Azrieli graduate thesis explores the sustainable reuse of 50-year old sailboat

Ellen Tsaprailis, November 10, 2021
Photo credit: Lindsay Ralph

A 50-year-old sailboat originally destined for the junkyard is getting rebuilt just outside of Carleton University’s Architecture Building for a master’s thesis project focused on creating a sustainable reuse model.

 

Named Decision, the 27-foot Catalina sailboat was purchased by Azrieli School of Architecture & Urbanism graduate student Matthew Gillard who is actively learning how to repair the boat himself.

 

“The idea of the thesis is to restart the life cycle of this 50-year-old sailboat by repairing the interior and exterior and eventually turning it into a fully electric, off-grid tiny home on water. There’s a lot of invested energy and carbon in this boat and I am looking at how that’s worth holding onto,” says Gillard.

 

To read the full story: https://research.carleton.ca/story/off-grid-living-new-thesis-project-is-reviving-a-50-year-old-sailboat-in-the-middle-of-carleton-universitys-campus/

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