Cultural Karen house for village revitalization in the national park: Case study of Karen tribe village in Kaengkrachan forest complex, Thailand

Abstract

The Cultural Karen House, as a part of “cultural housing network: CHN” 2 years project (2018–2020) in Kaeng Kra Chan Forest Complex, under collaboration with Chulalongkorn University, Pidthong Foundation and Department of National Park, has shown the possibility of revitalizing the original Karen house using villagers at the present time. Karen villagers can use their traditional knowledge in accomplishing traditional building in both soft and hard skills. Construction team comprising of a veteran, project carpenter and daily working carpenters could be used in preservation building procedure in the present day. However, the limitation of natural material supply due to regulations in the National Park could mean that only a few traditional buildings could be reconstructed within time based on the life cycle of a veteran carpenter and considering know-how succession.