Each semester various programs participate in studio travel week. Locations vary each year and between studios. This year a joint MLA/MCP studio traveled to Dakar, Senegal. Below, three students share their experiences.
Maria Fairchild
One of the greatest things about being in the final year of the landscape architecture program is participating in travel week. Generally, the 700 studios in the MLA program focus on designing sites in countries abroad. In October, students travel to that country for a week to gain on-the-ground insights and meet with project partners.
The joint MLA/MCP 700 studio traveled to Dakar, Senegal to learn more about the Great Green Wall project and explore five pilot sites that we will work on designing for the rest of the semester. Throughout the week, we were part of three workshops with community members and local experts from the water and forestry department, discussing how the Great Green Wall idea could be applied in their communities. We toured the site for a new port, a landfill in a lake that needs remediation, a large wetland vital to fisherman and farmers, and a pink lake that supports salt extraction and ecotourism industries.
This trip was an incredible opportunity to learn from the locals, hear their ideas on addressing challenges like flooding, drought, and land use, and bring these insights back to our studio for design work!
Chaowu Li
The on-site explorations and community engagement helped us learn more about the living conditions, local materials, and oral histories of Senegal. The 8-day travel, with classmates, instructors, experts in different fields, and Senegalese, helped me understand better the remote country, and all the knowledge could contribute to the urban design and landscape architecture projects in the future.
It is great to have the opportunity to think about creating a greener world globally, and hopefully, the design ideas can be put into practice. I feel a strong responsibility, as well as aspirations after the trip. It was a fun period, and I will never forget it!
Viva Wan
From October 11 to October 20, a group of 12 Master of City Planning (MCP) students and 13 Master of Landscape Architecture (MLA) students traveled to Dakar, Senegal, for the Dakar Greenbelt Studio Travel. This studio focuses on urban inclusion and environmental conservation within the context of the Great Green Wall initiative. Students visited five different sites for pilot projects, including landfill locations, natural reserves, a developing area for a new port, a futuristic satellite city, and a coastal area for tourism. They brought large printed maps and their proposals to engage with enthusiastic local communities, gathering valuable feedback on urban growth, local economies, and the challenges residents face.
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