UBUNTU IN SPACE: HOW ARCHITECTS CAN LEAD FROM THE DRAWING BOARD

Introduction

When the state, especially those in Africa and developing countries, abandons its primary responsibility of providing for the necessary basic services even while politicians enrich themselves, then society has no choice but to rise to the task – that of people helping each other through community voluntary associations, charities and welfare organisations. Where are architects when people need services, infrastructure and buildings? It is at such critical moments that the visionary leadership role played by architects in society is most crucial.

Ubuntu in space

Community members, in African settlements, traditionally would self-organise to govern and police themselves, raise funds through donations and make available skilled or unskilled labour in order to provide and maintain services, infrastructure and socio-economic opportunities. This is a characteristic of both rural and urban informal settlements. It is an historic and present day collective way of solving pressing community problems. This way of ubuntu -, an Nguni word for the expression of human respect, hospitality and kindness in social relationships, business dealings, artefacts and uhuman-made space - is encapsulated in the concept of lekgotla - a Sotho and Tshwana word referring to the act of gathering and conversing, negotiating, resolving and deciding on community related matters in the spirit of Ubuntu -  letsema a seTshwana wkord denoting the communal practice of sharing and assisting one another towards achieving sustainable growth in the spirit of Ubuntu - through which communities make possible socio-spatial and socio-economic development.

African nuclear and extended family members, with the help of friends and neighbours, traditionally, would help each other to cultivate and harvest crops, construct and repair homes, make financial contributions (and also form stokvels), prepare for weddings and funerals, burn dry grass fields at the end of winter season and such like. This extends to community related projects such as construction and maintenance of community halls and schools, installation and maintenance of gravel roads, running water, electricity and sewer.

The organisation Federation of the Urban and Rural Poor (FEDUP),  in collaboration with the National Slum Dwellers Federation and Mahila Milan, with their collaborative strategy to raise funds, data collection, develop new knowledge, build capacity, secure tenure and build houses, come to mind as examples of this approach.

By way of example of the role architects play in assisting these collaboratives, Diébédo Francis Kéré, an architect and native of Burkina Faso, proves that an architect can create space for people to lead, making them co-architects of their own built environment and socio-economic future. By obtaining the support of his community, he raises funds and develops building methods using local materials that allows members of the community- children, women and men - to collaborate in the construction, by way of example that of the Gando Primary School project.

Leading from the drawing board

While bemoaning the shameful state of African socio-economic politics, an opportunity for family, community and national transformation presents itself to the architecture profession, and not that which is done ‘for’ ‘them’ by the ‘hero’ architect or ‘nanny’ state.

 Putting into use the architect’s unique technical, socio-spatial, visual and critical thinking skills, they, in small and big ways, are breaking down the socio-economic walls of division, building bridges of communication, collaboration and creativity in Africa and the world at large. This happens whenever they teach people how to build together. It is what people do for others that bring about social, economic and environmental transformation and cohesion.

In architectural pedagogy the machinery through which ideas are produced to meet the pressing needs of society have been and are still developing continuously. Studio-based teaching in local schools of architecture introduce and reinforce critical thinking skills which are crucial for expanding a creative economy. This is not enough, the transformation of architectural education has a long way to go. In the concluding words of the late Nelson Mandela, in his autobiography Long Walk to Freedom: the “…long walk is not yet ended.”

Conclusion

If we, as Africans, forget who we are, where we come from-our roots-then we have nothing to contribute to the world. Is the architectural work telling the African story?: history(answering, what happened?) transformed into memory(answering,who am I?). Work that embody South African Indigenous Knowledge Systems should ‘tell transformative stories’ that bring healing from injustices of the past building a collective South African identity employing  visual-spatial,  textual and audio-visual means. The projects should explore and reflect concepts of ubuntu, lekgotla and lilima in spatial and programmatic ways. Such architectural work should encapsulate the African spirit in space.