Duration: 01:43

An Iranian architect has designed a system of smart houses that adapts to rising sea levels and they’re based on puffer fish. The Puffer Village by Sajjad Navidi was inspired by the Ganvie Lake Village in Benin, Africa which suffers from high sea levels, forcing its residents to build wooden houses that float on water. Due to their poor construction, the houses are worn down and destroyed over time. The Puffer Village draws inspiration from the anatomy of the pufferfish, a species commonly found in Ganvie’s lake Nakoué. The pufferfish is known to inflate like a balloon – filling up with water or air – to scare away or escape predators. Inspired by this defence mechanism, Navidi envisions a floating system that can inflate and deflate in response to sea levels and weather conditions. He proposed equipping each house with two sensors: one that responds to water levels and another to high waves. Below each structure, a tidal energy system generates electricity from seawater waves Moreover, to contribute to the rural economy, an aquaponic system sits in the wooden fences around each house allowing villagers to grow and cultivate their agricultural products.