Email: meier.catharina@gmail.com
Mobile: +49 176 27408902
Websites: https://www.behance.net/CAMeier
https://www.instagram.com/archicath_86/ https://www.pinterest.ch/archicath_86/
Bahnknoten, Basel (CH)
Meret Oppenheim Tower, Basel (CH)
Cacao and agro-farming , Mobai (SL)
I grew up, lived and have worked in different countries - Rwanda, Burkina Faso, Germany, France, Brazil, USA and Switzerland. I have also travelled to many African and European countries, as well as to South and North America.
In total, I have worked for over nine years in architecture in the following cities and offices: at Stephan Braunfels Architekten, at Spreeformat, Aufmass + and LAVA in Berlin, at Planungsbüro Männel in Bad Bentheim, at n Architects in New York City, at Herzog & De Meuron in Basel, CES Consulting engineers Salzgitter in Brunswick, Glahn Architekten and DGI Bauwerk in Berlin. Through these experiences, I was able to acquire substantial experience working as a student architect, freelancer and project architect in various environments and on various projects including urban planning, building design and interior design. This is why I can adapt quickly to new environments and have a great interest in discovering new places.
My passion for architecture stems from a quest to understand the complex
and changing relationships between the built environment and the people inhabiting it. I have been exposed to contrasting influences my entire life. I have seen people living in abundance, unconstrained and able to access their right to the free movement of people. I have also interacted with people living in poverty, without access to their basic rights such as shelter, food, water, health care, or education. Therefore I am very interested in researching ways to reduce social inequalities between people through design solutions.
Some architectural projects I have worked on considered their users from a perspective of abundance. However, the realities that people in marginalized communities are facing daily are also highly important. Worldwide inequality, humanitarian crises, rural depopulation and climate change have led to severe housing problems in developing countries, and demand effective architectural solutions. I would like to contribute to such solutions through innovative projects.
I therefore believe that successful sustainable design solutions in the areas of social housing, social facilities and basic infrastructure are important.
Furthermore this can only occur when architects embrace participatory design. Architecture is not something that can be decided individually and autocratically. In order to induce lasting social change, decision-making processes should take place in an inclusive manner, so as to involve everyone living within the given community. I am convinced that constant communication and direct exchange of experiences between communities, designers and construction firms will always be an essential part of development projects.
Moreover, in terms of design, my priority is to adapt new designs to both the site itself and to the needs of its users.
In the future and based on these experiences, I want to keep my focus on the development of new designs which tackle social, diversity and sustainability issues
NEW RAILWAY NETWORK - BASEL, SWITZERLAND
PROJECT: BAHNKNOTEN BASEL
CLIENT: BAHNKNOTEN BASEL ORGANIZATION
LOCATION: BASEL, SWITZERLAND
TYPE OF PROJECT: URBAN PLANNING
STATUS: IN PROGRESS - 2030/35
PROGRAM: NEW RAILWAY NETWORK
SIZE: TRINATIONAL REGION (SWISS, FRANCE & GERMANY)
COSTS: APPROXIMATELY 2.8 BILLION SWISS FRANCS
TEAM: HERZOG & DE MEURON
WORK PHASE: 1 - 2 BY HOAI (GERMAN FEE STRUCTURE FOR ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS)
COLLABORATION: BAV, KANTON BASEL STADT, KANTON BASEL LANDSCHAFT, SBB AND DB
IMAGE CREDITS: HERZOG & DE MEURON
The Bahnknoten Basel project is a proposal for the Herzstück of Basel.
The Herzstück is a project which aims to create a new railway network connecting the three main stations in Basel; Badischer Bahnhof on the German side, Bahnhof Sankt Johan on the western side and Bahnhof SBB in the city center.
The goal of the project is to contribute to the development of the entire tri-national region (Switzerland, France and Germany). Since the number of inhabitants and jobs will increase over the next few years it will help to ease congesting on the existing railway network from its predicted growth in passenger numbers. This new railway network will help contribute to the development of the region.
