Video: Recycled bottles used to construct classrooms in Philippines You're talking about empty land and building only in one way, which is cement, steel and glass. But maybe we're too poor to keep on just using one solution. So if education is important then we should look at all available solutions. That is why this plastic bottle is a good start. It's a pioneering way to look at how a simple plastic bottle can be used as a brick," said Illac Diaz, the head of My Shelter Foundation. Used bottles are filled with a mixture of soil, water, and cement, which are then packed together to form the walls and foundation of each building. There are holes on either side for ventilation and large solar bulbs made out of steel drums for lighting. When construction at the school in Laguna province is complete, eight classrooms, mostly made out of glass and plastic bottles, will rise. They are twice the size of standard teaching rooms and cost only a third to build. Indeed, cccording to Diaz, every town in the Philippines produces enough waste to be able to construct a classroom every two weeks. The new builds also go beyond just solving the problem of the shortage of space and excess of rubbish. The buildings are actually built to withstand the force of typhoons that have become increasingly stronger on the islands. The classrooms are becoming, you know, cheaper and cheaper and less durable, climate change has become stronger and stronger. So if these are the places where people run to as a place of last resort, you know, we have to look for new ways where cheaper doesn't mean that it's less safe. You can actually run over these plastic bottles with a truck, and it won't break," Diaz said.