students and the meeting grew to twenty one, filling the library. After introductions, conversation led from the history of social work in Mongolia to its future, and following a video, on to the nature of volunteering, which was clearly a heurism for many of those gathered. Four had come from our college, besides myself, and interacted well with the diverse group; tying in Amnesty, VSO, Caritas, Disability advocacy NGOs, as well as students. At some points the discussion was so interesting English was dropped in favour of Mongolian. Afterwards, a few friends from among our group went to the Railway station to investigate tickets for a future weekend getaway.

The Sunday 27 was my twentieth English lesson with neighbours Enkbat and Solongo, and I brought in an assistant in 16 year old Anja. Daughter of an English student neighbour from nearby building 19, Anja had previously joined the three of us for ice-skating and I suggested might be a replacement English teacher in future.

Bayan Adraga and DED

2008-05-07T04:00:00.004Z

Time has flown, since the VSO leavers workshop on 17 April kickstarted my reference and job search preparations. The weekend following, I met with Ariunaa, my translating colleague at CTC, and her English student and Land Lawyer, Tsetsegee, also from Bayan Adraga in Khentii . I have been voluntarily teaching English to three townspeople including a cosmetic surgeon Zolzaya. The lawyer commissioned a Mongolian Deel as a gift for me. We discussed the plan for a new urban park in the town centre of Bayan Adraga. A landscape designer had provided a colourful geometric layout with 75 trees, two fountains and shops on a set on one hectare (10 000m2), which I discovered (without a map) is to be located near a school and the hospital. I suggested people from these communities be engaged or consulted for the benefit of sharing ownership, responsibility, fundraising, construction (perhaps an edible garden maintained by schoolchildren?) and maintenance. To this end I suggested Julia Udall's case studies of Sharrow, Sheffield (2007, pp32-45) and community gardens in the Urban Act handbook. The project might be sustainable with the involvement of community gardeners, I suggested.

On Tuesday 22, a collegial visit to CTC by former Deutsche Entwicklungs Dienst (DED) architectural trainer Sara Schneider made some teachers very happy. One elderly professor, on the way home drunk at 11am, unfortunately joined in to the meeting until he could be extracated. The remaining, all young female teachers, were given a laptop CV presentation and asked questions, with interpretation about NGO work in Mongolia, construction education, learning styles and careers in Spain, Italy and Germany. They analysed the illustrated CV, and had a discussion about computer programmes, Habitat for Humanity, and DED, which might be described as a German VSO.

New NGO / Шинэ ТББ

2008-04-21T04:49:00.014Z

I was summoned to the Foreign Affairs Ministry last Friday- with MNFDPO / VSO colleague Nickson Kakiri and Mongolian Wheelchair Citizens (МТИХ) - to give advice on Building Accessibility. I was only too happy to help.

МХБИБҮХ/VSO хамтран ажиллагч Никсон Какири болоод МТИХ-аас ирсэн хүсэлтийн дагуу бид Гадаад Хэргийн Яам дээр Нэвтрэх боломжтой Барилгын талаар зөвлөгөө өгөхөөр очсон. Би үүнд баяртай байсан.

Arriving miraculously on time and coordinated in the humid afternoon and Friday traffic jams, four of us entered the impressive building lobby, but were told our host was not known to the reception. We phoned a mobile phone, and found our way to the back entrance and upstairs to the Building Services Manager's office, where the meeting host promptly began explaining official stamped certificates to our translator Ariunaa.

The remaining three of us, Nickson Kakiri (VSO), Aliyyah Musani (VSO) and I stood by, understanding nothing, before I suggested we go somewhere where we could sit down and introduce one another. It seemed Chuluundolgor of Mongolian Wheelchair Citizens (МТИХ) in her wheelchair had been waylaid, and we returned to the grand lobby of the Ministry and sat at a low table near an empty ballroom.

Баасан гаригийн хөдөлгөөнзамын ий бөглөрөл болоод чийгтэй өдрийг даван энд тэндээс гайхалтайгаар цагтаа цугларсан. Тэгээд хүлээн авагчаас зохион байгуулагч хүний талаах асуусан боловч мэдэхгүй байлаа.

Our host, Mr Bat-Erdene, explained that he had been in post as building services manager at the ministry for 5 months, and had recently formed a new NGO, after suffering an injury. He explained that his purpose would be to raise awareness about building accessibility in Mongolia. We listened approvingly. The name of the brand-new and 'independent' NGO: "Bat-Erdene's NGO". Oh.

Monving on, why had Mr. Bat-Erdene called the meeting? He sought advice on
1) Principles of Building Accessibility and
2) International conditions, research and developments in built environment accessibility.
The former would addressed in a summary page of notes I had prepared, the latter, I suggested could follow from work we had previously begun with Chuluundolgor and the Mongolian Wheelchair Citizens (МТИХ).

I explained that my bilingual page of training notes had been hand-copied by a student from my computer as I do not have a working printer. I suggested rather than handing these over, I would be interested in following up on any issues of interest which Mr Bat-Erene might wish to note down. He took no notes, but recorded phone numbers, perhaps a politeness.

1. Principles of Universal Design - thinking about built environment accessibility in Mongolia

Physical accessibility; e.g.
- Ramps
- Door widths
- WCs

Visual Accessibility; e.g.
- Wayfinding

Tactile Accessibility; e.g.
- Navigation strips
- Switches

Auditory Accessibility; for most of us, the most abstract idea - e.g.
- The acoustic environment
- Entrance accessibility for deaf or blind people

I added such a brief introduction could not do justice to the wealth of extant information available publicly and from local experts such as Professor Gonchigbat at MUST. The latter has previously been contacted by МТИХ and MNFDPO about training in Accessibile Environments and Independent Living.

Шинэ Стандарт...<Унивэрсал Дизайны зарчим > Монгол дахь нэвтрэх боломжтой барилгын тухай бодож үзэх.

Биеээр нэвтрэх
- Налуу шат
- Хаалганий өргөн
- ОО

Харж нэвтрэх
- Олоход хялбар зам

Тэмтэрч нэвтрэх
- Чиглүүлэх зурвас
- Унтраалга

Сонсоод нэвтрэх
- Дуу авиа /ялгаа/

The next part of the meeting was about working processes, and I attempted to describe a developmental approach to working on accessibility.

International / Mongolian NGO - (Chuluundolgor joined the meeting at this point)
Government / MN - expectations of Government support, usually channelled through MNFDPO, politicians etc.

Mongolian Norm 31-101-04 (Монгол норм 31-101-04)

Professional bodies
Mongolian Association of Architects (Arkhitektorjiin Xolboo)

Education:
CTC MUST

Construction students
- build their capacity
- enhance their careers

Architect teachers / M Arch Assoc
- build their professional knowledge
- enhance capacity of Mongolian construction profession

e.g. our own CTC College Director(s) who are currently also building (in) Mongolia and taking advice on accessibility and other design issues

Олон улсын / Монголын ТББ
Chuluundolgor joined the meeting

Засгийн газар
- expectations of Government support, usually channelled through MNFDPO, politicians etc.
- Монгол норм 31-101-04

Мэргэжлийн байгууллагууд:
- Архитекторуудын холбоо
- Барилгын сургуулиуд: БТК, ШТИС

- Нандинцэцэг БТК Диплом Оюутан.
- Энхцэцэг БТК Диплом Оюутан.
- Гүрсэд БТК Диплом Оюутан.

- Дагшигдорж
- Пурэв-Эрдэнэ
- Гончигбат

БТК-Дарга

The meeting wrapped up fairly abruptly, after the host took some phone calls.
Nickson, Aliyyah, Chuluundolgor and I then repaired to the (conveniently ramped) Ulaanbaatar Hotel nearby for a cold and refreshing golden beverage.

Lists

2008-04-15T02:44:00.012Z

Walking past the Жаргалант-Оч water kiosk today, the attendant at the shadowy window was alone, and the street was almost deserted, in contrast to yesterday. (pictured) Passing the semi-abandoned Trolleybus Remise - cum Driving Instruction Area on the way to work, this warm sunny morning, a grandmother was grazing four cows in the grassy drainage ditch. She sat on a pile of stones in a blue Mongolian deel and beret as her granddaughter absent-mindedly hit the rocks with a long stick.

At the college, I have compiled a list of eighteen discussion points based on the architectural drawings for Block A of our new college; the first of three parts, which will begin construction imminently in the pit at the front of our existing building. We will meet for a discussion at noon. I have also recently proposed a list of exemplary buildings for a lecture / talk programme to be televised; working title "Enkhtungalag's Top 100". Enkhtungalag (Архитэктор Энхтунгалаг) proposes beginning with the Petronas twin towers in Kuala Lumpur.

Als ich heute das Жаргалант-Оч wasserkiosk vorbei ging, war der Aufseherin im schattigen Fensterchen allein, die Strasse war leer, im gegensatz zu Gestern (Bild). Wie ich rueckseits rund um den 'Traleybus' Remise bzw. Autofahrschulplatz verpasste, dieses warm-sonnigen Morgens, sass ein Grossmutter, der auf vier Viehe, beim grassfressen in eine Abwasserkanal, aufpasste. Sie trug ein blaue mongolische Deel-Tracht mit dunklem Beret, wahrend die Enkelin auf der Steinhaufen geistesabwesend mit einem Holzstangel schlug.

College-seits, habe ich achtzehn puenkte zur diskussion unseres neuen Berufsfachschul-gebaudes zusammengestellt. Bauteil A werden wir erstmals besprechen, der erster von drei Bauteile, eben der welcher bald im neuen Ausgrub vor unsere Schule hinein zum Bauen begonnen werden sollte. Zu mittag sollten wir treffen. Letzter Zeit habe ich auch eine Liste ausgezeichnete Bauexemplare von aller Welt aufgestellt, um mit eine fuer TV gedachten Vortagserie von unsereren College, (konzept-)namens "Enkhtungalag's Top 100", zu helfen. Architektin Enkhtungalag (Архитэктор Энхтунгалаг) moechte bei der Zwillings-tuerme Petronas in Kuala Lumpur anfangen.

Participation

2008-04-08T09:57:00.010Z

A small step forward occurred with regard to the concept of forward planning last week. We learned of a planned Friday meeting, for our World Vision Bayakhoshuu project on the Thursday - twenty-four hours in advance. My enquiries about an agenda, and about attendance by the allocated project collaborators from CTC college, met with a vague response, as usual.

Дэлхийн Зөн Эрчим Хүчний Үр Ашигтай Байщингийн Загвар Төсөл *

Өнгөрсөн 7 хоногт урьдчилан төлөвөсний дагуу тодорхой дэвщил харагдаж байна . 5 өдөр төлөвлөсөн Дэлхийн Зөн Баянхощууны төслийн тухай бид 4 өдөр ердөө 24 цагийн өмнө мэдсэн билээ . Бтк-ын хамтарч ажиллах хүмүүсээс хөтөлбөр болон оролцогчдийн талаар асуухад урьдийн адил бүрхэг байлаа .

When 3pm Friday arrived, we two international VSO advisors, our translator Ariunaa and the college vice-director were all taken by jeep to World Vision’s Bayankhoshuu offices. The World Vision Area director and his staff greeted us, and we were ushered to a meeting room where 12 women and 7 men from the local community had gathered. After an initial greeting by the leaders and brief project introduction in Mongolian, Rob van Waardenburg from our college, gave a presentation about global warming and energy efficient sustainable construction. The environmental and energy cost implications for Mongolia were sketched out, and three main principles of energy efficient house design explained, through Mongolian translation.

Design; form and size, compactness (surface area to volume) thermal buffer zones, and orientation
Technical measures; building materials technologies, insulation, detailing for continuity of insulation, glazing
Sustainability of Energy sources; Solar, Biomass, Wind energy, for comparison with coal heating, and municipal hot water and electricity from coal-fired power plants.