Entwicklungsgebiete: 1. EuroAirport ("Technoport") 2. Saint-Louis West 3. Campus Novatris 4. 3Land 5. Hafenund Stadtentwicklung 6. Industrie Klybeck 7. Hafenbahnhof und Hafenbecken 3 8. Trimodaler Containerterminal 9. Erlenmatt 10. Areal Schoren 11. Im Surinam 12. Areal Rosental 13. Messe Basel 14. Areal Roche 15. Busdepot Basel Ost 16. Muttenz Areal Hagnau 17. Wolf Nord 18. Bernoulli / Walkeweg 19. Dreispitz 20. Umfeld Bahnhof SBB 21. Universitätsspital Basel 22. Unicampus Schällenmätteli 23. Felix-Platter Spital 24. BaseLink (Areal Bachgraben) 25. Volta Nord 26. Weil am Rhein Messeplatz 27. Hafen Birsfelden 28. Bahnhofsgebiet Muttenz
Potential bis 2030: + 1 000 Einwohner + 1 000 Arbeitsplätze Wohnen Arbeiten Lernen Einkaufen Erholen Bewegen
Quellen: Agglomerationsprogramm Basel 3. Generation (Zahlen Potential und Entwiclkungsprojekte)
Morgartenring
Aeschenvorstadt Aeschenplatz
OFFICE AND APARTMENT BUILDING- BASEL, SWITZERLAND
PROJECT: MERET OPPENHEIM SKYSCRAPER
CLIENT: SBB SCHWEIZERISCHE BUNDESBAHNEN IMMOBILIEN, SWITZERLAND
LOCATION: BASEL, SWITZERLAND
TYPE OF PROJECT: BUILDING
STATUS: COMPETITION 2002, PROJECT 2013 - 2019
PROGRAM: MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT (OFFICES, CAFÉ, RESTAURANT, SERVICE AREAS, APARTEMENTS (1,5 TO 5,5 ROOMS)
SIZE: 2.950 SQM (SITE AREA), 30.285 SQM (GROSS FLOR AREA) AND 2.410SQM (FOOTPRINT)
COSTS: APPROXIMATELY 130 MILLIONS SWISS FRANCS
TEAM: ROBERT HÖSL (PARTNER IN CHARGE), PATRICK HOLL (PROJECT MANAGER) AND ARCHITECTS
WORK PHASE: 1 - 5 BY HOAI (GERMAN FEE STRUCTURE FOR ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS)
COLLABORATION: SBB AND HRS REAL ESTATE AG IMAGE CREDITS: HERZOG & DE MEURON
The Meret Oppenheim project is a 25 floor skyscraper with a height of 81 meters in Basel.
The main uses for the building are as apartments, which start on the 6th floor, and services such as offices for the Swiss radio station SRF. There is also a restaurant on the first floor. The 153 apartments are distri buted over 19 floors and their sizes vary between 1.5 and 4.5
The building is located in the city center, right next to Basel central station. Therefore, ac cess to both the city and other cities is very convenient, a big advantage for commuters.
The building is distinguished by its unique façade, which con sists of exterior shutters that can be closed mechanically, and also by its height, which climbs above the surrounding buildings.
LOGISTIC CENTER‘S GROUNDFLOOR
Moreover, the logistic center plays a major role for the project. This underground part in the building houses all technical rooms, users’ basements, maintenance rooms, bicycle parking, and delivery space for trucks.
PROJECT
SUSTAINABLE TREE CROP PLANTATION WITH DIFFERENT TYPES OF BUILDINGS, MOBAI, SIERRA LEONE
CLIENT: DREXLER LIMITED
LOCATION: MOBAI, SIERRA LEONE
TYPE OF PROJECT: CACAO PROCESSING CENTER (VISUALIZATIONS BASED ON EXISTING DESIGN)
STATUS: 2016 AND 2018
PROGRAM/USE: ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, FERMENTATION CENTER, GRAFTED SEEDLING NURSERY, RAINWATER
COLLECTION SYSTEM, TREE CROP NURSERY, SOLAR DRYER
SIZE: 40.000 M² (SITE SURFACE), 925 M² (CONSTRUCTED SURFACE)
COST/FINANCING: 50.000 EURO (CONSTRUCTION COSTS), 100.000 (TECHNICAL COSTS)
TEAM: DREXLER LIMITED AND BALMED
WORK PHASE(S): 1-3 BY HOAI (GERMAN FEE STRUCTURE FOR ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS)
COLLABORATION/IMAGE CREDIT: EXISTING DESIGN OF THE CACAO CENTER MADE BY A. FLENKENTHALER
PROJECT EXTENSION n°1
TYPE OF PROJECT: EDUCATION CENTER FOR WOMEN
PROGRAM/USE: TOILETS, KITCHEN, STORAGE, CLASSROOMS, COMMON AREAS
SIZE: 40.000 M² (SITE SURFACE), 110 M² (CONSTRUCTED SURFACE) AND 175 M² (BUILDING SURFACE)
COST/FINANCING: 40.000 EURO
PROJECT EXTENSION n°2
TYPE OF PROJECT: ARCHITECTURAL PRE STUDY AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR TVET CENTER CONSTRUCTION PROGRAM/USE: BUILDING FOR TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOR AGROFARMING SIZE: 40.000 M² (SITE SURFACE), 490 M² (BUILDING SURFACE)
COST/FINANCING: 43.550 EURO
The design of the cacao center was developed by Andreas Flenkenthaler in cooperation with DREXLER and Balmed. A visualization of the cacao center’s design was developed in accordance with DREXLER’s needs. “Balmed is a multistakeholder project in the agriculture, mining and service sector in Sierra Leone. The business started in 2003 as a trading company and continuously moved forward in developing an innovative and sustainable business
model creating a strong positive development impact. DREXLER is helping Balmed to transform the business model to a digital platform, allowing the business to connect to its 15,000 smallholders through cloud. DREXLER is furthermore developing communications and marketing strategies for the company, to connect to global high-end markets. [..] Balmed is an international supply chain operator focusing on cocoa, coffee and cashew.
