Building Lives : A Community Project with Gawad Kalinga in Manila

Poverty is a global problem especially in the non-west. Poverty in ASEAN calls for attention. A new generation of architects needs to be educated to be sensitive to the issues of poverty in the region around them. They need to know how to design in this context, be familiar with relevant technologies and conversant with the languages of social enterprise and thus be able to inter-relate with social activists knowledgeably, inter-relate with sincerity in building rapport and able to learn, adapt and respond skilfully. In response to this, the Department of Architecture of the National University of Singapore initiated a Community Design studio. This book is based on the design works of the first Community Design Inter-year Studio for projects in Manila led by faculty staff Tay Kheng Soon, Tan Beng Kiang and Wong Yunn Chii from the Department. The projects were in collaboration with Gawad Kalinga of Philippines, an effective grassroots organisation that eradicates poverty through the implementation of housing, education, health and livelihood programs in the slum areas. This book documents the learning journey of the architecture students, presenting their research, activities, masterplans, individual building designs, thesis projects and a hands-on built project.

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