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PRNewswire - Janaury 17, 2003
"...a remarkable project with great possibility..." Honorable William J. Clinton - 42nd President of the United States
NEW YORK, Jan. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- An international exhibition of over 125 highly innovative schemes for a Mobile Health Clinic to combat the HIV/AIDS Pandemic in Africa is on display in New York until January 31, 2002.
It is estimated that three-quarters of the world's AIDS population lives in Sub-Saharan Africa; most have no access to lifesaving drugs, testing facilities or even basic preventative care. In response, Architecture for Humanity, a non-profit that promotes architecture and design solutions to global, social and humanitarian crises, challenged designers and medical professionals from around the world to respond to inability to access vast areas of the continent with adequately equipped facilities.
At the launch of this initiative in May 2002, Frank Gehry, award-winning architect and Architecture for Humanity advisory board member stated "Architects and designers have not only an opportunity, but a professional obligation to help to end this crisis." Designers were given six months to develop schemes for a fully equipped, mobile medical unit and HIV/AIDS treatment center that could for not only be used testing, prevention and treatment of the disease, but also to provide basic health care services.
By the project deadline, November 1, 2002, more than 531 teams representing 51 nations answered the call. An international jury of architects and medical professionals met in New York to select four finalists and eight honorary mentions. The finalists included a professional firm from Denmark, a team of students from Troy, NY, faculty members at the University of Dortmund, Germany and two young architects from Paris, France.
"AIDS is a global epidemic which deserves a global response. Architects and designers have shown that by coming together they can make a real difference in the lives of others," said Cameron Sinclair, Founder and Executive Director of Architecture for Humanity.
The Van Alen Institute in New York, which partnered with Architecture for Humanity to administer the competition jury, is hosting the opening exhibit of the winning and selected designs. This exhibit will be on display until January 31, 2003. With the support of Virgin Atlantic, the exhibit is set to travel in 2003 and 2004 in the United States and internationally.
Money raised from donations and additional fundraising activities will be used to build one or more prototypes of the winning concepts. Once developed, it is hoped that refined versions of these cost-effective and mobile designs can be built for Africa and replicated in other regions around the world.
About Architecture for Humanity
Architecture for Humanity is a volunteer organization founded by 29-year- old designer Cameron Sinclair in 1999. A registered nonprofit organization, Architecture for Humanity encourages architects and designers to seek solutions to global social and humanitarian crises. With each project a new advisory board is assembled based on their individual areas of expertise. For our most recent project, the Mobile HIV/AIDS Health Clinic For Africa, the nine-member board includes Pritzker-prize winning architect Frank Gehry FAIA; Ambassador Richard Swett FAIA; South African architect Rodney Harber; Kenyan Architect Reuben Mutiso; IAVI Vice President Kate Bourne; Dr. Johannes van Dam of the Population Council; Dr. Sunanda Ray, Executive Director of SafAIDS based in Zimbabwe; and Dr. Shaffiq Essajee of director of the AIDS Research and Family Care Clinic, Mombasa, Kenya and NYU Medical Center.
About Van Alen Institute
Van Alen Institute is a non-profit organization committed to improving the design of the public realm through a program of competitions, workshops, public forums, exhibitions, and publications. The Institute has contributed expertise, resources, and its gallery space to the Architecture for Humanity project. Founded in 1894 as the Society of Beaux-Arts Architects, the Institute was renamed in 1996 after William Van Alen, the architect of the Chrysler Building and its' largest benefactor, and repositioned to focus on the public realm. Based in New York, the Institute's projects initiate interdisciplinary and international collaborations between practitioners, policy-makers, students, educators, and community leaders. To learn more visit its' sixth-floor gallery or http://www.vanalen.org.
About Virgin Atlantic
Since it was founded in 1984, Virgin Atlantic Airways has become Britain's second largest long haul carrier serving the world's major cities. The airline now serves nine US gateways to London, as well as many onward destinations in Africa and Asia.
For more information about Mobile HIV/AIDS Health Clinic for Africa initiative or to help contribute towards building the clinics, visit: http://www.architectureforhumanity.org or contact:
Cameron Sinclair, Founder/Executive Director (646) 765-0906 - csinclair@architectureforhumanity.org
SOURCE Architecture for Humanity
Web Site: http://www.architectureforhumanity.org
http://www.vanalen.org
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