SCHOOL OF COMMONS - Alternative architectural pedagogies sharing experiences with rural communities and architecture collectives across Europe

The architectural community is facing multiple challenges of a democratic (how to involve residents in the construction of space), economic (how to respond to austerity) and ecological (how to build responsibly) nature. The professional identity of architects is also evolving, with the emergence of original practices. For a number of years now, Collectif Etc has been asked to put together workshop proposals for schools of higher education (architecture, art and design), where more and more students are expressing their difficulties in projecting themselves into the future of the professions for which they are being prepared. As professionals and practitioners in the field, we have developed alternative project methodologies that offer other ways of approaching architectural projects and demonstrate that new professions are developing. We have also developed links with local communities that are developing new communal spaces in rural areas and are looking for new forms of support. We wanted to take the students on a journey of discovery through these concrete areas, while enabling them to experiment with new tools and ways of practising architecture.

The Architecture School of Commons (ASOC) is a transnational network between academics, architects, practitioners, students and local communities based in France, Italy, Greece and Spain. ASOC aims to strengthen the relationships between architecture schools, practitioners and local communities, introducing experiential and collaborative pedagogies into the curricula of architecture schools. At the same time, through the acquisition of skills and hands-on experience in workshops, it aims to create new opportunities for students and to empower local rural communities. We wanted to encourage the integration of new teaching formats into architecture curricula by offering workshops that are situated in local communities and confronted with real needs and concrete territories. These workshop formats enable students to experiment with various project tools, while at the same time immersing themselves in local cultures and traditions. Our methodology also aims to give them the opportunity to try out more horizontal teaching contexts, and to experience enriching collective and international adventures.

The concrete achievements are of a narrative and academic nature. They include an account of all the activities illustrated by texts, photos, videos and a set of scientific articles. >>> You can find the presentation of all these productions gathered on our platform in the menu EDUCATION >>> https://asoc.eu.com/education/ Pedagogical sheets are also available on the E+ PRP platform for use by the educational community.