In Soa – near Yaundé, Cameroon’s capital – rises a new school designed by the architects Vicente Guallart and Danié Ibáñez, partners in the firm Urbanitree. An initiative of the Missionary Daughters of the Holy Family of Nazareth, it implements an educational model where spaces are organized symbolically around four ecosystems: mountain, savanna, village, forest.

Each one is thought out to actívate an emotional connection with the children and evoke elements of their cultural tradition: the mountain features a grotto conducive to introspective moments; the village includes a chapel with perforated walls that encourage communal reflection; the savanna is a space with stepped seating for group activities; and the forest presents a tree built like a Lego structure. The educational model, called ‘Flow,’ aims to give fluid, sensory experiences, in a setting where the space itself structures daily learning.

The complex was raised with low-tech methods, in collaboration with local artisans and using native materials like termite-resistant azobé wood and bricks of compacted earth, which filter daylight and maintain a dialogue with the reddish landscape of the place. Water towers are usually built with concrete but the one here is a reinvention of the type, executed as a wooden structure with photovoltaic panels, ensuring a constant supply of water and electricity in a region where interrupions are frequent.

The challenge of materializing in an African country a project designed by a European team can only be met through a two-way learning process. Local operators, lacking experience with wood, participated actively, acquiring skills sure to come in handy in future endeavors. This approach resulted in a low-emission architecture in a context of increasing urbanization.

This facility will grow in the coming years to offer a complete academic cycle, from nursery to secondary education, integrating sustainability, local culture, and advanced pedagogy in an environment that celebrates African roots.