VSO-н зөвлөгч бид хоёрийг ,бидний орчуулагч болох Ариунаа болон коллежийн дэд захирал нар мащинаар Дэлхийн Зөнгийн Баянхощуу дахь албан газарт хүргэж ирлээ . Дэлхийн Зөнгийн дарга болон биднийг угтан авч нутагийн нийгэмлэгийн 12 эмэгтэй, 7эрэгтэй цугларсан уулзалтын өрөөнд орууллаа . Захирал эхлээд мэндчилээд Монгол орны талаар товч танилцуулсны дараа манай коллежийн Роб Ван Ваагдэнбург дэлхийн дулаарал болон эрчим хүчний үр ашигтай тогтвортой бүтээн байгуулалтын талаар танилцууллаа. Байгаль орчин болоод Монгол орны эрчим хүчний зардалыг тооцсон зураг гарган Монгол орчуулагчаар дамжуулан гол 3 эрчим хүчний үр ашигтай байщингийн загварыг тайбарлалаа .

Хэлбэр дүрс болон хэмжээ ,нягтаршил , дулаан хадгалах бүс болон баримжаа зүг чиг зэргийг зохиох .
Техниоийн барилгын материал , тусгааларгч материал , тусгаарлагчий нэг бүрийн холболт , болон шиллэх зэрэг техникийн агра хэмжээг авах .
Эрчим хүчний нөөцийн тогтворжилт :Нарны эрчим хүч,биомасс , салхиний эрчим хүч , нүүрсний дулаан, хотын халуун ус болон нүүрс түлдэг эрчим хүчний станцын цахилгаан зэргийг харьцуулж үзэх хэрэгтэй юм.

Distributions of energy escape - e.g. floor 15%, wall 26%, roof 26%, window 13%, door 20%, etc. - for a typical domestic building envelope, target thermal values for construction (U=0.2W/m2) and a typical detail were outlined.

Эрчим хүчний дулаан - шал хэсгээр 15%, дээвэр 26%, цонх13%, хаалга20% гэх мэтчилэн - жирийн дотоодын байшинд зарцуулагдах агаад төлөвлөснөөр барилгын дулаан хэмжээ нь ( U=0.2W/2.) бөгөөд загвар зургийг схемчлэн гаргасан.

In facilitating the following community discussion, World Vision’s area director then raised questions from the audience about building size and family units. What would be the likely household profile for the model house? Was a single- or two-storey building preferable? What facilities would be expected, hot and cold water, internalized WC, etc? Based on a 300 million MNT project budget, (Estimated Total Commitment) a 20% mortgage deposit would be required, but for mortgage security the bank would set a minimum household income level of over 700 thousand MNT per month for repayments. Mortgage is itself a contentious new idea in Ger districts.

Дараах олон нийтийн хэлэлцүүлэгийг дэмжихээр Дэлхийн Зөнгийн дарга оролцогчдоос байшингийн хэмжээ ,байршил болон гэр бүлийн гишүүдийн талаар асуулт тависан .Загвар байшин ямар байвал тохиромжтой вэ? Нэг эсвэл хоёр давхар байшин хэрэгцээтэй эсэх.Ямар зүйл уг байшинд хэрэгтэй эсэх халуун хүйтэн ус ,дотроо ариун цэврийн өрөөтэй байх эсэх гэх мэтчилэн . Уг төсөл нь 300 сая төгрөгийн төсөвтэй (Нийт тооцоогоор) барьцаа болгож урьдчилан 20% төлөх шаардлагатай ,банк сар бүр дор хаяж 700,000 төгрөгнөөс дээш орлоготой эргээд буцаан төлөх чадвартай айл өрх байхаар тогтоосон.

A discussion then followed, using the whiteboard, about possible site organization, siting a duplex spanning the boundaries of the generous compounds. This drew no response from the audience about light, fire, or party walls, for example. A case study drawing prepared by our college architect / teacher Tormandakh was tabled, but not discussed. He was absent from the meeting.

Уг уулзалтыг зохион байгуулсан талаас хэлэлцүүлэгийн үеэр самбар ашиглан дундаа хаалттай 2 өрөөг тайлбарлан мөн гэрэл, гал болон хязгаарлагч хана зэрэг нь оролцогчдын сонирхлыг татлаа. Үүнийг судалж үзсэн зургийг манай коллежийн архитектурын багш хийж гүйцэтгэсэн хэдий ч энэ талаар хараахан хэлэлцээгүй юм. Уг уулзалтын үеэр тэрбээр байхгүй байлаа.

It seemed to me inappropriate to have held this meeting in the absence of the project’s previously appointed expert on community consultation, the experienced Mongolian social worker with whom a framework had been developed together in January 2008. Additionally, the absence of the CTC construction teachers, agreed in January as project consultants, rendered the meeting almost pointless as far as providing feedback to the NGO.

2008 оны 1сард хамтарч ажилсан ,төслийн олон нийтийн хариуцсан мэргэжилтэн мөн нийгмийн ажилд мэргэшсэн Нямсүрэн эзгүй байсан нь. Миний хувьд уг уулзалтанд оролцход зохисгүй байсан.Нэмж хэлхэд СТС багш нар оролцоогүй нь уг уулзалтыг чухал ач холбогдолгүй болгосон гэж 1 сард төслийн зөвлөгчид үзсэн.

Happily, two community members came forward to candidly discuss their own self build projects as case studies. One man was building a two storey 10 x 7 metre house and had come to the meeting “to learn to save money and to discover whether materials would be better sourced in Ulaanbaatar or in nearby China.” He suggested that after buying expensive Chinese metal sheeting for his roof, his insulation material would likely consist of old clothes stuffed into the roof cavity. Another man was building a two storey 9 x 7 metre house with mansard roof windows, to a budget of 15 million MNT. He explained that he was embarrassed for his son, who had a white collar job in the city, yet came to work smelling of coal smoke from the Ger district. He would like to use an alternative / dual fuel heating system which he had seen at Michel exhibition centre, but it was far too expensive.

Аз болоход, 2 нийгэмийн гишүүд шууд гарч ирэн өөрсдийн байщин барисан туршлагаасаа хуваалцсан . Тэд 10x7 хэмжээтэй 2 давхар байшин барисан агаад мөнгөө хадгалж мөн Улаанбаатар эсвэл Хятадаас материал авахын оронд шинээр орлуулж болох зүйлүүдийг нээж олох хэрэгтэй хийгээд түүний байшингийн дээврийн хөндий хэсэгийг тусгаарласан материал бол хуучин хувцаснууд юм гэлээ.

Харин нөгөө хүн 9x7хэмжээтэй 2 даврах дээврийн өрөөндөө цонхтой байр барисан агаад 15000 сая төгрөгийн зардалаа уг байшин босчээ. Тэрээр хотод алба хаадаг хүүгээ гэр хороололын нүүрс үнэртүүлээд ажилдаа явж байгаад нь сэтгэл зовж буйгаа ярьлаа . Тэрээр Мищээл үзэсгэлэнд үзэж сонирхсон давхар шатхуунаар халаадаг системийг хэрэглэхийг хүсч байгаа ч энэ нь хэтэрхий үнэтэй юм.

The overall conclusion of the audience seemed to be that the proposed project budget was far too high, regardless of long term energy savings. (I believe the latter was not under consideration) The building capital cost, and the required deposit for a mortgage, seemed prohibitive factors for those local families present at the meeting. One of the self builders whispered afterwards that he knew German and would invite Rob and I to visit his building site.

Бид уузлатыг шууд асуултаар өндөрлөсөн билээ . Уг уулзалтаас миний бие нь өөрсдийн хүчээр байшин барисан 2 хүний судалгаанаас их зүйл сурч авсан агаад Дэлхийн Зөнгийн ажилчид эрчим хүчний үр ашгийн талаарх танилцуулгын талаар дутмаг ойлголттой яваа мэт сэтгэгдэл төрсөн .

We concluded the meeting with an impromptu debriefing with the area director, asking for feedback. Personally I felt little had been gained from the meeting, apart from the two self-builders’ case studies, and I realised, after further discussion, that the World Vision staff had not understood the presentation about energy efficiency. The World Vision director said he had been in two minds about how to proceed prior to this meeting, and was considering a more limited and predefined project. I expressed discomfort with this move towards a top-down decision making style. I suggested that, further to my previous advice in January and February, meeting agendas should be related to the project plan, as agreed in February. I suggested that the agreed project team members, the social worker and college construction teacher-experts, should be included in future meetings.

Дэлхийн Зөнгийн дарга хэлэхдээ хэрхэн уг уулзалтыг дахин үргэлжлүүлэх болон саналыг хэрэгжих боломжгүй гэж үзэж байгаагаа хэлсэн. Миний бие нь уг шийдвэртэй санал нийлэхгүй байсан . 2сард снал нэгтэй байсан нэг болон хоёр сард зөвлөж байсан зөвлөгөө нь уг уулзалтын хэлэлцэх асуудал болох төслийн төлөвлөгөөнд хамаатай юм.Би дараа болох уулзалтанд төслийн багийнхан,нийгмийн ажилтан болон коллежийн барилгын багш нар мэргэжилтнүүдийг оролцуулах санал тавьсан.

*баяарлалаа Уюанга, сайн дурын орчуулагч.

Plumbing

2008-04-03T07:05:00.006Z

After four days without cold water in the WC and Bathroom, I approached our concierge (жижур) on returning home at 9pm, and she reported same to the council (өнөр хотхон) immediately, using my 'hand-phone' (гар утас). I was amazed to have a plumber (looking rather like Robert de Niro's Harry Tuttle in the movie Brazil) ringing the doorbell at 10pm as I lay in the bath. The following morning he returned, earlier than promised, with a colleague. They replaced a valve, completely blocked with dirt, for the agreed 10 000 togrogs.

As I walked up the hill through Khangai Ger district to work in the morning, a girl stretched out on the roof of her ger smiled at me, her brown back exposed to the morning sun, cleaning the ger roof window with a damp cloth, and for a brief moment, I enjoyed the contrast of the scene set against the industrial backdrop of the factories to the south. There was a queue gathering at the water kiosk next to жаргалант оч цэцэрлэг (Kindergarten), a woman at the head of the line wore a bright blue дээл (Mongolian deel coat) over mismatching pyjama trousers, and others waited with plastic jerry cans on water carrier trolleys. Boys with their full water containers laughed as they ran down hill. I stepped over two discarded syringes on the dirt road as I passed a dumping site near the back of the Trolleybus depot. Somebody meekly said 'Hi' or "саин баин уу" as I passed a shop, where a billiard table was being assembled.

At the college, the road and muddy forecourt is still flooded, reportedly from snow melt. The two mens WC cubicles in the college building are still out of service (after weeks); one blocked, the other without a door, and the female cubicles are in the same room. Burning incense makes the environment bearable.

гадаад / Mongol*: 2008-3-31 / 31. Mar 2008

2008-04-01T08:06:00.019Z

A company which manufactures insulated panels for construction, paid us an (impromptu) visit yesterday. Mongolian representative O. Erdene-Ulzii brought his Hungarian counterpart Janusch, and explained the 165mm sandwich panel which my colleague had seen in their UB factory recently.

Өчигдөр барилгын тусгаарлагч хавтан үйлдвэрлэгч компанийнхан манай коллежод ирж уулзлаа. О.Эрдэнэ-Өлзий түүний хамтран ажиллагч Унгараас ирсэн Яануш нар манай коллежийн хамтран ажиллагч хэд хоногийн өмнө Улаанбаатар байдаг үйлдвэрт нь очиж үзэж байсан 165мм-ийн зузаантай хавтангийн талаар тайлбарлаж өгөв.

