NEW ABOUT PAGE | Architectural Recovery Team

About us

“Empowering earthquake-affected communities through collaborative innovation aiming to provide safe and sustainable homes.”

The Architectural Recovery Team (ART) was founded at Delft University of Technology as a voluntary student initiative focused on the architectural recovery of areas impacted by earthquake disasters.

Currently, we are a foundation based in the Netherlands. The Foundation is interdisciplinary and diverse team, bringing together architects, urbanists, civil engineers, students, and professionals from a wide range of fields. ART aims to connect knowledge and expertise from different universities and institutions in order to collaboratively achieve its goals.

While the foundation primarily focuses on recovery efforts in Türkiye, the Architectural Recovery Team also supports other teams in initiating recovery work following natural disasters around the world. These teams engage in a variety of projects and approaches, always with respect for local political, social, and cultural contexts.

How we started

“As architecture students, we felt compelled to do something to help people have a home again”

After witnessing the devastating effects of natural disasters, the founders of the Architectural Recovery Team, Meric Kessaf, Leyla van der Waarde, and Meriam Sehimi, were inspired to take action.

The Architectural Recovery Team’s first mission was to organize a week-long workshop to launch the initiative. During this intensive program, students, experts, and professors collaborated to develop practical and context-sensitive recovery strategies.

Following the workshop, the team committed to continuing their work in order to create lasting impact and provide meaningful support to communities in need.

Over the past few months, the initiative has grown into a diverse network of volunteers, including architectural engineers, earth scientists, psychologists, civil engineers, and other specialists. ART works through a collaborative, interdisciplinary approach, bringing together knowledge and expertise from multiple fields to support effective and humane recovery efforts.

Our Mission

“Everyone has a fundamental human right to housing, ensuring access to a safe, secure, habitable and affordable home.”

Over the past few months, our team has grown into a network of dedicated professionals. Our mission is to support reconstruction efforts and develop preventive measures in areas affected by disasters.

Through collaboration with experts from different disciplines, we aim to co-create sustainable and affordable modular designs that prioritize local materials and cultural considerations, while integrating new technologies and ideas into the regions where we work. Our innovative and collaborative approach ensures that our plans are realistic, practical, and implementable. Our initial focus is to analyze the context, initiate design development, build a strong network, and work toward a functional prototype.

Following prototype testing and engagement with institutes that can support implementation, we move into the construction phase. Our approach is grounded in architectural engineering and responds to the unique geographical, political, cultural, and social conditions of each crisis site. Ultimately, our goal is to deliver resilient, long-term building solutions capable of withstanding extreme conditions and making a meaningful impact on the lives of people affected by natural disasters.