Muddy Waters was the second project (Plan Unplanned) from Core 1 Studio at the Yale School of Architecture. It began through a series of design charrettes that investigated a painting’s potential to create plans through lines, patterns and figures. The program was a 10,000 square foot women and children’s center/daycare; student’s could site their project anywhere in the world. I chose Homage à Verner Panton by Zaha Hadid, and situated the community center in Dhaka, Bangladesh - a city that increasingly houses climate refugees.

This project looked at an architecture of impermanence, the potentials of mud and bamboo construction, as well as a building’s relationship to land and fluctuating water levels. The idea was that mud - a material that naturally decays, and thus requires constant labor and care, could be a means for collectivity and participatory design.

Washpur is home to many climate refugees from South Bangladesh (most of whom are women and children). The chosen site engages the waterfront, and lies on the periphery of unplanned and informal settlements. The center would be a place to empower women and children with knowledge to a build a sustainable future.