My advice was that
1) their (very expensive) software should be tested for AutoCAD compatibility, if not at CTC perhaps through the Darkhan Vocational Training Centre's AutoCAD lab,
2) our college architect/teachers Dagshigdorj and Tormandakh investigate the material's structural , constructional and architectural possibilities, perhaps for the Bayankhoshuu Model Energy Efficient House, and
3) for the same reason, that our Building Technologist Densmaa investigate the product's thermal and cost efficiency.
Although the visitors referred to Canadian and Russian testing, no Mongolian test results appeared to be available. The meeting was held in Russian, German, Mongolian and English.

Би тэдэнд:
1) тэрхүү үнэтэй программыг эхлээд AutoCAD-тай хамт хэрэглэж үзэх хэрэгтэй , хэрэв боломжгүй бол Дарханы Мэргэжлийн Сургалт Үйлдвэрлэлийн Төв дээр турших хэрэгтэй.
2) манай коллежийн архитектурын багш Дашигдорж, Төрмандах нар үүний бүтэц, барилгын болон архитектурын боломжийг олж нээх, Баянхошууны Дулааны Хэмнэлттэй Барилгын Гэр төсөл дээр турших
3) Барилгын Технологич Дэнсмаа багш мөн дээрх төсөл дээр хэмнэлттэй үнээр тогтмол дулаан ашиглах боломжийг олж мэдэх.
Тэд энэхүү хавтанг Орос Канадад туршиж үзсэн боловч Монголд явуулсан туршилтын үр дүн хараахан харах боломжгүй байгаа гэж хэлсэн. Уулзалт Орос,Герман, Монгол, Англи хэл дээр явагдсан.

In the afternoon Nickson Kakiri and I trained two new VSO volunteers about 'Mainstreaming Disability' at the VSO office, discussing the development context and issues in Mongolia. Both new volunteers are Canadians, one from Montreal, one from Calgary. It happens both have ethnic Indian backgrounds in North East Africa, so there was much discussion about Africa after the session. One will be based near Darkhan, at an NGO in Hutul, the other at MTIX in the capital.

Өдөр нь Никсон Какири бид хоёр 'хөгжлийн бэрхшээлтэй ажиллах нь'** сэдвээр сайн дурын шинэ ажилчдад сургалт явуулж, Монголд энэ ойлголтыг хэрхэн нэмэгдүүлэх, орчин бүрдүүлэх талаар ярилцлаа. Нэг нь Канадын Монтреал хотоос ирсэн, нөгөө нь Калгари хотоос ирсэн.
Тэр хоёр Энэтхэг гэр бүлээс гаралтай мөн Зүүн Өмнөд Африкын ёс заншилыг эзэмшсэн байсан тул сургалтын дараа Африкын талаар маш их ярилцсан. Нэг нь Дарханы ойролцоох Хөтөл сум дах ТББ-д, нөгөө нь нийслэлд МТИХ-нд ажиллана.

I went on to Sign Language course with a group of Mongolian and other volunteers, and learned about Deaf Culture, among other things. Deaf community interests/ discussion topics, it was suggested, are not so different to hearing peoples' interests; gossip, food, sex. I learned some related SL terms - sports, develop, attempts.

Би Монгол, гадаад сайн дурын ажилчидтай Дохионы Хэлний сургалт руу явсан, тэгээд Дүлий хүний нийгмийн соёл болоод бусад зүйлийн талаар судалсан. Дүлий хүмүүсийн нийгмийн харилцаа нь сонсголтой хүмүүсийнхээс их ялгаагүй биш юм, сонирхол, хов жив, хоол, бэлгийн харилцаа гэх мэт. Би мөн зарим нэг дохионы хэлний шинэ үгүүдийг сурсан, спорт, хөгжих, оролдлого гэх мэт.

* Thankyou to Tsenguun, CTC teacher, for collaboration on this translation.
** edited after comment from Anne Riordan
*** further discussion here

Progress...?

2008-03-27T09:15:00.007Z

I read a UN report today about Mongolia's progress towards its Millenium Development Goals for 2015. The 22 targets are grouped 1) almost achieved, 2) progressing, 3) slow, and 4 ) regressing. In group 3, 'slow', a few stood out to me. Poverty levels, gender ratios in higher education, and access to adequate sanitation facilities I found most relevant. In group 4, 'regressing', poor literacy of youths aged 15-24 seems most immediate and challenging.

I began to draft a mid-term report;

My role as 'architect teacher trainer' in the small peri-urban construction college in Ulaanbaatar, is to develop the architecture staff and curriculum. The work, part of a VSO project to develop secure livelihoods, aims to develop construction jobs, which would help more Mongolians to live above the poverty line. (UNESCO). Mongolia’s economy is developing rapidly, but unemployment, poor literacy, alcohol abuse, and often inadequate sanitation facilities all remain as large problems for the construction sector. Construction professionals and teachers however, seem ill-prepared to tackle these medium and long-term issues.

There are very few resources for architectural education available in the Mongolian language, while literacy problems and poor teaching facilities also provide barriers to teaching. The Russian materials and methods previously commonly used are often outdated, and English and German language materials (Chinese language materials seem to be culturally taboo) are often even more inaccessible, both financially and linguistically. The architectural community of a country which has been in transition from communism since 1992 is also disconnected from world standards and communication. The elusive Arkitektorjdiin Kholboo (Mongolian Association of Architects) is “dormant”.

Yet some of the VSO skill-sharing work I have undertaken has developed the confidence and literacy of architecture teaching staff. Since I have been training, two teachers have moved on to better-paid jobs. A curriculum is rarely consciously employed; although it remains on file “at the Ministry”, teachers apparently measure student progress largely by perseverance. Soon, the first cohort of diploma students will complete their fourth year. Those of the latter I have spoken to do not seem to have been remotely aware of 'the' Mongolian architecture textbook (Bat-Od, 2005, 2007), let alone basic texts used internationally, like FDK Ching’s ‘Form, Space and Order’, the US Architectural Graphic Standards, or Neufert’s ‘Architects’ Data’ (in 18 languages). Building and planning codes may exist, but are almost unknown, and seem to be poorly controlled. Physical accessibility to buildings and streets for people without disabilities is difficult enough, but independent living for people with disabilities is almost unheard-of.

On the other hand, much potential exists for future development in the secondary and tertiary Ger districts, (informal settlements), as well as in the much anticipated new social housing, and in commercial development, so often 'outsourced'. Still, there is life beyond work, and many people seem to enjoy more time with their families and better access to locally grown food than in the UK. Teachers work long hours, but do not seem stressed. They are concerned about air quality - comparable with London's before the Clean Air Act of 1956 - and about transport congestion, in the oversubscribed capital. Many people I meet would like to contribute to Mongolia’s development without having to go abroad, as so many young people and absent fathers have done in order to earn more money. Mongolians love their culture and customs, and many are rediscovering indigenous music, history, arts, medicine and even calligraphy.

Yak

2008-03-25T03:38:00.010Z

From tramping the dusty streets of the Ger districts, to stepping out on the smooth glossy floor of the Continental Hotel, Ulaanbaatar, I have walked a long way... On the weekend I volunteered as a fashion model for the "Foundation for the Development of Wool and Cashmere Enterprises" annual fashion show, wearing Mongolian fibres like yak, camel, cashmere and sheeps wool. A Mongolian male model, model agent and model-trainer, Uchralt (2nd left, above), gave the inexperienced male models half an hour's training on Friday and we presented eight collections to the industry. Afterwards, besides meeting with critique (on modelling) from MUSTs International Relations manager, I also met the Programme Director of GTZ which is a major supporter of the event. On Saturday, more relaxed with the benefit of experience, we learned a choreographed routine which recieved a good response from a general audience. The male models 'complemented' twice the number of young female Mongolian models and also children wearing the collections. After buying tickets for friends, the remainder of a small fee I received I gave to my poor neighbour, the concierge, (Jijur) who needs medicine for her heart.

Von den staubigen Gaesschen der Gerbezirken entlang gehen, nun zum Auftreten des glatten Marmorbodens des Continental Hotels, Ulaanbaatar, bin ich sehr weit gekommen, oder?... Letztes wochenende schien ich als freiwilligen Mode l zur "Foundation for the Development of Wool and Cashmere Enterprises" jaerliches Modeschau auf, Mongolische textil aus Yak-, Kamel-, Kashmir- und Shafs-wolle tragend. Der mongolischen Kollege, modell-agentur und modell-trainierer, Uchralt (2 von links, oben), nahm die unerfahrenen am Freitag fuer eine halbe stunde in Unterricht an, und wir stellten danach acht sammlungen an der Textilindustrie vor. Daraufinhin, nach eines kleinen kritik meines Modellkoerperzustandes von jene MUST International Relations managerin, lernte ich auch den Programmdirector des GTZ , hauptunterstuetzer der Veranstaltung, kennen. Samstag dann, enspannter, wegen unsere reichen neuen Erfahrung, lernten wir auch eine choreographie - welche das allegemeine Publikum sehr gut empfing. Die Mann-Modelle fuegten eine doppelfache Zahl schoene junge Mongolinnen zu; Kinder wirkten auch mit. Eine kleine Gebuer dabei verdient habe ich an meine Nachbarin und schlechtverdienende Torwaertin geschenkt, fuer ihre Herzenmedezin.

Soldiers Day

2008-03-20T03:15:00.011Z

A youth stood by the dirt road this morning, waiting for his friend, as I walked to work through the now familiar ger district. "Hi" he offered. "Hi," I replied. "Whats your name?" he asked, encouraged. "Greg". "Hin?" (what?) "Gregory - Greg, what's yours?" "Gerel.." he said.. "you... Ger? ... Jesus?" He made a cross with his fingers. "Bish.. Bagsh, no, (not a missionary, a) teacher" I muttered, and continued walking. The dirt roads now show few traces of snow or ice that was lying around a week ago. Even the north facing shaded hillsides have thawed. The small black dog corpse I saw freeze last year is lying undecomposed at the roadside as before.

On Tuesday evening, in honour of 'Soldiers Day', the 75th anniversary of establishing the modern Mongolian Army, I met Enkhbaatar, a male languages teacher at MUST, with other teachers. After a beer and chat we were heading home in the same direction and he asked me to stop in to meet his friends, male language workers, with banking and mining, at a bar. I rarely meet Mongolian male English speakers. They sat around the table chatting and quizzing me in the usual way, but in a mix of Mongolian and English. Meanwhile, although I did not want to drink, there were persistent toasts of vodka, Chinggis Black Label, and I was eventually persuaded to participate. The staccato conversation about Mongolia continued, but the vodka part of the culture and of Mongolian mens' relations I struggled with, and subsequently I have been ill for almost a week.

Darkhan Orgoo

2008-03-18T07:31:00.007Z

The city of Darkhan is 128 miles from Ulaanbaatar. A visit to Darkhan State College had been on mind since meeting Mr Jargal Nurzed, its new director, last December.

As I approached the UB parking lot associated with 'taxis' to Darkhan I was manhandled by several prospective 'drivers' in various directions into a ten year old Hyundai sedan, and then reassured that we would be leaving soon. Only after sufficient passengers filled the vehicle did the actual driver become apparent, and we set off in dusk for the three hour journey, regularly and perilously overtaking lorries and having headlights flashed at us. There was one brief stop for water and WC half way. We were relieved to finally arrive and to be met by Aimee, a Darkhan based VSO teacher trainer.

After a night staying in an absent VSO volunteer's centrally located flat, I crossed the road to the Post Office, where after telephoning a few times, I was met by a teacher from Darkhan Orgoo, the State Technical College in a taxi. I was ushered to the directors office and given a welcome speech. The school's student population of 1130 is largely comprised of orphaned and vulnerable children and youth. I presented the VSO volunteer request form and explained to Mr Nurzed the nature of VSO Mongolia's work for sustainable livelihoods, rather than providing 'aid' or charity. I noted that volunteers try to work alongside teachers rather than replacing them, and that this can be all the more challenging.

Tungaa, a languages teacher, toured me around the mid-century school building, whose facilities, class rooms and workshops were relatively well maintained. Competitions are held for decorating rooms and halls. I was treated to a lunch of buuz in the training canteen, before a farewell speech and return to meet other visiting VSOs in the city centre.

