A Site That Heals
- In Progress -
In Collaboration with Rayna Schloo & Fils Iragena
Ndirande, Malawi
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This project challenges conventional healthcare models by proposing a maternity campus that functions as both medical infrastructure and a community resource. Rather than isolating healthcare from daily life, the site is organized as a network of outdoor spaces, paths, and buildings that support gathering, water access, and informal use alongside clinical care. Guided by cultural sensitivity, and environmental responsiveness the project prioritizes dignity, accessibility, and long-term resilience while allowing architecture to adapt to local needs and conditions.
Maternity Campus Entrance
Concept - A Site that Heals
Blantyre District
Project Location
Located in Ndirande, a dense urban area within Malawi’s Blantyre District, the project responds to the pressures created by rapid population growth and widespread informal settlement. Access to healthcare is limited, with maternal care particularly affected by shortages in resources and trained staff, contributing to high mortality rates. The project positions healthcare not only as an infrastructural necessity but as a spatial and cultural condition, seeking to address stigma through dignity, accessibility, and trust.
Initial Form Explorations
(Drawing Courtesy of Fils Iragena)
Sectional Development Studies
(First Drawing Courtesy of Fils Iragena)
The architectural strategy originated from the idea of shifting volumes, using simplified building forms whose edges define and frame exterior spaces. As the design developed, this formal framework expanded to engage the site’s significant slope, allowing buildings to relate to one another across both plan and section. Volumes step with the terrain rather than resist it, producing a spatial hierarchy that supports circulation, visibility, and environmental responsiveness while remaining grounded in local vernacular and contextual relationships.
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Current Site Plan
Program Axon & Physical Model
Current Site Sections
(Drawing Courtesy of Fils Iragena)
Current Environmental Section Study
(Drawing Courtesy of Fils Iragena)
Outpatient Courtyard
The project explores local material use and construction techniques as a means of extending its impact into the surrounding community. The construction process is envisioned as a communal outreach initiative, employing and training local residents to participate in the building process. This approach supports the local economy while equipping community members with transferable skills, reinforcing the project’s role as both a healthcare facility and a catalyst for long-term social investment.
Project Phasing Proposal
Next steps focus on better developing the healing landscapes, enhancing sustainability through the building and the site, and structural development and how it connects to design aesthetics for positive public perception.
Site Entrance View