Faculty of the Built Environment

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Browsing Faculty of the Built Environment by Author "Ahimbisibwe, Achilles"

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    Capacity building in adaptive reuse through collaborative workshops for students: on-site and remote experiences in Rwanda and Zanzibar
    (European Union, 2021) Ahimbisibwe, Achilles; Louw, Michael; Michieletto, Manlio; Olweny, Mark R. O.; Papanicolaou, Stella; Lans, Berend van der
    The idea of ‘adaptive reuse’ is relatively new in the African built environment. The value of working with existing under-utilised buildings as a resource for the future lies in the inherent potential for addressing sensitive issues that often originate from their colonial past or previous regimes during which they were built or occupied. As part of the International Forum Cultural Spaces for Kigali, a workshop for students was hosted at the University of Rwanda’s School of Architecture and Built Environment from 10 - 14 March 2019. The participants included the University of Rwanda (UR), Uganda Martyrs University (UMU) and the University of Cape Town (UCT). The objective of the workshop and the Forum was to test the adaptive potential of unused buildings near Kigali’s city centre, and to evaluate whether disused buildings – such as the Kigali Central Prison (also known as Nyarugenge Prison, Gikondo Prison, or simply “1930”) and the Ecole Belge (the former Belgian School) – could be adapted for use as precincts for the production and performance of art and culture. The project was launched and run by the Rwanda Arts Initiative (RAI), with African Architecture Matters and the Centre for Fine Arts Brussels (BOZAR), and funded by the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles. The workshop targeted students, who, navigating their cultural differences, presented a variety of options or possibilities using visualisation methods. This was done in cooperative workshops, with presentations by students and professionals from across Africa, developing an independent, continent-specific approach. The success of the Rwandan workshop, and its reiteration in Zanzibar, are presented here.
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    Deliberations on conservation of built heritage: paying homage to a historical past through architectural education, learning and research
    (WIT Press, 2021) Ahimbisibwe, Achilles; Wako, K. Anthony
    Memorialization of Africa’s architectural past continues to fade in time by way of exposure to the cruelty of natural or man-made forces, iconic buildings from as recent as the 1960s are torn down with little consideration of their heritage value. In 2010, controversy surrounding the demolition of Uganda’s National Museum for a proposed high-rise redevelopment brought to light the blatant disregard for thematic value of Uganda’s memorable architecture. Unfortunately, this was a lone survivor among a myriad of projects where developers show no sympathy, architects offer no guidance, and research efforts draw no attention to protect built heritage or safeguard rich historical narratives. Architecture Education should adopt to support participatory approaches that underpin the integration of revitalising heritage values. It is envisaged that through immersive design experiences students could gain a critical awareness of the realities, insight on regional success stories, an appreciation of limitations around conservation efforts, as well as a lasting memory of taking part in the design of integrated conservation projects. Faculty of the Built Environment (FBE), engenders learning activities appropriated with: conservation doctrines, community needs, sense of the cultural context of historic buildings. A pertinent concern during these undertakings was to initiate processes that instigate students’ abilities to band together and work jointly with: students from two similar schools of thought at the faculty of Engineering and Built Environment (EBE), University of Cape Town (UCT) and School of Architecture and Design (SADE), Ardhi University (AU), in conjunction with African Architecture Matters, a non-profit consultancy firm working in fields of design planning, research and education. This paper thus seeks to highlight, from both socio-cultural inferences and historical perspectives, the significance of the learning opportunities for students, researchers and academics through adaptive reuse project of the oldest cinema in East Africa, the Majestic cinema.
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    Deliberations on conservation of built heritage: paying homage to a historical past through architectural education, learning and research
    (WIT Press, 2021-07-26) Wako, Anthony Kalimungabo; Ahimbisibwe, Achilles
    Memorialization of Africa’s architectural past continues to fade in time by way of exposure to the cruelty of natural or man-made forces, iconic buildings from as recent as the 1960s are torn down with little consideration of their heritage value. In 2010, controversy surrounding the demolition of Uganda’s National Museum for a proposed high-rise redevelopment brought to light the blatant disregard for thematic value of Uganda’s memorable architecture. Unfortunately, this was a lone survivor among a myriad of projects where developers show no sympathy, architects offer no guidance, and research efforts draw no attention to protect built heritage or safeguard rich historical narratives. Architecture Education should adopt to support participatory approaches that underpin the integration of revitalising heritage values. It is envisaged that through immersive design experiences students could gain a critical awareness of the realities, insight on regional success stories, an appreciation of limitations around conservation efforts, as well as a lasting memory of taking part in the design of integrated conservation projects. Faculty of the Built Environment (FBE), engenders learning activities appropriated with: conservation doctrines, community needs, sense of the cultural context of historic buildings. A pertinent concern during these undertakings was to initiate processes that instigate students’ abilities to band together and work jointly with: students from two similar schools of thought at the faculty of Engineering and Built Environment (EBE), University of Cape Town (UCT) and School of Architecture and Design (SADE), Ardhi University (AU), in conjunction …