In the afternoon, I visited a German Development Service (DED) volunteer Angelika Krambeer at the Technical and Vocational Training Centre, and the newly established Autodesk-funded AutoCAD training suite. I was impressed to see a well equipped European-style lab (with legitimate software) and met some of the drafting trainees and looked at their drawing work. Finally I was kindly taken for an inspection of the near complete building site of a new SOS Children's Village by the German site architect Matthias Daxl.

Returning in 'lux-coupe' class on an overnight train (for the same price as the taxi) was a delight.

In-country training

2008-03-18T06:54:00.003Z

Last week with a small team of three we inducted newly arrived VSO Mongolia international volunteers in mainstreaming disability, as part of their In-Country Training (ICT). Nickson Kakiri led the session, making good use of MS powerpoint to outline the situation for People With Disabilities (PWDs) internationally, in the developing world, and in Mongolia. We built on any fragments of existing experience of the volunteers with a discussion about models of development based on one hand, on medical 'defects', and on the other, on social exclusion.

The mainstreaming idea is that disability is integral to all VSO's work on poverty and disadvantage, spanning all our volunteering programmes and internal activities, here and internationally. A Mongolian sign-language interpreter came to assist for the presentation, but although Nickson is deaf and mute he is experienced in communicating fluently with non-signing English-language hearing people. There were some points of sign language clarification between Nickson in American Sign Language and Sainaa in Mongolian Sign Language, and Sophie van den Abeele (a trainer for Mongolian parents of children with disabilities) and I both added our Mongolia experiences to the discussion. The session pointed out the literature in the area and seemed to set a constructive tone for the volunteers.

A week later, I attended my first signing workshop, attended by workers in the deaf community, volunteers, a programme manager and the VSO country director. I learned many sign language terms and greetings, and learned some interesting new things about oralism, gossip, body language and clear communication.

Digging

2008-03-13T05:03:00.005Z

Spring weather here can be 'four seasons in one day'. It was foggy, then snowing yesterday, then sunny, then icy cold. Otherwise, business as usual. Excavation began on site for the basement of the new school building, adjacent to the existing. The ground was frozen, and the digger operator broke the tines on the bucket. Today he and his friend were trying to arc-weld them back in place.

As I was about to leave the apartment, a man came to the door, insisting on spraying a chemical in wet areas. Although he offered no identification, he wore a CXX cap, suggesting he may be city council worker. I acceded, knowing we would be away for a couple of days. He indicated it was a mould inhibitor, but I declined to pay a fee on the spot. Yesterday after my evening Mongolian lesson, I helped a colleague prepare a translation for a Children's charity representative who would lobby a Mongolian MP this morning.

House in Zuragt - Зурагтад

2008-03-06T06:00:00.013Z

On Tuesday I visited a typical self-build house in Zuragt, a Ger district (informal settlement) to the north of the city. I went with my colleague and interpreter Ariunaa*, whose sister Namuush lives there with her husband Jadamba, and their grandson. The boy's parents are working in Czechia. The peri-urban settlement is named Zuragt (Television), after the state television complex at its centre, and is one of the primary Ger districts planned for reclamation when the government builds new apartments in place of some informal settlements. Some residents apparently even want to improve their properties, to increase the value of their anticipated compensation payment.

The two storey, five room house is about two years old, and conveniently located next to a water kiosk. Here, the residents only have to carry water for a few minutes, less than 20 metres. The dual fuel heating system is noteworthy, as is the garden or 'hasha' layout, which accommodates a Ger and grows some summer Mongolian fruits such as Chatsargan (Sea Buckthorne).

The self-build construction is inexpensive, predominantly of wood, with calcium silicate block external leaf walls and mostly wooden linings and penetrations. Woodchips are used as a cavity filler with polystyrene insulation, which is far cheaper than wool or mineral fibre. But the rudimentary detailing means there are many points where heat escapes.

The reticulated hot water central heating Jadamba has built is ingenious; the coal stove heats the water for the system, and when the off-peak electricity tariff is available (about a third of the cost - between 9pm and 6am) he switches on an electrical element fitted at the back of the stove. A header tank creates pressure to move the water upstairs to the home made radiators; although the upper level is already warmer from rising air.

Jadamba showed me how, after the land claim and subsequent built development, he took as-built drawings, schedules, and photographs to the land registry, which then registered the real property and issued a certificate.

*Ariunaa wrote the Mongolian version below. Please comment, Mongolians!

Би 4 дөх өдөр орчуулагч Ариунаагийн* хамт хотын хойд хэсэгт орших гэр хорооллуудын нэг болох “ Зурагт” –д байдаг Ариунаагийн хүргэн ах Жадамбынд зочилсон юм. Тэрээр эхнэр Намууш ач хүү Болдын хамт өөрийн гараар барьсан хоёр давхар сууцанд амьдардаг. Ач хүү Болдынх нь аав ээж Чех улсад ажиллаж амьдардаг юм байна.

Энэ хотын захын хорооллын Зурагт радио телевизийн төв цогцолборын нэрээр нэрлэжээ.

Хэдийгээр энэ орчмын газар нь засгийн газрын орон сууцжуулах хөтөлбөрт тусгагдсанаар эхний ээлжинд орох төлөвтэй байгаа боловч оршин суугчид нь нөхөн төлбөрийн хэмжээ өсөх маадлалтай гэж үзэн сууцаа улам сайжруулж нэмж тохижуулж байна.

Эдний байшин таван өрөө бүхий хоёр давхар, худагтаа ойрхон юм. / ойролцоогоор 20 м / Мөн халаалтын хос системтэй байгаа нь анхаарууштай санагдсан юм. Тэдний хашаанд бас нэг гэр байхаас гадна тэднийх хашаандаа үхрийн нүд, чацаргана гэх мэтийн жимсний бут, бага зэрэг хүнсний ногоо тарьдаг.

Өөрөө барьсан энэ сууц нь ихэвчлэн мод, хөнгөн блок банз зэрэг хямд төсөр материалаар хийгдсэн бөгөөд ханын дулаалгыг хөөсөнцөр болон үртсээр чигжиж дулаалжээ. Эдгээр материалууд нь шилэн хөвөн болон бусад сайн чанарын дулаалгын материалуудаас хямд боловч дулааны алдагдал ихтэй санагдсан.

Жадамба гуай нүүрсээр халдаг нам даралтын тогоогоор гэрээ халаадаг ба өвлийн улиралд шөнийн цагаар цахилгааны үнэ хямдарсан үед мөн цахилгаанаар халаадаг байна.

Мөн тэрээр бидэнд газар өмчлөгчийн болон үл хөдлөх хөрөнгийн гэрчилгээнүүдээ үзүүлж сонирхуулсан юм.

* Bayarlalaa Ariunaa ene bijcen - Mogolchudaa, 'comment' messej bijeree!

Sharing.. skills

2008-03-01T12:08:00.014Z

Just after midday yesterday I boarded a crowded no.23 bus at the 21st microdistrict bus stop, and immediately regretted my choice; on the step, someone pushed and held me from behind while an accomplice removed my wallet from my front trouser pocket. I struggled to turn and protest. I appealed in vain for help and for the return of the wallet; which contained 15000 togrogs cash (USD15), bank card and ID. The bus driver eventually got tired of my shouting and holding the bus and closed the door. Waiting for another, I realised someone had been watching me some distance before, as I had removed the 200 togrog fare and stowed the wallet. I realised it would have been wiser to take two microbuses or a partial taxi journey, costing about 800-1000 total.

On the next bus, a woman introduced herself as a gynaecologist wishing to learn English; I was not in the mood, but as we came nearer to the University of Science and Technology, I referred her to my interpreter Ariunaa and her nascent 'English training (micro-) centre'.

My 1.20pm lesson at the University of Science and Technology MUST was on 17th century colonies in North America. The students of English language and culture seemed interested, reserved, and underprepared for the subject, which I also had only read only two days prior. I chalked up a rough map of the geography of the New England, Middle, and Southern colonies drew comparison of the various races, languages and cultures converging. My colleague added keywords to the board which I had prepared in coloured pencil on slips of paper. Asked to relate to Mongolia, one student said he was only interested in the (C14) Chinnggis period of Mongolian History - it seems the C17 Manju period is unpopular or tabu. The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 led to a few words of interesting discussion, and on the principal of 'witch hunt' we discussed the Stalin-Choibalsan massacres of 1921-41. They asked about why I had come to Mongolia, and I tried to say something about VSO and global interdependencies.

Kurz nach mittags wollte ich in der 23er linienbus im 21. Bezirk einsteigen, bald danach hatte ich mein wahl bedauert. Auf der Treppe einer hielt mir Fest waehrend seinen Kollegen meinen Geldboerse der vorderen Hosentasche entnahm. Ich drehte schwer um zu protestieren. Erfolglos appelierte ich fuer hilfe und rueckgabe der Geldboerse, mit Inhalt 15000 togrogs (USD15), bankomatkarte und Ausweis. Der Busfahrer wurde von meinem Heulen und aufhalten bald fertig und schliesste der Tuer. Als ich der naechste erwartete, faellt mir ein, bin ich frueher beobachtet worden, als ich 200 togrog entnahm und der boerse einsteckte. Doch waere dass weiser gewesen, zwei microbesse oder zusatztaxifahrt um gesamt 1000 togrog geleistet zu haben.

Im naechsten Bus, eine Frau stellte sich als gerne Englisch-lernende Frauenaerztin vor; ich wurde wenig interessiert, aber als wir den Universitat der Wissenschaft und Techologie (MUST) naeherte, ich bewies ihr auf meine Dolmetscherin Ariunaa und dessen im entwurf befindlichen 'English training (micro-) centre'.

Meine Stunde um 1320 auf der Uni (MUST) bezog sich auf Kolonien der 17. Jahrhunderts im norden Americas. Die Student-innen Englisher Sprache und Kultur scheinten interessiert, zurueckgehalten, und nicht vorbereitet fuer den Fach, den ich auch nur 2 Tage zuvor kannte. Ein grobe landkatre habe ich auf den Schwatrzbrett gezeichnet, die New England, mittel-, und suedlichen Kolonien und das kreuzen den Rassen, Sprachen und Kulturen verglichen. Meine Kollegin fuegte keywords an den Brett zu, die ich farbig auf papierzettel vorbereitet hatte. Nach Mongolei verhaeltnisse gefragt, ein Student sagte, er sei nur an Chinggis geschichte der 14. Jht interessiert - das 17. Jht und Manchu scheint unter diesen unpopulaer, fast Tabu zu sein. Die Hexenprozesse von Salem (1692) brachte einige woerte interesse; dem prinzip der 'witch hunt' bezueglich kamen wir auf den Stalin-Choibalsan massakern, 1921-41. Sie fragten dann warum ich mich in der Mongolei befinde; also versuchte ich dan etwas ueber VSO und globalen abhaengigkeiten (interdependencies) zu erklaeren.

Secure Livelihoods

2008-02-25T09:16:00.006Z

We recently spent two days at UB2, a 'mountain resort' in nearby Terelj, reviewing VSO's 'Secure Livelihoods' programme. Our work is perhaps least clearly understood, compared to that of Health and Education programmes. Together, as teacher trainers, curriculum developers, business, marketing and tourism advisors, a vet and others, we reviewed how we support the development of secure jobs (livelihoods) with poverty-affected Mongolians in the transition to a market economy. The strategic move (by VSO internationally) away from (peri-) urban to rural partnerships will mean many of us finding ways to exit from developed partnerships.

This made me think about the relationships developed between VSO and its Mongolian partners; start-up enterprises, small non-governmental organisations (NGOs), in my case a private college-cum-construction company, and the tendency for these to become dependent on volunteers, and of the slippage of project conclusions.

