Gila River Indian Community Governor Stephen Roe Lewis and ASU’s Wanda Dalla Costa discuss the possibility of adobe brick home construction in partnership with the Del E. Webb School of Construction. Photo by Christopher Lomahquahu/Gila River Indian News
at GRIC where they created a 3D prototype of a community shade structure. Providing the opportunity for community members to share real-time feedback and guidance enriched the outcomes for both students and community members, who, together, became co-creators of the proposed design.
“For Indigenous architecture, engagement is the critical piece. Because we’re outsiders going into self-contained economic, social and political systems, we must not start with our own research questions. Rather, we need to start with conversations to determine if there is a way to align our research with the community’s existing priorities.”
IMPACT
Using the co-created designs, master builders from GRIC erected four shade structures using traditional materials, including arrow weed for shading and adobe bricks for seating. More than 4,000 tribal members interacted with the solution during the 2018 Mul-Chu-Tha fair. The team of ASU researchers plans to expand its mobile design lab this fall while engaging GRIC residents in a residential prototyping mobile design lab to be held in the community. Topics for the fall event include innovative water, solar and septic systems, aiming toward increased flexibility in community planning, without sacrificing their valued way of life.
– WA N D A D A L L A C O S TA , FA C U LT Y, A S U H E R B E R G E R INSTITUTE FOR DESIGN AND THE ARTS; ASU SCHOOL O F S U S TA I N A B L E E N G I N E E R I N G A N D T H E B U I LT ENVIRONMENT
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