The startup Lions Campus education center was designed by Burkinabe architect Diébédo Francis Kéré's studio. Informed by termite mounds, the complex boasts three tall peeked buildings. Located on the banks of Lake Turkana in Kenya, the campus is built for the non-profit organization Learning Lions. The goal is to offer Kenyans free training in information and communication technologies.
The terracotta-hued campus boasts 1,416 square meters. Kéré Architecture designed the campus to celebrate "the unique morphology" of the site, which comprises five linked buildings that span two levels. They are built to follow the terrain's natural slope using naturally sourced quarry stone and finished with a terracotta-hued concrete plaster. This low-cost technique harnesses the skill of the local community, who helped during the building's construction.
Termite Mound-Inspired Campuses
Kéré Architecture Designed the Terracota-Hued Startup Lions Campus
Trend Themes
1. Termite-mound Inspired Architecture - Architects can find innovative ways to use natural shapes and designs, such as termite mounds, in their building designs to create unique and functional spaces.
2. Low-cost Building Techniques - Low-cost building techniques using locally sourced materials, such as quarry stone and concrete plaster, can be an innovative way to build functional and sustainable structures.
3. Free Technology Training Centers - Free technology training centers, like the Lions Campus in Kenya, can be an innovative way to provide education and improve tech literacy in underprivileged communities.
Industry Implications
1. Architecture - Architecture firms can explore innovative ways to incorporate natural designs into building structures to create unique and functional spaces.
2. Construction - The use of locally sourced materials and low-cost building techniques in construction can provide a sustainable and cost-effective solution for building projects.
3. Education - Non-profit organizations and educational institutions can look to establish free technology training centers in underprivileged communities as a way to provide education and improve tech literacy.