The founder of Schulbausteine für Gando e.V., Francis Kéré, had a simple goal: born in Gando, Burkina Faso, he wanted to build a school which would withstand the rain season and be well adapted to the climate and culture. Today, the aim of our projects is to provide education and localized needs in an underserved region where more than 90% of the population is illiterate.
We believe education is the starting point for ensuring the long term resilience of a community. We take a holistic approach, understanding that to be meaningful, education alone is not enough and must be combined with provisions such as adult training, health and food security.
Our development vision is articulated by Francis Kéré and embraced by the community. Together we have built a primary school, a school extension and housing for teachers. Further we are in the process of constructing a library, a women’s center and a secondary school.
>> The Atelier <<
So far we have conducted and coordinated all the building works out of our make shift workshop that occupies a room at the school campus, which is needed to store both building materials and tools. Some workers even use the room for sleeping as they would have to travel a long distance to get home. This is not a sustainable and healthy solution for the community as the classroom space is needed for the expanding school.
We propose to construct a new workshop, the Gando Atelier, to function as an on-site base for both construction projects and for the organization Schulbausteine für Gando. In addition to freeing up space on the school campus, it will provide a more appropriate place to work from and provide an on-site office where visitors and volunteers could also work and sleep during their stay.
To enable exchange and knowledge transfer in the building process, we will collaborate with the “Accademia di Architettura” of Mendrisio (Switzerland). 30 students will be able to offer their skills to the village and at the same time learn a great deal about rural life and construction techniques in Burkina Faso.
For us, it is important to apply a holistic approach in order to achieve social and environmental sustainability for the development, survival and future of Gando. With your help, the Gando Atelier will facilitate a knowledge exchange between the local community, architects, visitors and Schulbausteine für Gando e.V.
Please visit www.fuergando.de for more information.
>> A need a week <<
Our needs will follow the working steps of the construction site: groundwork, foundations, floor, walls, ceiling and roof, labor costs. At the beginning, you´ll find only two specific needs you can donate for but we will periodically add new needs so be sure to check the page every now and then!
Source: betterplace.org
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