Although I would like to help develop teachers' skills in curriculum development as summer nears, I fear that the rumoured bulk order of overalls for staff suggests otherwise. Teaching downtime may instead be devoted to laying bricks for our new building, irrespective of the lack of sustainable staff development plans for the college.

Middle

2008-02-19T05:47:00.006Z

The midpoint of my intended stay passed yesterday. When asked by new teacher Tsenguune about my impression at that moment, I said that I percieved progress. A few days ago I came upon a man fallen on his back at the local bus stop. I was alone but was able to raise him to his feet. In contrast to the man described in November, he walked away without being hit by traffic. My cousin had written to empathise, concerned about the previous instance, and I can now report a better outcome.

I have recently made several visits to the state Construction College, helping to prepare their submission for an Asia Pacific accreditation body (APACC), and providing me with quite a detailed understanding of the staffing, management and operation of that long-established college. The terms "benchmarked institution" and "ergekh kholboo", for example, raised issues for linguistic and cultural comparison, as did the question of international publications about Research & Development projects in that college. I also learned something about benchmarking in the Technical and Vocational Education and Training sector.

Walking again

2008-02-15T04:41:00.009Z

In the ger district this morning, two small girls in pink quilted jackets waited on a hill for the local shop to open, and as I walked by, they called down to me in English.. "hello.........................good bye". It occured to me that in a few days it will be half way through my placement here. Today I felt that it was becoming warm enough (-17C max) by late morning to walk to work, so spring begins. The little bridge was stripped down to two steel beams again, the boards probably taken for somebody's fire again, people were gathering at the informal taxi stand, and there were a few people at the water tank. A weathered-looking couple carried a large plastic water container down hill, each holding one end of a stick threaded through the handle. The sky is bright blue and there is still a lot of compacted snow lying. The curled up corpse of a tiny dog caught my eye as I was walking and counting months.

Yesterday evening, with six Mongolian friends, I went to a local cafe for our 'English speakers club', established last year with Ruth, a VSO language teacher trainer, and drank Sea Buckthorn tea, while making mutual introductions, comparing jobs and reviewing Tsagaan Sar in English.

Im Ger Bezirk heute morgen, zwei kleine Maedchen in rosfarbigen Jacken standen auf einen Huegel, warteten auf des oeffnen eines kleinen Laden, und wie ich vorbei ging, riefen im Englisch hinunter.. “"hello.........................good bye". Es ist mir eingefallen, in einigen Tagen, wird die haelfte meines Mongolei-aufenthaltes vorbei sein. Heute hatte ich das gefuehl dass es waermer wird, spaeten Morgens in der Arbeit zu laufen, nun wird es fuer mich Fruehling. Die kleine Bruecke ist wieder zu zwei nackte Stahltraeger geworden, die Holzbrette wahrscheinlich wieder einmal als Feuerholz genommen; es sammelten Leute beim informellen Taxistand; einege noch beim Wasserlager. Ein trauriges Paar traegte ein Wasserfass bergunter, jeder auf eine Ende eines durch den Griff gefahrenen Traegholzes. Der Himmel ist Hellblau, es liegt noch bedrueckten schnee ueberall. Ein kleines Hundeleichen faellt mir im Augen, waehrend ich beim Laufen, die Monate zaehlte.

Gestern bin ich, mit sechs Mongolische freundinnen zusammen, fuer 'English speakers club' in einer Cafe getroffen. Der Klub wurde voriges Jahr mit einem kollegin Ruth, VSO sprachlehrer-traniererin, gegruendet. Wir tranken "Chatsaargana" Tee, stellte uns gegenseitig vor, verglichten unseren jeweiligen Arbeitsstellen, und ueber die Sache "Tsagaan Sar" im Englisch unterhielten.

Monday morning Vodka

2008-02-14T08:07:00.006Z

The Mongolian Year of the mouse began last week, and the college has been fairly quiet and 'studentless' during the transition period. The main social activity for this season is visiting family, and preparing buuz (mutton dumplings - often hundreds) for visiting family members, but this means a relaxed schedule for foreigners. While some Mongolians visit tens of households, we visited three, well spaced over the New Year between Thursday and Monday. The first working day of the New Year on Monday morning at the college involved traditional armhold-greetings and reciprocal sniffing with the salutation 'Amaran uu' and rounds of Mongolian vodka.

While browsing one weekend in a bookshop at the 'State Department Store' - the UB equivalent of Moscow's GUM - I was surprised to discover a new architecture textbook, in Mongolian (A. Bat-Od, OPX 2007) which my mentor, who is credited in the preface, has never mentioned. Saves having to write one. It incorporates standards, useful example buildings, and excerpts from recent editions of Neufert and AGS. Nobody knows why the 2005 book, now in its second edition, was never known to the college or in the Library, but when I brought a copy to the college it was agreed to use it.

The World Vision project for a model energy efficient house has moved on slowly, despite the efforts of our consultant social worker, who prepared quite an impressive community consultation strategy. However, I caught a glimpse of a powerpoint presentation being prepared and lo, a client meeting was suddely held late yesterday. The discussion was mainly confined to contractual arrangements. Meanwhile I prepared a chart to try to discuss design principles to follow;
1. Barilgiin Talbei - Site and Orientation
2. Torkh Gadarguu - Envelope elements
3. Cistem - Building Systems
4. Narnii Gerel - Daylighting
5. Agaarjulaalt - Ventilation
6. Tekhnologuud - (Active) Technologies
7. Khemjilt - Evaluation
I was asked if I had ideas on a preferred facade design, and as a site has not yet been decided with the community, I referred to working with the above. Now I can hear noises in an adjacent room where an agreement is to be signed.

Art Meal / Kunst Essen

2008-02-04T08:53:00.001Z

Blue Sun (Khoekh Nar) Contemporary Art Group staged their performance on Saturday as part of the exhibition at the Ulaanbaatar's Khaan Bank Gallery, mentioned in a previous blo g, curated by Uranchimeg Tsultem. A table set for six was set with traditionally prepared Mongolian sheeps heads, which are repeatedly burned and boiled so that the blackened remains are "delicious". Six male artists sat with their different knives (it is a Mongolian tradition to bring one's own knife, bowl and toothpick; all of which can be found incorporated or accommodated in the traditional Mongolian costume) and quietly ate their sheeps heads, sharing morsels with the enraptured audience, working until nothing but dry bone remained. Mongolian New Year (Tsagaan Sar) will take place on Friday.

Blaue Sonne (Khoekh Nar) Zeitgenossicher Kunstgruppe stellte am vorigen Samstag eine Performance-stueck dar, bezueglich der frueher erwaehnten neuen Austellung in der Galerie des Khaan Banks. Dr Uranchimeg Tsultem ist Kuratorin. Eine runde Tisch war mit Mongolischer Schafkoepfe fuer sechs belegt; diese feinschmeckenden Lieblingsessen ist tradizionellerweise mehrmals gebrannt und gekocht. Die sechs Kuenstler sassen mit ihren verschiedenen Messer (nach Mongolischer gebrauch bringt jeder sein eigenen Messer, Schuessel und Zahnstocher, allerlei tradizionellerweise zum Kostuem gehoerend) Sie assen ruehig je ihren Schafkopf, teilten auch leckerbissen mit den erlockten Zuschauer-innen, bis zum schluss nichts als knochen uebrigblieb. Mongolisches Neues Jahr (Tsagaan Sar) findet am Freitag statt.

Competition / Wettbewerb

2008-02-02T08:49:00.000Z

A lecture competition at the Nutrition Technology College? It sounded interesting; so I arrived at the college early in the morning fog, by microbus. We set off after 10am in the director's SUV over the icy streets, through the snowy industrial areas, past the railway station, to the competition venue. It had been decided that my engineer colleague Rob would speak to a power point presentation about energy efficient building design principles, with Ariunaa providing a 'simultaneous' Mongolian translation. After almost a decade of lecturing with powerpoint, and since reading Edward Tufte's essay ("There's no bullet list like Stalin's bullet list")*, MS power point presentations are one of my favourite 'bemusements', and I have so far avoided using it in Mongolia, in favour of simple paper visuals.
We made our entrance through the front of the austere timber lined lecture hall a few minutes before our appointed time, and unsuccessfully attempted to load the presentation with a virus-infected flash drive. A change of computers, and the presentation was underway, outlining the global warming dilemma and the need for ecological sustainability. Building design factors such as orientation were compared with expensive add-on technological solutions. Ten minutes passed quickly, and the organisers called for conclusion, one-third into the presentation. My director colleagues muttered, unfairly blaming the Mongolian translation. Had the teachers been trained in the subject area and made the presentation themselves, I suggested, the presentation might have been more valuable for everyone.
After answering questions from the judges, the college directors were ready to leave immediately, but we protested that we should hear at least one other presentation. It was a theory of studio methodology from the Korean-Mongolian Building Technology College, my first contact with this college. Dense pages full of lists of words were supplemented with complex six part diagrams and without any photographs, making comprehension difficult, in any language. I despaired.
We returned to the college via the Federation of Disabled Peoples Organisations, where I had arranged printing of my dissertation. On approaching the entrance on the new ramp, I encountered another visitor, walking on amputated leg stumps with the aid of trowel like wooden 'hand-shoes'; I later saw him meeting my printing contact about newly arrived wheelchairs.
The Federation had done an excellent job of the printing and we went to lunch with my colleagues amusing themselves about Mongolia's appearance in the global map of nomadic cultures. (p9)
The following day we learned that the competition/conference had been about teaching techniques, so it seemed our contribution had missed the mark. An ornate certificate of attendance was provided nevertheless, and it was admitted that our participation had been a 'guerilla' publicity exercise for CTC.
*Edward Tufte "The Cognitive Style of Powerpoint" c.2006

Ein Vortragswettbewerb? Das klung interessant. Ich kam im fruehmorgigen Nebel mit einem Microbus in den Kollege an. Nach 10uhr fuhren wir, im allrad mit dem Direktor, ueber den vereisten Strassen, den Industriebezirk und Bahnhofsplatz vorbei, zu den Gestaltungsort in Naehrungstechnischen Kollege. Bereits war es entschieden das mein kollegen Rob, ein Bau-ingeneur, mittels PowerPoint der prinzipien Energie-sparendes Bauentwurf darstellen wuerde, waehrend Dolmetsch Ariunaa 'simultan' Mongolischer Uebersetzung zufuegen wuerde. Nach dem ich ein Jahrzehntelang zur Uni-vortraege PowerPoint benutzt habe, und besonders nach meinem eindruck des Edward Tufte Essays ("There's no bullet list like Stalin's bullet list")*, MS PowerPoint gigs sind fuer mich zu eine schadenfreudliche unterhaltung geworden. Bis hin als Lehrer tranierer in der Mongolei habe ich darauf verzichten koennen, anstattdessen einfache Papierhilfsmitteln zu verwenden.
In eine kommunistisch-einfach ausgestatteten Vortragshalle kamen wir wenigen minuten vor unsere vereinbarte Zeit an, und erfolglos mit einer Virus-infiziertes USB-drive dem PowerPoint aufzuladen versuchte. Ein Komputerwechsel danach, lief den Vortag, der Globalen Kilmaerwaermungsgeschichte und der anfrage fuer oekologischer nachhaltigkeit in uebersicht zu erklaeren. Bauentwurfskriterien wie Sonnenorientierung wurden mit teuere zusaetzlichen technologischen Loesungen verglichen. Zehn minuten gingen blitzschnell vorbei, und mit der Beitrag ein-drittel fertig riefen der Organisatoren zum Enden. Meine Vorstand und kollegen geraueschelten, die Uebersetzung fuer die Zeitverzoegerung sei zu beschuldigen. Hatten aber Mongolischer CTC Lehrer-innen den fach gelernt und den Vortag selbst gemacht, schlug ich vor, waere den Vortag allerseits nuetzlicher gewesen sein.
Nach einige Fragen der Jurie beantwortet wurden, der Kollege-direktoren wollten sofort gehen, die anderen wollten aber wenigstens eine der Konkurrenten hoeren. Als naechste dran war eine Theorie der Studio-method von eine Lehrerin der Koreanisch-Mongolisch Bau-Technologisches Kollege, von dem ich einige Zeit etwas blicken wollte. Dichte seiten, ganz voller Wortlisten, einige complizierte Diagrammen dazu, sonst Bildlos, machte verstaendnis schwerig, trotz etwaige Sprachprobleme. Seufze.
Am weg zur Kollege fuhren wir den MNFDPO (Bund der Organisationen fuer Behinderten) vorbei, wo ich meiner Dissertation zum Drucken gelassen hatte. Als ich den Eingangsrampe beging, kam ich an einen Besucher, der an abgekuerzten Beine, mit hilfe ein Art holzernen Schuhe ging; spaeter sah ich den Mann mit den Druckberatungskollege in eine Besprechung um eine menge neuangekommenen Rollstuehle.
Der Bund hatte ein ausgezeichnetes Job meines Druckaufgabes getan, und wir gingen weiter zum Mittagessen, wahrend der Kollegen-innen sich amusierten ueber des Auftauchen der Mongolei in eine Weltkarte ueber nomadische Kulturen. (s9)
Am naechsten Tag erfuhren wir dass den Wettbewerb eher auf Paedagogie / Lehrtechnik bezogen wurden war, nun scheinbar hat unser Beitrag den Ziel etwa vermisst. Ein dekoriertes Zertifikat des Anwesendsein wurde jedoch an CTC bereicht. Mittlerweile gaben der Kollege-mitarbeiter zu, dass das Ganze eine opportunistischer Publizitaetsgelegenheit fuer CTC gewesen war.
*Edward Tufte "The Cognitive Style of Powerpoint" c.2006

