Habitat
for Humanity volunteers are still wiping the
dust from their hands after the July 2-7 Blue Sky Build project, which brought
20 new homes to families in Mongolia. 

“We are most thankful for the passion of our volunteers and the
commitment of our sponsors in making the Blue Sky Build a success,” said Charles Jolliffe,
director of Habitat
for Humanity Mongolia, in a news release.

The new homes built during the second Blue Sky Build are part of the Atlanta-based
organization”s goal to construct 1,000 houses in Mongolia in the next
three years.

More than 300 volunteers turned out to the build site in the Khan-Uul district,
a suburb of the Mongolian capital, Ulaanbaatar.International
volunteers, 190 in all, represented nations as diverse as New Zealand,
Cambodia,
Nepal,
Germany,
the U.S. and
the United
Kingdom.

An additional 150 locally-based volunteers from PricewaterhouseCoopers Mongolia Corp.
and Wagner
Asia Equipment LLC, students from Technical and
Technological College Co. Ltd., and members of the U.S. Peace Corps and
Joint
Christian Services joined in the work.

Houses were built with polystyrene blocks which offer better insulation than
concrete and highly efficient coal-burning stoves that produce heat four times
as long as standard stoves.

The homes were decorated with streamers and balloons for an emotional
move-in day. To date, Habitat for Humanity Mongolia has built,
renovated or repaired more than 2,000 homes in the Asian country.

Housing in Mongolia has become a serious issue as the country
continues to grow at a staggering rate. The International Monetary Fund
projects a 17.2 percent growth rate this year alone, spurred by foreign
investors flocking to the country”s rich mineral deposits including gold,
copper and coal.

Displaced Mongolians are forced to pitch their gers, or
traditional felt tents, in slum-like suburban districts where they burn tires
and other fuel to stay warm, leading to increased air pollution and health
issues in the capital.