[...] With focus on fair and sustainable tree crop plantation development in the cocoa, coffee and cashew sectors, the company works closely with 12,000 smallholder farmers in Sierra Leone, as well as international development organizations, financial institutions, certification bodies, Government and NGO´s.” (Balmed-PlantingTrading-Developing, PDF, 28.04.19 https://michaeldrexler.com/2018/11/20/ balmed-smallholderplatform/)
In addition to the cacao center, an education center for women was designed at the location of the meeting point in accordance with Balmed’s goals. “Balmed is fully promoting gender equality and female empowerment through economic integration and professional training. Balmed is constantly pushing new ideas and innovations forward; the company has developed a cashless farmer payment system using prepaid VISA cards [...]. The company has a trade finance facility with the African Agriculture Trade and Investment Fund. [...] The company is fully committed to the development of the agricultural sector in Sierra Leone to reduce poverty and improve livelihoods in
GROUNDFLOOR: TVET CENTER
This project was part of a project proposal made for the GIZ (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit).
Objective: TVET center constructions
Development of a concept for the construction of selfsustaining TVET centers in Sierra Leone, by applying green building technology and advanced planning, and M&E tools. This includes various agro-forest and sylvapastoralism farms, drinking water and sewage treatment using local available materials. The TVET centers are learner-focused and shall be a practical example of the various training courses held at the multi-purpose-facility. The community-owned training centers will be selfsustaining through income from farming, rent, energy, drinking water and research data.
Building for applied training: The primary uses for the building is the TVET training by GIZ and partners. In order to generate revenue, a fixed usage fee can be agreed upon with the community. The land shall be selected by applying the Balmed Block System, an inclusive landuse system that includes all stakeholders of the projects on the benefits of a community project. It is envisioned that the community manages the centers in a self-organizing approach.
Plant Sewage treatment:
The centers shall be equipped with a sewage treatment system based on the idea of a plant-based sludge treatment facility (reed bed sewage treatment e.g. Blumberg Engineers) to avoid wastewater runoffs into open land. The proposed system can be completely
installed with local available materials. The clarified water from the sewage can be used to irrigate treecrops of the model farm to increase production.
Building rental: The building can be rented to other organization, companies or individuals for various purposes. It can be jointly used by various partners to conduct training and as a model showcase for potential replication. The fees for the building shall be jointly agreed by the community.
Drinking water: The centers shall be able to produce drinking water through an innovative and decentralized drinking water treatment and supply system. (www. autarcon.com) The Su-MeWa System is a chemical free and low-maintenance filtration module that constantly keeps water safe for consumption.
The output per system is up to 3,000 liters of drinking water per day. For more information see www. autarcon.com. The drinking water shall be provided to nearby communities.
Impact: supply 300 people per day with clean drinking water.
WAYS to generate income and/or reduce costs
Energy: Decentralized, rural electrification based on renewable energy can be a driving motor for rural community development. The centers shall be energyindependent through their own supply from renewable sources. This can be, depending on the technical assessment, energy sources like PV, wind, water and BTTP (block type thermal power station). [...]
Farm products: The model farms shall provide a steady food supply and income to
the center through sales of farm products. The farms follow the agroforestry and sylvapastoralism principle and are a mixture of timber, tree cashcrop, and other economically viable varieties or fodder trees for livestock. The farms may focus on the following crops and trees: oil palm, timber trees, cocoa, cashew, coffee, mango, avocado, citrus, sour sop, mango, banana, plantain, kola nut, sugar cane, moringa or rubber.“ (Technical offer TVET Center construction in Sierra Leone, Drexler Limited Creative Development, 25.11.2018)
