London Festival of Architecture’s collaboration with Donna Asiimwe and Kampala Design Week with the support of the British Council

In 2021 we announced an exciting collaboration between the London Festival of Architecture (LFA) and Kampala Design Week (KDW). The collaboration was made possible thanks to the generous support of the British Council. LFA and KDW have worked alongside international designer, Donna Asiimwe – a graduate of MSc. Sustainable Architecture and Healthy Buildings from the University of Derby, UK – to develop a series of four videos, which explore and respond to this year’s festival’s theme of ‘care’.

Uganda’s culture has always been sensitive to architecture and design, but it was only recently that the country started fostering dialogues around architecture and design with international designers. This was caused by the country’s history of colonialism, which not only led to a significant loss of traditional building practices, but also of cultural identity.

Fortunately, due to the new generation of young and emerging designers, Uganda’s heritage and culture are now being celebrated through fresh and dynamic approaches. This is particularly visible through young designers’ building styles and use of materials, which in turn positively affect the country and its inhabitants. However, today’s Ugandan designers are confronted with a considerable challenge, which is to not only embrace and preserve their traditional culture, but also foster local and international conversations.

For this reason, LFA is proud to collaborate with KDW and present four video works, which explore the value of care in the Ugandan built environment. These conversations are led by Donna Asiimwe with the curatorial support of LFA and KDW. The focus of the projects is on the below topics:

• • Impact of architecture on mental health and wellbeing
  • Impact of design on the society

• Impact of design on local economy
• Environmental effects of mindful and sensible architecture practices