PORT LOKO SCHOOL
Archtectural Field Office was appointed by Educaid to design a low-cost educational facility for their rural campus in Port Loko, Sierra Leone. Educaid is a non-governmental organization providing quality education to marginalized communities, particularly girls, young women, and rural populations, with a focus on teacher training, infrastructure support, leadership development, and gender equality.
The land for the academy was donated by the local chief and community, whose children attend Educaid's school. The community continues to contribute to infrastructure development and food supplies. Through participatory design sessions involving community leaders, teaching staff, and students, a phased concept plan was developed.
The design emphasized the use of locally sourced timber, reducing the need for concrete. Classrooms were elevated on concrete footings, supporting lightweight timber frames. Roofing was planned to be made from fiber cement panels, chosen for their ability to dampen the sound of heavy rains and prevent heat buildup, while bamboo was considered for partitions and mezzanine floors, pending sample approval. The academy was to be arranged around a terraced green landscape incorporating an existing watercourse, potentially enabling the harvesting of stormwater runoff for washing and irrigation.
This project was delayed in 2014 due to the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone.
The land for the academy was donated by the local chief and community, whose children attend Educaid's school. The community continues to contribute to infrastructure development and food supplies. Through participatory design sessions involving community leaders, teaching staff, and students, a phased concept plan was developed.
The design emphasized the use of locally sourced timber, reducing the need for concrete. Classrooms were elevated on concrete footings, supporting lightweight timber frames. Roofing was planned to be made from fiber cement panels, chosen for their ability to dampen the sound of heavy rains and prevent heat buildup, while bamboo was considered for partitions and mezzanine floors, pending sample approval. The academy was to be arranged around a terraced green landscape incorporating an existing watercourse, potentially enabling the harvesting of stormwater runoff for washing and irrigation.
This project was delayed in 2014 due to the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone.
TEAM
Killian O’Dochartaigh, Anamika Goyal and Cassandre Nativel
