A-01, Chira Time-Space-Existence

A-01 is a multidisciplinary network organization creating integrally sustain- able solutions within the fields of urban and rural development. In a glob- ally urbanizing society, we act at the borderline of city and countryside or help identifying new synergies. Our work methodology is designed to break the boundaries of a single profession or perspective in order to allow for a holistic approach that shapes our products.
The office was founded in 2005 by German architect Oliver Schütte and Dutch anthropologist Marije van Lidth de Jeude. The anonymity of its name reflects the multitude of actors who stand behind the projects. Each assign- ment is carried out with a custom-fit team of experts and entities, intro- ducing A Company and its non-profit counterpart A Foundation as operational vehicles. The company works as a commercial consulting and planning firm; the foundation has at the core of its agenda the investigation, documenta- tion, and discussion of transformative habitation processes worldwide.
The majority of our work is situated in developing countries, which means working with the existential limitations of people who find themselves in a permanent state of transition, and where the necessity of improvisation with its resulting visuals of the ‘incomplete’ are amongst the defining elements for the appearance and functioning of the built environment. In this context, flexible as well as adaptable strategies are needed for reacting to modified circumstances over time. Participatory and people-centered approaches are a driving force in enabling adequate and well-appropriated solutions.
Collaboration is key for building up long-term structures and capacities, as shown in the works for Chira Island and our joint efforts with Bill Price and his students from Prairie View. Since 2012, national and international stakeholders worked closely together in order to develop a plan for the impoverished island in Costa Rica’s Gulf of Nicoya. A set of acupunctures
in crucial locations has been designed to stimulate economic, environ- mental, and social development through a toolbox of vernacular architec- tures that blend with their tropical surrounding, combining traditional ways of living with modern construction techniques.
As one of the results of our design-and-build studio, which was joined by the Latin University and the National University in Costa Rica with the further support of the Veritas Center of Innovation and the Costa Rican Fab Lab Association, the Recycling and Community Center of Chira (RCCC) is now being constructed. It has been financed through the United Nations Development Programme, a Dutch NGO, an international fundraising cam- paign, as well as local donations. The self-organized Association of Ladies Working for the Environment (ADATA) will operate the center, empowering islanders and sustaining their livelihood.
Besides collecting and recycling garbage, ADATA will engage in upcycling processes by producing jewelry made from ‘trash’. Like this, the facility will generate an income for women who now depend solely on traditional ways of fishing and help building resilience. Besides being a workplace, the RCCC offers a space to gather for meetings, events, and environmental education, as well as a daycare center for children of the women at work.