Microbus - to Khar Khorin, Sansar, Boemboegoer

2008-01-22T06:53:00.000Z

Art

2008-01-22T05:53:00.000Z

Blue Sun contemporary art group featured in two new exhibitions last week. Hearing of their plans to establish an artists colony an hour from the capital, and knowing of their interest in showing the work of Ana Rewakowicz, I went to Xanadu Gallery on Thursday evening to meet Dalkhaa (Yondonjunain Dalkh-Ochir). There was an impressive array of landscape paintings from a trip of about 2500km around Bayankhongor province last August. Particularly interesting to me was the map of the journey and the process of camping as a group and practicing 'plein air' painting.

The following evening, the exhibition at the new Gallery at Khaan Bank on Seoul Street incorporated sculptures, installations and video works, curated by Uranchimeg Tsultem. One was Dalkhaa's street installations in rainy Stockholm, shown in video form. Another was a series of freshly cut slabs of tree trunk, set on sawdust on the stark polished marble floor. With an English art scholar colleague, we struggled to communicate with the artist about the concept in Mongolian and English, but I gleaned something to do with connecting with nature. This made a welcome diversion from work at the college and inspired me to travel in the Mongolian countryside, come summer.

Research and basic project management preparation continues on the energy efficient dwelling, as students and staff begin to disperse for the Mongolian New Year break, known as White Month - Tsagaan Sar. It was snowing this morning, and the environment outside fits the description well.

Energy Efficient, Accessible, Inflatable?

2008-01-17T04:13:00.000Z

In a recent meeting, my mentor, Professor Dagshigdorj, apparently struggling for a theme about which to seek advice, asked; "What can we do about the smoke problem?"

Western Ulaanbaatar, where our school is located in a peri-urban ger district sprawl, is particularly beset by smog problems in winter. The poor air quality is unhealthy and visibility is very poor at the current -20C temperatures. In the absence of wind, the basin setting of UB, with its five surrounding mountains, contains the low lying smog created by the city heating, traffic and power stations, and usually attributed to the ger districts' many coal fired stoves. "Did I have any relevant experience in the developed world?" I thought quickly, Graz has similar air quality problems, also the implementation of London's Clean Air Act in 1956 (and over the last 50 years) would be relevant, as would the ozone hole in Australia and subsequent carbon minimisation legislation in the construction industry.. a very broad topic. We resolved to unravel and discuss these further.

Our college had also recently been called upon by World Vision's local Bayankhoshuu district branch to advise on developing a model Energy Efficient House. Passive design, active technologies and materials would all be taken into account. In this school, however, Mongolian professionals' knowledge of techniques of auditing energy consumption and building efficiency at design stages seem to be limited. Life-cycle costing, to account for payback time of energy efficient design, also appears to be an unfamiliar concept. We need to develop this capacity in the school staff, but time is short.

As a coincidence, it emerged that World Vision is planning to develop an Independent Living Centre, potentially duplicating efforts with the Mongolian Wheelchair Users Association (MTIX), mentioned in the previous blog entry.

Weekly subject group curriculum development meetings have now been planned, but postponed. Tonight I hope to meet representatives of the Blue Sun Contemporary Art Group, who this Summer in UB are to show the inflatable works of Ana Rewakowicz, a Canadian artist colleague whose new monograph I am currently reviewing.

A Friday

2008-01-05T10:18:00.000Z

Yesterday seemed a relatively effective workday, two out of four planned meetings eventuated. I went to the VSO offices for a morning meeting which had already been twice postponed, with MTIX, the Mongolian Wheelchair Users Association, ostensibly about design for Independent Living. I took a microbus from Khar Khorin market, near my apartment, to Boemboegoer market in the city centre, (about half an hour) then walked to Seoul Street and caught a taxi for another mile to a place with a shortcut path to VSO's offices at Crystal House Business Centre. (Total 300 + 500 togrogs = 35p) My Building College colleague and translator Ariunaa was waiting in the lobby, and after unlocking the meeting room, I printed my prepared notes on Design for Independent Living fro the internet in the volunteer's room. Disability expert Nickson Kakiri, our new VSO volunteer joined the meeting, and we were then summoned to help bring Chuluundolgor and Avirmed of the MTIX up four flights of stairs to the meeting room.

The meeting focussed as much on the need for a business plan to pursue MTIX's wish for developing an Independent Living Centre in Mongolia as it did on capacity building or expertise skill sharing. Very few wheelchair users, Chuluundolgor suggested, let alone professionals and the public, were aware of the potential for Independent Living for disabled people in Mongolia,and the art and science of designing and adapting buildings for people with various limited physical abilities. We discussed the politcal problems of fundraising and government 'obstructions' and Nickson shared his international experience. We resolved to plan some training for those interested in Design for Independent Living principles. I recommended a Mongolian architect expert from the University MUST, and an architect steering committee member of the nascent Mongolian Architects Association, as well as a Construction Ministry contact.

After this meeting Ariunaa and I returned to the college after a detour to a bank. She explained she helps a friend in the remote Dornod province by collecting and sending his chemotherapy treatment from Ulaanbaatar. After collecting funds and visiting the central pharmacy with a prescription, she rises early to go to a microbus station where a messenger, usually a Dornod 'neighbour' will cheaply convey the valuable syringes to her friend.

Returning to the Construction College on time, our planned meeting, for which I had prepared notes on an Energy Efficient House pilot scheme with World Vision, had been cancelled. I had a brief meeting about my proposal for teacher training at Darkhan Construction College, and the planned subsequent English training was also cancelled, with rumours of a teachers' crisis meeting.

New Year - Shin Jil

2008-01-05T09:30:00.000Z

I finally understood what all the palaver had been about, with teachers reportedly rehearsing routines until 11pm at night etc., when I attended the college New Years party, which featured speeches, several performances, four or five costume changes and elaborate evening dress. Fortunately I wore a tie. Surprisingly for a college with some of the worst maintained toilet facilities I've seen, taped up dirty hand basins, and unevenly sized stair risers, there were generous cash prizes for the best teachers in the vocational courses and the professional courses, and a car for one of the general staff. The glittering party at a small restaurant called Khanbi Oergoe entailed many toasts, of champagne, the ever-present vodka, and wine and beer. There was food but the evening was dominated by speeches and presentations with performances of dancing santas and scantily clad female colleagues, of dancing and socialising. I hardly remember ever being so popular as when I brought photographs (www.flickr.com/ctc2008) of the evening to the college in the new year.

The glamorous evening made a wonderful contrast with the ensuing days spent at a remote Ger camp in Terelj national park to the east of the city. A few hours after leaving the city on Sunday morning we were walking around a monastery high on the south face of a beautiful mountain. Arriving at the Ger camp belonging to a certain Bold who had travelled with us from UB, we sat around the Ger stove and drank Mongolian milk tea. Reading (Tim Winton's Dirt Music) and knitting filled the time between feeding the stove and collecting water and firewood. We rode the herder's horse around and collected dry dead wood from the snow, then built a bonfire on the frozen Terelj River (assured it would not be affected by the fire heat) The New Year countdown (not usually marked in the countryside) was marked by a visit from the neighbouring herder Narantsteseg, with whom we danced and sang around the remains of the bonfire. Toileting in the snow on this -30 degree cold dark night was made well worth the effort by the incredible night starscape.

Merry Christmas

2007-12-24T09:48:00.001Z

For the last few years in London, I have been volunteering at my local section of Crisis Open Christmas, that great institution which shelters and entertains thousands of homeless people every year, I was wondering what to do now that I am a full time volunteer in Mongolia, and with so many homeless people in Ulaanbaatar.

On Friday we had a very enjoyable little birthday party at UB Deli for Zuhura, a Tanzanian-born English volunteer with some Mongolians and international friends, including our newly arrived Kenyan volunteer Nickson, and lively conversations in English, Mongolian, Contact signing, and American and Mongolian sign languages.

Returning after the party slightly merrier from a few glasses of red wine, we noticed at our neighbouring apartment block on Bariilgachni Gudamch (Builders Avenue) a chap on his back on the cold gravel, inadequately dressed in t-shirt and open cardigan for the -20 degree night. A merry Mongolian trio walking just ahead of us shouted back to him, presumably along the lines of "what the devil are you doing, fool? - get up, you will freeze to death there, where do you live?"

I was hesitant after the experience I recounted on 22 November in another day closes .. but I watched on as the two women, despite their male companion's reluctance, came closer and shouted again, without a satisfactory response. Another Mongolian woman, well dressed in furs, then came walking up to the group. Through some sort of non-verbal communication, she and I then took an arm each and dragged the staggering man to entrance ten of block 23, where we live at entrance five. After some negotiations by the group with the guard at the entrance, the guard seemed to agree to his need to recover in the warmer stairwell. I hope he survived the night, to remember that he was somebody's father, brother, son or friend.

Meanwhile we will have a peaceful and quiet Christmas at home, thankful that our family, friends and colleagues are warm and happy.

Connecting

2007-12-21T08:48:00.000Z

"I forgot" was the response when I asked my colleague what happened about a meeting we had arranged the previous evening. I can hardly believe someone can forget a meeting within a few hours. It was the same reason given by the college director immediately after avoiding a pre-arranged staff English language CPD session. One is tempted to feel offended, but there is a cultural issue here. The last couple of weeks have been difficult. Today I asked three students why they did not attend a meeting on the 12th, as confirmed in writing on the 10th. Being too busy, another appointment, etc were given as vague reasons.

Fourth year students are busy finishing studio projects today, (prematurely) inking their final plans for design projects. The lecture discussion last week - including my Wagga Wagga Civic Centre case study - about diagram analysis seem to have been in vain. Clearly, these students can produce drawings of buildings, but the design process is seen as entirely linear, and the sketches and site analysis (if any exist) seem to have been abandoned when 'drawing up'. Nothing new in Western schools. The opportunities to think laterally at a design stage about energy efficiency, accessibility, habitability, and design innovation have all been missed.

Meanwhile, a colour vinyl banner of about three by five metres (possibly 30000T or STG15 worth) has suddenly appeared in the college stairwell, promoting a competition to design a commemorative fountain for Mongolia. The site, judges and prizes are unspecified, but the A2 drawings are due on Monday. There will be a Christmas holiday on Tuesday and the following week for new year.

