Startup Lions校园丨肯尼亚图尔卡纳丨Kéré Architecture

Francis Kéré's latest project brings a termite-inspired design to the Kenyan lowlands

A new polytechnic training campus has sprung up in

Kenya

’s Great Rift Valley, standing out in the sprawling lowlands region thanks to three terracotta-colored ventilation towers that took their inspiration from termite colonies in the

growing East African technology hub

.

Located on the banks of Lake Turkana, the new Startup Lions campus will provide education and jobs training for young Kenyans, the largest demographic group driving population growth in the country expected to

double in size by 2050

.

Kéré Architecture

is responsible for the campus plan, which includes housing and workstation spaces for 200 students at the ICT facility. Outdoor classrooms shaded by a grove of pergolas and the profile of thee large cooling towers that will mitigate the Valley’s extreme heat and harmful desert sand, making learning easier in a scheme aimed at collaboration.

The German-based firm has been very active in African development projects of late,

furthering an educational mission

that was first realized in the form of a primary school founder

Francis Kéré’s

designed for his native village in Burkina Faso while still a student at the

Technical University of Berlin

. Kéré is also working on plans for the Benin parliament building that will open in 2023 and incorporate a signature local source material, in this case palaver trees, similar to the BIT and Startup Lions projects.

From Francis Kéré: “We had imagined an educational facility that blended with the striking natural landscape that surrounds it, mirroring the ingenious structures built by the terminates close by. It is a special honour for me and my team to have been able to provide the shape for this incredible educational facility and I am looking forward to how it may expand and most importantly see its students succeed.”

The campus is built out of locally sourced quarry stone with a plaster

finish. In choosing which materials and construction techniques to use,

ecological sustainability, cost and availability factors were weighed to

arrive at the best compromise. Collaboration with the local community

was key in this decision-making process, drawing from their experience

and expertise.