The Global Challenge #GC is a biennial program that supports community-led projects through strategic, needs-based collaboration. More than just a competition, the Global Challenge builds momentum, strengthens partnerships, and amplifies the collective impact of these initiatives—empowering finalist teams to secure sustainable funding and long-term support.

Here are some inspiring updates from our 2021 and 2022 editions:

KAKR BULUH AWAR, Indonesia

✦ GC2022 finalist and prize winner, awarded by the Hilti Foundation and World Bamboo Foundatio
✦ Nominee at the World Architecture Festival (WAF) 2023

Completed between 2019 and 2022, the multifunctional bamboo hall serves as a transformative space, shifting local perspectives on bamboo—from a material traditionally burned as waste to one valued for its sustainability and cultural significance.

Since receiving GC2022 recognition and a prize award, the project has flourished, becoming a hub for education and innovation. The hall now attracts architecture students, lecturers, and local authorities eager to learn about bamboo construction and sustainable building practices

► Read more about the project: KAKR BULUH AWAR

KuNa, Construyendo Sueños, Nicaragua

✦ GC2022 finalist and prize winner, awarded by Era Contour
✦ Runner-up, 2024 Built by Nature Prize

KuNa is a pioneering bamboo social housing initiative by the NGO Casa Congo in response to Nicaragua’s housing crisis after hurricanes Eta and Iota in 2020.

Between 2021 and 2022, KuNa built 21 bamboo homes, establishing Nicaragua’s first fully integrated bamboo supply chain—from cultivation and treatment to prefabrication and construction. The initiative has trained over 70 local farmers and carpenters, indirectly benefiting around 1,000 residents.

Participation in GC2022 provided KuNa with greater visibility and new momentum, strengthened by A--D’s ambassadors and partners. In 2024, Casa Congo won the Built by Nature Prize, enabling the NGO to scale its successful model beyond Nicaragua to Mexico.

► Read more about the project: KuNa, Casa Congo

Book House, China

✦  GC2022 finalist and jury prize winner
✦  New project completed Malong, China
✦  New project initiated in Maasai village, Kenya

More than just an innovative design, Book House has grown into a network of children's libraries, reinterpreting traditional timber architecture with adaptable designs for diverse locations.

Condition Lab—the team behind the project—has expanded its outreach, connecting with our 2022 partners, Aga Khan Development Network and Sheffield School of Architecture, through exchange sessions and symposiums.

In 2023-2024, the project continues to thrive:
Malong Book House is nearing completion, featuring spaces dedicated to tea-related activities that celebrate local tea culture. The project is expanding internationally, launching a new library in Kuku, Kenya, in partnership with the Mt. Kilimanjaro Child Development Program (MKCDP).

► Read more about the project: Book House

Taller Tropical Moravia, Colombia

✦ GC2021 finalist and prize winner, awarded by the Hilti Foundation
✦ 2023 Practice Lab grant, by Re:Arc Institute

Led by local community leaders and supported by both local and international design professionals, this initiative is revitalizing a community center in the informal neighborhood of Moravia, using sustainable, low-tech solutions to foster urban resilience and social impact.

Since participating in GC2021, Taller Tropical Moravia has significantly expanded its reach. The prize award helped secure land for the Moravian School, enabling more workshops and urban interventions in Moravia, Berlin, and beyond. In 2024, the Moravian School celebrated its educational and cultural achievements, made possible with the support of organizations like Misereor, Re:Arc Institute, and Fundación MUV.

► Read more about the project: Taller Tropical Moravia

Cocina Colaboratorio, Mexico

✦ GC2021 finalist and prize winner, awarded by the Holcim Foundation
✦ New partnership withWageningen University (NL) in 2022

Cocina Colaboratorio is a social design project, initiating sustainable strategies, practice-based research and design to revive deforested farmland in the face of climate change. By restoring ecosystems and preserving cultural heritage, the initiative pioneers a co-design approach, bringing together biologists, sociologists, anthropologists, designers, and the local community to shape a sustainable future.

With support from GC2021’s Holcim Foundation award, the team launched co-design workshops on-site, collaborating with the renowned architecture practice Taller Comunal. The project’s network continues to expand, engaging new partners e.g. Wageningen University (NL) and implementing the co-design model across multiple sites.

► Read more about the project: Cocina Colaboratorio

ModSkool, India

✦ 2023 Practice Lab grant, by Re:Arc Institute
✦ 2022 Moira Gemmill Award for Emerging Architecture, W Awards by The Architectural Review
✦ 2021 Beazley Design Award, Design Museum London
✦ 2018 Shelter Award, Shelter Promotion Council India
✦ 2016 Global Challenge finalist, Architecture in Development

A pioneering example of Do-It-Together architecture, ModSkool was designed as a temporary, climate-responsive school that can be easily dismantled, relocated, and rebuilt.

During the 2016 Global Challenge, a crowdfunding campaign and pro bono engineering support made construction possible, with over 60 volunteers contributing on-site. First built in 2017, it was dismantled a year later due to land disputes but was rebuilt in 2019 with a refined design and skilled local builders.

Since then, ModSkool has gained international recognition, setting a precedent for community-led, adaptable architecture. Today, Social Design Collaborative continues to expand this work, advocating for sustainable design solutions across India and beyond.

► Read more about the project: ModSkool