Transforming the Humble Brick: user-led approaches to low-cost, heat-resilient and vector-proof building materials

Vector-borne diseases (VBDs) are among the most wicked of climate change-driven global health threats. Increasing temperatures and extreme rainfall patterns are extending the range and disease-carrying capacity of key mosquito vectors, amplifying the global risk of infection. At the same, mass migrations, deforestation and rapid, unplanned urbanisation are seeding new contexts VBD exposure and endemicity. The large-scale roll out of Insecticide Treated Nets (ITNs) and Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) have succeeded in making major gains against malaria—the VBD responsible for the greatest number of deaths globally—but in recent years, progress has stalled (WHO, 2023). Increasing insecticide resistance is a major driver of this worrying trend, but these frontline tools, which require consistent use, continual reapplication, and comprehensive coverage, have limitations inherent in their design. Above all, ITNs and IRS can do little to offset the mosquito biting risks attendant to substandard, and poorly constructed housing, where the vast majority of those most vulnerable to VBDs are most likely to reside (WHO 2017).

Tackling VBD epidemics under warming conditions requires safe, climate-resilient, housing capable of conferring protection from mosquitoes but without reliance on expensive and energy-intensive mechanical systems. This proposal responds to that clear need by harnessing the untapped potential of the 'humble brick.' The world's most commonly used building material, earthen bricks are durable, modular, low-maintenance, heat and insect resistant, with great potential for recycling and reuse. Bringing together expertise in anthropology, entomology, architecture, engineering, vector biology, urban planning, epidemiology, stakeholder engagement and climate adaptation, we seek to develop a research programme transforming this unassuming building material into a tool for epidemic preparedness, investigating adaptations to brick design, geometry and composition that can facilitate airflow and prevent mosquito entry, while aligning with local construction methods, priorities and markets.

The proposal builds upon an extensive track record of collaboration between team members and the Ifakara Health Institute, a preeminent Tanzanian research organisation and a pioneer of community-based approaches to vector research, surveillance and control. Our empirical brief responds to the priorities of the Pan-African-Mosquito Control Association (PAMCA), which seeks to promote regional R&D in house improvements as means of vector-borne disease prevention. During this development phase, we will consolidate intersectional lines of inquiry on sustainable housing design, citizen science, urban vector ecology, and equity-driven climate change mitigations to develop a proof of concept for a user-led brick design process, involving students, masons, craftsmen and builders. Leveraging the teams' research networks, we will integrate collaborators in South Asia, South and Latin America to identify research questions, strategies and incorporate new case studies to adapt that process and identify opportunities for VBD resilient brick-design to be brought to scale.

Interdisciplinary attention to the material components of housing and the synergistic relationships between disease, heat, emissions, energy use and domestic investments can help ensure global health resilience through a commitment to climate equity. Tackling epidemics through humble bricks situates preparedness within the local priorities, everyday needs, and capacities of communities-a process of innovation where global health, urban resilience, environmental sustainability, and dignified existence converge.