Participation and Access

2007-12-12T08:25:00.001Z

Today a student came in at about 7pm, asking in Mongolian, "Багшаа" (please teacher..) and showed me a scribbled list of Mongolian words. I have no idea what she wanted. She said "Баярлалаа" (thank you) and left.

An ongoing aim of the work here is to fight disadvantage and to increase accessibility of existing resources. I believe making buildings more physically accessible is therefore instrumental. The most recent meeting of the accessible buildings group was hosted again at VSO headquarters. Although the three CTC students who had promised to present their work on accessible buidings in Western UB failed to attend, the core of the group, including Chuluundolgor (Wheelchair Users Group), Alison (VSO Director) Mr Oyunbaatar (MNFDPO President) held to the agenda of preparation for a new VSO / MNFDPO volunteer, promoting the 3 December Disability Day activities, and advocacy for accessible buildings in Mongolia.

A new pattern school for Mongolia, developed with GTZ, was discussed, being apparently accessible and in accord with the Mongolian Wheelchair Accessibility Norm. It was decided to suggest this as a model for the new CTC college buildings currently on the drawing board, also as an educational tool for CTC students.

Chuluundolgor and I reported on the Tour of UB 3 December Wheelchair 'march' and I showed a rough diagram of the barriers experienced at the seven locations. We all discussed arrangements for a new volunteer with a hearing disability and expertise in accessibility work. Chuluundolgor and I hope to do some work on Design for Independent Living soon. And to look at the accessibility of the Microdistrict Centre and School Designs with CTC students at a meeting in late February.

Ger district architecture

2007-12-10T11:04:00.000Z

Ulaanbaatar is increasingly comprised of and surrounded by ger districts (Mongolian tent dwelling districts), the informal architecture of encampments claimed by Mongolians under their traditional right to nomadically and temporarily settle on their land, in this case close to the capital. Now more than a colonial symbol, the capital is an increasingly environmentally repulsive complex, albeit of great financial and cultural attraction for Mongolian citizens.

Dirty yet progressive, ill-equipped yet full of potential for poor migrants, the chimera of gleaming towers at the city centre attract citizens of Mongolia from the farthest corners of the vast and relatively sparsely populated Republic.

In the process, the city's solitary East-West artery, symbolic of distant connections to Russian and Chinese neighbours, is completely clogged with private and 'SUV' vehicles and ailing microbuses, buses and trolleybuses, all heaving with passengers. The 4x4 vehicles in this predominantly rural country make for a perpetual Naadam festival, parading along Peace Avenue, demonstrating 'progress' and creating havoc for pedestrian and public transport. The latter are regarded the upwardly mobile as more symbolic of the bad old solicalist times, where the streets were deserted and people queued sliently for five identical grocery items at any one of the identical grocery stores throughout the city. Now the 4x4 owners, returning from their summer camps in the countryside, complain that the smog and haze is the product of the ger district residents burning coal for heating in the informally planned peri-urban areas.

From my window in the gridded high rise apartment subdivision, I look out over the informal district to see a horse and cart loaded with belongings bound for an unsealed track to the north. One of many vapour trails from the north west leading to the south east reminds me of the extremely high technology of international jet engines, while coal smoke puffs from chimeys in the unsewered and waterless ger district.

The informal urbanism of the ger area is horizontal and rhizomic, constantly changing and metamorphosing. My north facing window in building 23 represents the threshold of the vertical gridded, arboric city system 'core'. Women and children collect water and coal while men attend to ger covers, smoking cigarettes and jockeying cars.

Besides gers there are myriad fences and gates along a labyrinth of dusty vehicle paths and footways, stretching organically over the landscape, under power lines and around drain culverts. Tiny shops appear in shacks or recycled railway carriages or shipping containers. Small hourly rate hotels, a community centre and garages are interspersed without apparent planning logic. Empty space becomes a meeting point for 'taxi' drivers to gather or for another stall. The informal architecture here is woven or knitted together, temporarily, without a concern for the future.

Construction teacher training

2007-12-10T10:07:00.000Z

Encouragingly, I discovered some staff had been researching teaching materials using techniques from the first CPD seminar. A text about Robert Venturi's Vanna Venturi House was being analysed with students. A further success: about seventeen staff attended the second staff development seminar last Friday evening, and despite many threats of participants being 'too busy', we began about half an hour late, with the vice director Khashaa in attendance, after a last minute venue change and furniture reorganisation.

Our newest and youngest English teacher, Enkzaya, welcomed colleagues to the session from a script, and everyone introduced themselves by name, (often footnoting meanings of names in English translation), with their teaching roles, and in a few cases, the purposes of English at the Construction College. The last part was rather difficult for many to express, but a bright first year student called Lhagva spoke to the group about the English-speaking walk she had attended with me, representing our college with a group from the University of Humanities.

Each teacher took a turn at translating part of Lhagva's story about the walk from Chinggis Khan Airport to Chinggis Khuree camp, and the subsequent litter collecting stop, on a cold sunny November day. Most staff were reluctant to commit to further training, but the session had been satisfyingly interactive and positive.

Wheelchair-users City Tour / Rollstuhlfahrerstadtrundfahrt

2007-12-04T07:14:00.007Z

I wrote this bilingually for my college Director D. Gankhuyag, (not to be confused as I once did with Z. Gankhuyag) who studied in Russian and German before '92, and who like other colleagues, finds little time to read or learn English.

Yesterday was International Disability Day. I took part in a well planned campaign of the Mongolian Whellechair Users Association. (I wore my CTC branded jacket, Boss!) The Wheelchair association chair Chuluundolgor, (with whom I am working, via VSO, on architecture accessibility norms and 'independent living'), organised a 'Tour of Our City, UB' with help of one Tsevelmaa. Fourteen wheelchair users visited (by prior arrangement) seven publicly accessible buildings in the city on the tour. After opening speeches at the 'Open Society Forum' the group, including busness leaders, researchers, fitness teachers and computer workers, wheeled through heavy UB traffic on the cold and sunny morning to the bus parking. Volunteers lifted eight at most into each of two rented City Buses. The Brewery visit, with lab capes, was crowded, and very noisy in the bottle filling hall, but apart from the entry steps, was straightforward.

The next stop, Bayar's Construction, was actually held at 'Diana' school, and despite the founding principles of the funder (to fight exclusion of poor and disabled children) all participants had to climb five entry steps, then over a stage blocking the doorway. The programme, entertainment from pupils, and food and drink were great. Interviewed about my impressions as a foreign expert and architect on my departure, however, I had to say the physical barriers were a major problem for the visit. At the Mongolian Youth Federation, everyone had to go up two flights of stairs, with other building users shoving their way past, to a first storey meeting room and a comprehensive powerpoint presentation. A the next visit, Mongolia's biggest mobile phone company, there were good ramps, floors andcloakroom, and telephone credits were given out.

At the City Governors, temporary wooden ramps had been emplaced on the six stairs in the entry lobby, and down a few more into the public meeting room. As with the building firm, the hosts seemed not to recognise the 2002 building norm (31-101-04) for wheelchair users. Nice books about the City of Ulaanbaatar were presented, but little hope was instilled for improving the state of accessibility of UB streets and buildings. He apologised that the officially counted 18032 disabled people represented a minority in the Market Economy, while an actvist beside me suggested 35-70 thousand would be a more accurate national figure.

Finally, to Tengis Cinema, founded 2002, where I had previously overlooked so many steps. We carried the fourteen wheelchair users down from the busses, through the busy parking
area, 8 steps to the entrance, then two long flights of stairs to ticketing and cinema entrance. I admired everyone's patience as I saw one wheelchair user manhandled to the inaccessible toilet. The Cinema Manager was responsive and friendly, and after a glas of champagne, everyone sat in the front of the cinema and enjoyed a new Mongolian Film.

(German version)
Den Direktor unserer Schule, D. Gankhuyag moechte ich ermoeglichen, dieses Blog zu lesen; deshalb ist es nun bisprachig hergestellt. Gankhuyag hatte vor '92 in Russland und Deutschland studiert, hat aber, wie meine restlichen kollegen hier, findet wenig zeit, Englisch weder zu lesen, noch zu lernen.

Gestern war Internazionale Tag der Behinderten Menschen. Ich nahm an eine sehr gutgeplanten Aktion des 'Mongolischen Vereins der Rollstuhlfahrer' teil. (in meine gebrandeten Jacke, Chef) Vereinsvorstand Chuluundolgor, (mit der ich bereits an architekturnormen und 'accessible living' durch VSO zusammenarbeite), hat mit hilfe der Tsevelmaa, eine 'Rundfahrt unsere Stadt, UB', georganisiert. Vierzehn rollstuhlfahrer-innen schliessten seiben oeffentlichen gebaueden an diesen Tag in ihrem rundfahrt ein. Nach dem eroeffnungstreffen im 'Open Society Forum' fuhren die gruppe- geschaeftsleiter, forscher, fitness lehrer, EDV arbeiter- durch der dicht verkehrten strassen an den kalten sonnigen morgen zum Busparkplatz. Dann hiebten die freiwilligen jeweils hoechstens acht rollstuhlfahrer-innen in zwei vermiteten Linienautobuessen hoch. Der Brauereibesuch ging, mit weissen kleiden angezogen, sehr dicht beieinander, sehr laut im flaschenfuellungshalle, aber ausser der eingangstreppe, relativ einfach.

Naechster haltestelle 'Bayars Construction' fand eigentlich in der 'Prinzessin Diana' Mittelschule statt, und trotz des grundprinzip des Diana Funds (gegen ausschliessung der behinderten in armen laendern), muessten alle teilnehmer fuenf treppen, dann eine der Tur blockierenden Buehne, ueberklettern. Das programm, unterhalten der schueler, und das essen und waren sehr gut. Beim abschied aber, auf anfrage meines gesamteindrucks als fremden 'Experte' leider beantworten, dass die physikalische barriere den besuch sehr schwierig machten. Bei den Mongolischen Jugendverein muste allen sogar zwei treppenlauefen im ersten stock hochgehoben werden, waehrend vielen vereinsangehoerigen vorbei drangten, um einen powerpoint-praesentation in einem schoenen saal zu erleben. Beim naechsten besuch, an der Mongolei's grossten Handy-firma Mobicom, gab es gute rampen, boden und Garderobe, und telefonkredite wurden geschenkt.

Zur Stadtgouverneur; kuerzweiligen holzrampen gingen ueber sechs treppen hoch dann wieder drei runter, alle kamen dicht zur hauptbesprechungssaal hinein. Wie beim Baufirma, erkannten die Gastgeber die baunormen fuer rollstuehle (31-101-04) scheinbar nicht. Sie bieteten schoene bueche uber den Hauptstadt an, weniger hoffnung teilten Sie aber, fuer die verbesserung der strassen- und gebaueden-begehbarkeit des Hauptstadts. Der Stadtgouverneur entschuldigt sich dass 20 tausend der zahlbaren Mongolischen behinderten sei im Markt-Oekonomie eine minderheitssache, wahren einen aktivisten-kollege schaetzt 35-70 tausend wohnen hier.

Schiesslich zum Tengis Kino, im 2002 gegruendet, wo ich frueher gar nicht gemerkt habe, dass so viele treppen stehen. Hier hiebten wir die vierzehn kollegen aus der buessen nieder, durch parkplatzverkehr, 8 treppen zur eingangs portal hoch, dann zwei lange treppenlaufe zur Kasse und Kinoeingang auf. Ich bewunderte alle, wie ich ein rollstuhlfahrer sah, der im WC koerperlich zur toilette behandelt werden musste. Der Kinomanager war sympatisch, und nach ein glas sekt, sassen alle im vorigen reihe des Kinos und geniessten ein Mongolischer Film.

