Buoyant Foundation Project

The mission of the Buoyant Foundation Project (BFP), when originally founded in 2006, was to support the recovery of New Orleans’ unique and endangered traditional cultures by providing a strategy for the safe and sustainable restoration of historic housing. Retrofitting the city’s traditional elevated wooden shotgun houses with buoyant (amphibious) foundations could prevent not only devastating flood damage, but also the destruction of neighborhood character that results from permanent static elevation high above the ground. Buoyant foundations can provide increased safety and resilience in cases of extreme flooding, as well as support the recovery of both physical and social structures. The mission of the BFP and its amphibious retrofit strategy have, since 2006, broadened to apply not only to post-Katrina New Orleans but also to numerous other flood-sensitive locations around the world. The Buoyant Foundation Project is a registered non-profit organization in the State of Louisiana. The team consists of students, professors, and alumni of the University of Waterloo School of Architecture.