Workshop “Nursing Cairo”

As part of the thematic focus on more-than-human learning spaces, the Institute of Architecture and Landscape (Patrik Drechsler and Klaus K. Loenhart) initiated an inter-university workshop in Egypt for the master’s studio “Nursing Cairo: The Heliopolis More-Than-Human Campus.” Together with members of the SEKEM initiative and students from Heliopolis University—a nonprofit university located in Cairo with the mission of sustainable development—the participants collaboratively engaged in the reading of the landscape of Cairo through more-than-human lenses, generating new narratives and exploring how multiple forms of life can be nurtured through the design of a new campus site. Under the guidance of Helmy Abouleish (SEKEM) and Ahmed Haron (Heliopolis University, head of the Green Architecture Department), participants co-investigated how the future Heliopolis University campus could become a place where human and more-than-human communities can thrive together. After five days of attentive listening, shared reflection, and careful collaboration, it became clear how SEKEM’s holistic philosophy becomes manifest within the educational environment of Heliopolis University.

Patrik Drechsler, Klaus K. Loenhart