Visiting MUST

2007-11-29T09:46:00.000Z

A visit to the Mongolian University of Science and Technology has been on my agenda since my departure, and yesterday I met with Purev-Erdene Ershuu, architect and lecturer at the Centre for Architectural Research and Design at this university. The meeting had taken several weeks to organise, with much help from Munkhzhul Choiljiljav, former London Metropolitan University architecture student and AA school applicant. With both Munkhzhul and my CTC interpreter Ariunaa in my entourage, Purev outlined the Mongolian architectural education scene in fluent English. The largest of four construction education institutions in Ulaanbaatar, MUST's architecture school has a population of about four hundred students, having increased threefold since 1995. There are two graduating cohorts each year, about twenty in total, and an intake of about one hundred. Purev says a high attrition rate is necessary to maintain a high standard.

With the currently buoyant construction industry producing high demand, almost all graduates apparently find work in Mongolia. The curriculum is understandably influenced by the history of collaboration with Russian universities. Russian language is still a compulsory subject, and the language of many textbooks. However Purev claims the curriculum structure is largely based on the German system, because of the strong links there. The studio master system has been replaced, however, by team teaching, in order to cope with the staff student ratio for 14 full time staff like Purev. Russian 'didactic' teaching methods are criticised but still present, and the university sees design workshops as seminars rather than as a separate delivery method western universities call 'studio'. There is interest in English-language architecture and culture. International links include Korean (KOICA) and Japanese (JAICA) volunteers and exchanges in the school, a Romanian exchange project, and a link with Vienna University of Technology. I was aware of the latter through my contact with Prof Erich Lehner, at the Department of 'Extra-European architecture' (Ausser-europaeischer Baukunst), who, with Viennese students, has been partner in an ongoing project in a ger district.

A member of the eleven-strong steering committee of the Mongolian Association of Architects (Mong. Arkh. Kholboo), Purev expressed frustration that as there is no protection or promotion of title here, and that the association is 'symbolic' and 'dormant'. Similarly, architecture-allied careers like drafter, technologist, historian and built environment educator are not professionalised. It was a very useful meeting and my collegue Ariunaa claimed that finding a kindred spirit had made me happier than she had ever seen me. My hopes for learning more about the advisory role of the Mongolian Association of Architects or MUST in continuing professional development and curriculum development are, for the moment, however, dashed...

Resourceful

2007-11-29T09:45:00.000Z

As I noticed the stray dog's tongue probing the eye socket of a discarded sheeps skull in the street, I wondered at the tenacity of his search for nourishment. Sheep's head being a local delicacy, the skull had probably been well picked by humans days before. Walking on through the ger district towards my work, I passed three men heaving a reluctant sedan into motion, a four wheel drive towing a belching lorry, and a well dressed woman with a bright red hat and immaculate make-up, walking in high heels on the dusty lane toward the city. Approaching the community centre on a hilltop, there was a gathering of people with water carrying equipment and bright sun illuminated the cold scene. A boy approached me, speechless, with an extended hand..

another day closes

2007-11-22T03:07:00.000Z

I alighted at my local bus stop (Khar Khorin Market) from a crowded microbus returning from work, and was bid good-bye by a particularly friendly conductor. I saw at the edge of the cold and crowded pavement a fellow, younger than I, but roughly dressed, spreadeagled on his back. Rough sleepers usually choose a warmer pose and some sunlight, given the sub-zero air temperature. I wondered if the man had been injured or had been the victim of a traffic accident, and looked on to see if he was breathing, as bus conductors and passers-by gestured not to look at him. One other young male bystander in the crowd seemed to share my concern and indicated he was phoning for 'a doctor' - he agreed to help me turn the casualty into what I understand from my basic first aid as a 'recovery position'. I felt for some faint warm breath at his nose, but there was no pulse and he was becoming colder. The traffic policeman attended but showed no interest in touching or moving the body. My collaborator gestured resolutely that we should say prayers.

Hospitals and Air-Con

2007-11-20T04:33:00.000Z

At the top-level architecture studio lesson on Monday, I used the available teaching technology (paper on blackboard) to explain the principles of hospital planning, including workflow diagramming and functional relationship diagramming. The masonite blackboard surface has no tooth and the cheap chalk at the college crumbles at the touch, so that staff have to bring their own. I had prepared a schedule of about 14 functions and spaces from 'triage' to 'ward' to 'morgue' in Mongolian translation, and with my cartoons, students arranged and discussed the architectural requirements for each. I drew on EU examples from the UK 'architects for health' valuable website and showed some of the materials published there. However, the case study material I had translated from Bern's Small Animal Clinic (recently featured here on French cable TV) proved too complex for this lesson.

A construction sequence was discussed, with emphasis on the design brief development, facility management for uninterrupted service, and installation and commission of specialised equipment, and with a particular student interest in Crematoria and emissions. The students were most interested in the concept of air conditioning and mechanical ventilation which they had not experienced in Mongolia, and they were surprised to learn that these occupied extensive courses in many foreign architecture schools.

How shall we teach?

2007-11-18T10:20:00.000Z

After two postponements due to intervening staff meetings and off site meetings, I finally held the training session entitled "How to find construction teaching materials on the internet" on Friday afternoon. The session began (after another impromptu staff meeting) at 4.30pm, 'only' an hour and a half after the planned 3.00pm start. I began by moving the array of desks into a more conducive 'board room' style arrangement, and made a general introduction to my role at the college. One young English and Russian languages teacher had joined the college on her first ever day of employment, the very same day, after I had been asked spontaneously to interview her, the previous day.

We began by brainstorming and discussing the teachers' favourite websites. We debated the uses of Mongolian, Russian, English and German languages for research in the web, and touched on a comparison of search websites, academic websites, and wikipedia, among others. There was some debate among the staff about the superiority of Russian language materials on the web over English language materials.

For analysis, I had selected as an illustrative example, a simple architecture lesson plan for children from about.architecture.com, and we looked at planning objectives, material needs, assessment, reference materials, adaptations and extensions. The teachers protested they were familiar with these aspects of lesson planning, although admitted to using predominantly 'chalk and talk' delivery methods. They wanted tailored materials for each of their specialisms - physics, mathematics, chemistry, language and literature, computing. It became clear to everyone that the process of sourcing lesson plan models from the thousands of websites available would be difficult to follow without very careful use of the English language. It also became clear that there were no universally applicable teaching support materials and that language would be a key to developing more active teaching techniques, given the 'resource-poor' environment here.

It was the culmination of my most 'interesting' week here to date, Wednesday being the first time I have ever arrived at work to find my desk severed in two. We had already been scheduled to move office, following the absence of any heating or lighting for the last few weeks, so the collapsed desk (resulting from the absence of a ladder for changing a light bulb) was removed in the process of relocating, and stripping and reinstalling the valued electrical and internet cabling. The new room is a great improvement, and hopefully will provide an opportunity for repairing the collapsing drawer unit and office chairs.

Laments

2007-11-10T11:22:00.000Z

I have had some interesting meetings this past week. On Friday I was at the Ministry of Construction, for two meetings about developing construction education. The morning was a gathering of construction industry representatives, lamenting the underpreparedness of construction graduates. One person at the meeting called for better pay for graduates, while others suggested the government do more research, claiming that the present consultation was too brief. In the afternoon meeting, the various construction colleges represented suggested that they should be working more closely with professional associations to assess skill shortages and demand for graduate qualities. They suggested the government do more research for them.

On Thursday I had helped to convene a new working group on Building Access in Mongolia. The meeting, hosted by the VSO director at the NGO headquarters, was also attended by the Wheelchair Users association, three architecture students, two teachers, and two translators including Bishrel, VSOs new champion for mainstreaming disability. Chuuluundolgor, the first mentioned representative, was carried up the stairs to the top floor meeting room. We agreed to work with the designers of the future VSO office accommodation, and to disseminate and further develop information about access standards already developed by the Wheelchair Users association. Existing accommodation standards were elusive and unenforceable, but the architecture students agreed to make a small presentation on incorporating accessibility in their designs. We also discussed an approaching action whereby fourteen wheelchair users would visit five public venues on international disability day, the 3rd of December.

Hungry

2007-11-10T09:11:00.000Z

The rather dusty and slightly drowsy looking fellow sitting next to me turned, extended his hand, and said in clear english "I am hungry". He had seen me get on the trolley bus and take a 1000 tugrik note (42p) and hand it to the conductor. She removed my 100 tugrik fare in notes from a prepared 1000 wad of change and gave me 900 in hundreds and fifties. It occurred to me that 900 would buy at least four khuushuur, the ubiqitous fried pasties people eat here, and my mind went back to last Sunday afternoon. We had been to a centrally located fast food place for tea and a snack, and had been detained at the door by a group of urchins - small boys known locally as 'hundreds' because of their habit of selling 100 tugrik items such as tissues, tv programmes, matches etc. They were saying they were hungry and asking for money.

As we sat down and ordered, a few men left the restaurant and also left behind large plates of uneaten food. The boys swarmed to the table, to be beaten back by the young female waiters dressed in american-style uniforms. I ordered some takeaway khuushuur for the boys to eat outside, but by the time we left they wanted more. Hunger seemed a symbol of living here. I thought of the stray pup I had seen curled up by the bridge on my walk to work through the ger district. On Monday I pitied it shivering and convulsing, and on Wednesday it was a hundred metres away from the bridge, just a dusty lump.

Cool

2007-11-01T08:32:00.000Z

The weather is certainly cooler, about -6C outside, although the office is like an ice box after the sun passes by the window in the afternoon. This morning at ten, walking to work through the ger district in the warm sunlight was quite pleasurable. There was a congregation of drivers gathering by a small bridge while somebody swept the roadway. I tightrope walked across a steel beam of another small bridge which has lost its timber boards, probably for someone's fire. I passed small groups going towards the town centre and some school children, although no one was queued at the community water tank today. Two men sat on a south facing bank sharing a glass of vodka and I passed silently.

Approaching the roadside of the larger sealed road, I noticed a dog in my peripheral vision. I then realised its outstretched legs were frozen solid and that the corpse had probably been removed from the highway. Turning the corner, a family of five sharing the benchseat of a lorry moved their household surmounted by folded ger and window dome, as a woman beside the driver read a mobile phone message.

Plumbing and Projects

2007-10-30T03:15:00.000Z

When we first moved to Ulaanbaatar, we had trouble getting used to the process of getting plumbing serviced at home; even more difficult than getting parking for a plumber in central London. However now the man who came the first time (Toomooroo, of Oonoor Xotxon XXC) has adjusted something and it works fine. Getting the electrician to return with her tools is another matter. Meanwhile I have lost count of the number of people who have been into the office to feel how cold our radiator is.

Meanwhile, we had an enjoyably active architecture session yesterday, I had prepared stages of architectural services as keywords in Mongolian, and had two case study buildings. The architectural service project stages were arranged by students on the board, from Komiss (commission) via Toecoebloelt (development) to Khuleentsej (occupancy). We then discussed the design and procurement stages of Australian Parliament House (MGT 1988) from competition to completion and Vauxhall Bus Station (Arup 2005). The latter place name provides amusement, being used as 'Boksal' for 'station' in Russian, having been adopted from the English in the 19C during the development of the Russian Railways.

Lets Speak English

2007-10-26T07:29:00.000Z

On Thursday, I acted as a judge for a competition at the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. The competition "Lets Speak English" was to encourage Ministry staff to practise their English skills for internationalising their work. In a series of five events, four different departmental teams of researchers and experts from the ministry demonstrated their English language prowess, from team introductions to detailed translation of texts to Karaoke-singing. I was slightly concerned that the audience seemed to be enjoying Russian-language songs more than English-language ones, but in the end, the team 'Crown' were deserving winners. The breakdown of the results was displayed in a giant powerpoint display beside the Karaoke screen. The ministerial staff, and supportive friends and family in the audience all seemed impressed with the results.

Vapour trail

2007-10-24T03:59:00.000Z