{"id":718613,"date":"2026-03-24T14:20:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T11:20:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/"},"modified":"2026-03-24T14:20:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T11:20:13","slug":"mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/","title":{"rendered":"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a279d559389b\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a279d559389b\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/#SHARE\" >SHARE<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-box clearfix entry-content\" style=\"max-width:1050px;\">\n                        <input class=\"jpibfi\" type=\"hidden\"><\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-01.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615177\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-01.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>Most of us picture a laboratory as a sleek, sterile box of steel and glass perched on a university campus or inside some tech park. The Witoca Laboratory in Ecuador is none of those things. Built from adobe, shaped like a three-pointed star, and sitting quietly inside the buffer zone of the Sumaco Biosphere Reserve in the Ecuadorian Amazon, it looks less like a lab and more like something that grew out of the ground. Which, in a way, it did.<\/p>\n<p>The building was designed by Ecuadorian studio Al Borde Arquitectos and completed in February 2025 in Huaticocha, a remote community in the Provincia de Orellana. At just 46 square metres (about 495 square feet), it is compact to the point of being almost modest. But modesty is somewhat deceptive here, because the thinking behind it is anything but small.<\/p>\n<p>Designer: <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.albordearq.com\/\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Al Borde<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-02.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615178\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-02.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-02.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615178\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-02.jpg\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-1\" style=\"margin: 8px 0; clear: both;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 4px; margin: 18px auto 20px; text-align:center;\"><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-7222236028814181\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\" type=\"b4b4c130228ac30721bcfefb-text\/javascript\"><\/script><br \/>\n<!-- In-Content-Ad-1 --><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"b4b4c130228ac30721bcfefb-text\/javascript\">\n<\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-04.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615179\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-04.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-04.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615179\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-04.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>The Witoca community, which gives the lab its name, has been working to protect the Amazon\u2019s coffee and cocoa farming from pests. Rather than reaching for chemical pesticides, they have gone in the opposite direction, cultivating antagonistic microorganisms that naturally discourage pest damage. The lab is where that cultivation h<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ens. It is a biosecure environment, meaning it is fully sealed to prevent contamination, and every design decision feeds into that purpose, from its vaulted adobe walls to its airtight interior.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-08.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615180\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-08.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-08.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615180\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-08.jpg\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"code-block code-block-2\" style=\"margin: 8px 0; clear: both;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 4px; margin: 18px auto 20px; text-align:center;\"><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-7222236028814181\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\" type=\"b4b4c130228ac30721bcfefb-text\/javascript\"><\/script><br \/>\n<!-- In-Content-Ads-2 --><\/p>\n<p><script type=\"b4b4c130228ac30721bcfefb-text\/javascript\">\n<\/script><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-012.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615181\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-012.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-012.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615181\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-012.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>Adobe is not a material most people associate with scientific research, and I think that contrast is exactly what makes this project so compelling. Al Borde chose to work with local soil, using a vaulted construction technique built without formwork, developed in collaboration with structural engineer Patricio Cevallos of the Red PROTERRA network. The vault system draws on techniques rooted in Bolivian adobe construction, adapted here to meet the specific technical demands of a biosecure facility. It is a genuinely rare thing to see ancient building logic serving a cutting-edge scientific function, and Al Borde pulls it off without making either element feel like a compromise.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-013.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615182\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-013.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-013.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615182\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-013.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>The Y-shaped plan is another smart move. Each arm of the structure radiates outward from a central point, giving the building a form that feels both purposeful and organic, like something that belongs in the landscape rather than imposed on it. That relationship to place is one of the things Al Borde is consistently good at, and Witoca Lab is a strong example of their approach to what architecture can actually do for a community.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615183\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-09.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-09.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615183\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-09.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-010.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615184\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-010.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-010.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615184\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-010.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-011.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615185\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-011.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-011.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1600\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615185\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-011.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>And that community dimension is hard to overstate. The lab is not a vanity project or a showpiece for outside visitors. It exists because the Witoca people needed a way to take a more active, autonomous role in protecting their land and their livelihoods. The project was commissioned by Witoca and supported by CEFA Ecuador, the Italian-Ecuadorian Fund for Sustainable Development, and the Alstom Foundation. That kind of multi-layer collaboration is often messy in practice, but the result here suggests it worked.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615186\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-03.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-03.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615186\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-03.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-06.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615187\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-06.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-06.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615187\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-06.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>There is a broader conversation in architecture right now about what \u201csustainable\u201d really means, and too often it gets reduced to solar panels and LEED certifications. Witoca Lab asks a different and, I\u2019d argue, more honest question: what does it mean to build something that is genuinely of its place, for the people who live there, using what the land provides? Not every project needs to be on the cover of a design magazine to matter. But Witoca Lab deserves to be.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-05.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615189\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-05.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-05.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full wp-image-615189\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-05.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p>We spend a lot of time celebrating architecture that is visually dramatic or technically ambitious, and rightly so. But the work that tends to stay with me is the kind where the building quietly solves a real problem for a real community, and where the form and the function feel like they arrived at the same answer at the same time. Witoca Lab is that kind of work. It is made of mud. It is full of microbes. And it might be one of the most intelligent buildings completed this year.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-07.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-615190\" data-jpibfi-post-excerpt=\"\" data-jpibfi-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%c2%b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/\" data-jpibfi-post-title=\"Mud, Microbes, and the 46 m\u00b2 Lab the Amazon Needed\" data-jpibfi-src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-07.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-07.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"960\" class=\"lazyload alignnone size-full 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Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" >Technology<\/a><\/span> category.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/2026\/03\/24\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%C2%B2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=mud-microbes-and-the-46-m%25c2%25b2-lab-the-amazon-needed\" target=\"_blank\" >Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Most of us picture a laboratory as a sleek, sterile box of steel and glass perched on a university campus or inside some tech park. The Witoca Laboratory in Ecuador is none of those things. Built from adobe, shaped like a three-pointed star, and sitting quietly inside the buffer zone of the Sumaco Biosphere Reserve&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":718614,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.yankodesign.com\/images\/design_news\/2026\/03\/mud-microbes-and-the-46-mb2-lab-the-amazon-needed\/witoca-01.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[119057,72837],"class_list":["post-718613","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology","tag-forest","tag-laboratory"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718613","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=718613"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718613\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/718614"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=718613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=718613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=718613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}