A Shared Vision for Humanitarian Design: Lizette and Sidoine's Path after Yacademy

Hello Lizette, Sidoine, and thank you for joining us! You both attended the Architecture for Humanity course in 2024. Can you briefly introduce yourselves and what you did after attending Yacademy?

We are two young Cameroonian architects committed to an architectural practice that responds to social, environmental, and cultural challenges. Following our training at Yacademy, we continued our professional activities while developing several research projects and competition entries focused on humanitarian architecture and resilience.

Can you please tell us more about the course? How did you experience it? Is there something in your approach to architecture which took form during the course’s activities?

The Architecture for Humanity course was a very enriching experience. It introduced us to an approach to architecture that places people at the center of the design process. Beyond technical and aesthetic considerations, the course encouraged us to reflect on the social, cultural, and environmental impact of our projects. We particularly appreciated the diversity of speakers, case studies, and experiences shared throughout the program. It showed us how architecture can become a powerful tool for social transformation when it responds effectively to the needs of communities. Since then, we have placed even greater emphasis on understanding context, engaging users, utilizing local resources, and developing simple, sustainable, and accessible solutions.

Was there a specific aspect or moment of Architecture for Humanity which, in your opinion, was particularly significant in your growth as designers?

One of the most impactful aspects was discovering projects developed in highly challenging contexts, including areas affected by natural disasters, conflicts, or severe economic constraints. These examples demonstrated that architecture can have a meaningful impact even with limited resources. They taught us that the quality of a project is not defined by its budget or formal ambition, but by its ability to address the real needs of the people it serves. Today, we always strive to understand the human challenges behind a project before thinking about its form or architectural expression.

After the Yacademy course, you teamed up and developed a design proposal for the Architecture in the Aftermath of Disasters competition, which was awarded the second prize: how did this collaboration start? Have you developed other projects together, or are you working on something new?

In fact, our collaboration started long before joining Yacademy. We already shared a strong interest in sustainable and humanitarian architecture and had worked together on several international competitions. Among them were the Great Green Wall Competition, where we received an Honorable Mention, and the Next Generation of Stroke Rehabilitation Centres Competition, where we were awarded Fourth Prize. After Yacademy, our perspectives continued to align, and we naturally pursued further collaborations. Today, we are still working together on various research and design initiatives, and we intend to continue this partnership in the years ahead.

The competition proposal stood out for its deeply humanitarian and contextual approach, and you mentioned that the training received at Yacademy contributed to this design achievement: can you expand on this?

The Architecture for Humanity course taught us how to design architecture that carries meaning, even in the most challenging circumstances. It helped us understand that the role of an architect goes beyond designing buildings; it also involves providing tangible responses to the needs of communities, especially in situations of crisis and vulnerability. This perspective strongly influenced our competition proposal. It encouraged us to prioritize community needs, spatial resilience, and local adaptability rather than focusing solely on form or aesthetics. As a result, our design approach became more grounded in people, context, and long-term impact.

What do you think is most important about working in a team? Were there any difficulties or challenges you encountered during the design process?

We believe that trust is the foundation of successful teamwork. Strong collaboration requires listening, accepting constructive criticism, and recognizing each other's strengths. Like any creative process, we sometimes had different opinions on certain design decisions. However, these differences always enriched the discussion and ultimately led to stronger and more relevant solutions. Over time, we learned how to turn these differences into a real design strength.

Finally, what kind of plans do you have for your future as architects? Would you like to keep working in the humanitarian sector, or would you rather explore other fields? 

Our ambitions for the coming years are numerous. One of our main goals is to establish our own architectural practice and develop a professional approach that reflects our values and vision of architecture. We also aim to expand our international network of collaborators. Through Yacademy, we met many professionals and former participants with whom we still exchange ideas today, and we hope to develop new projects together in the future. The humanitarian sector remains especially important to us, and we intend to continue contributing to it. At the same time, we remain open to other areas of architecture, believing that the principles of responsible, sustainable, and human-centered design can be applied across all project types. Our ultimate goal is to contribute to an architecture that addresses the social and environmental challenges of our time while creating meaningful and high-quality spaces.