Mushroom Houses for Gaza? Arab Designers Pitch Bold Innovations

As winter grips Gaza’s makeshift tent cities, a sustainable housing solution made from mushrooms could offer much-needed protection against the cold. This innovative idea was one of several eco-friendly designs showcased by Arab creators at Dubai Design Week.

Mushroom-based structures, created from mycelium—the root-like part of fungi—combined with organic materials, provide a lightweight, strong, and natural building material. These shelters are being proposed as an alternative to the inadequate tents currently housing thousands of Gazans displaced by over a year of conflict.

According to Dima Al Srouri, a Palestinian urban planning expert and a member of the ReRoot initiative, the current shelters provided by NGOs fail to withstand harsh winter conditions, leaving residents vulnerable to rain and cold.

The mushroom-based shelters can be grown in various shapes using molds, creating robust, insulated housing. Srouri highlighted that these structures could shield residents from extreme weather and offer a sustainable, locally produced solution. At the exhibition, she presented a prototype—a spacious shelter with windows and a sloped roof, designed to endure severe climates.

ReRoot’s design was one of many innovative sustainable projects on display at the Dubai event. Emirati architect Abdalla Almulla showcased another approach to eco-friendly construction, focusing on low-rise buildings made from recycled materials. Collaborating with the Swiss company Oxara, Almulla’s structures use recycled concrete from demolished buildings and roofs made from palm fronds, drawing inspiration from traditional Gulf construction methods. This approach challenges modern reliance on globally shipped materials and advocates for resourcefulness by utilizing what is locally available.

Almulla emphasized that earlier regional designs were rooted in innovation with locally sourced materials, contrasting sharply with the excesses of modern design, where materials are often shipped from distant locations. His work serves as a critique of this “world of abundance.”

In addition to large-scale housing projects, the exhibition featured smaller sustainable innovations. Among them were furniture crafted from recycled materials, a 3D-printed electric motorcycle, and a water-saving bottle designed by Qatar-based designer Faheem Khan for performing Wudu, the Muslim pre-prayer ritual.

Elif Resitoglu, from the Milan-based Isola Design studio that organized the exhibition, noted that sustainability is a relatively new focus for Arab designers. However, she praised how they have integrated it into their cultural practices, creating solutions unique to the region and distinct from Western designs.

Srouri stressed that addressing environmental challenges in the Middle East, a region often preoccupied with conflict, is not a luxury but a necessity. She believes in using her expertise as a form of activism, solving problems through innovation rather than protest.

The Middle East, including the UAE—a major oil producer and one of the highest per capita emitters of CO2—is particularly vulnerable to climate change. With temperatures in the region rising nearly twice as fast as the global average, sustainable innovations like those showcased in Dubai could play a critical role in addressing these pressing challenges.