This year’s Urban Archipelago graduate design course focuses on water and public space in Moroccan cities. We are building on and advancing the methods that we developed during last year’s exploration of the Italian city of Trieste on the Adriatic coast, including, among others, biographies of place, micro-narratives, and guided imagery of water within urban landscapes. Once again we challenge students to rethink the spatial, societal, and cultural practices of today by learning from the past and envisioning sustainable futures by design. The effects of urbanization and climate change are also increasing in Morocco; however, here in particular, the lack of water will have a long-term effect on public areas and urban life. After visiting Trieste, we concluded that personal experience is key to understanding the role that water plays in our lives. This insight remains valid. It promised to be an immersive exploration into the multifaceted dimensions of water in the Moroccan cities of Rabat, Salé, Fes, and Tetouan. [...]

This blog contribution supports the Urban Archipelago expo at Nieuwe Instituut (NI) in Rotterdam, designed to consist of four elements: a map, a view, a model, and a series of films that depicted a future of living with water, as well as a booklet that documented student work. The expo has been part of the Water Cities Rotterdam, which opened with the work of Kunlé Adeyemi (NLÉ) on 13 May 2023.