The development of Environmental Sanitation Institute at Sughad has been taken up by Vastu-Shilpa Foundation as the research application project to demonstrate, on site, the ideas and research in the field of sustainable development.

An institutional campus for learning at Sughad is being developed on nearly two acre site. In view of the constrained resources and extremities of climate the whole development is perceived as self sustaining, where natural resources are managed most optimally through its design, construction as well as operations.

The design considers subterranean Built form, orientation and mutual shading of structures as well as cavity walls and roof insulation through construction for solar passive responses, in hot dry climate of Ahmedabad. Both, rain water harvesting and recycling of treated waste water is considered to adequately provide the water needs of the campus in a drought prone region, as Ahmedabad. Bio-gas generation through human and organic waste as well as solar panels are also included to augment energy needs. Use of local material and alternative technologies are considered to suit local conditions and optimization of material resources. Thus environmental Sanitation Institute development promises to be a potent laboratory to test ideas on environmental design in a holistic and realistic manner. The development under way is expected to realize in one year time.