Nyomi Rowsell
African Architectural Adventure
Fundraising for Article 25
Story
I will be cycling 7,500 miles and aim to raise £7500 towards Article 25 the development and disaster relief charity that designs and delivers buildings and structures for those in greatest need worldwide.
I am off to cycle Cairo to Cape Town (7500 miles) taking approximately 9 months and I set off in mid October 2010. As a graduate architecture student and having worked as a Part 1 architectural assistant at Article 25 I have a professional interest in vernacular architecture. I am going to research methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs. Within my research I aim to maximise the potential for design; to build bigger buildings for less money.
My friend Steve Fabes is cycling the world (www.cyclingthe6.com/) he said pick a country and at that point I realised I might as well do it properly and cycle the African continent!
I enjoy keeping fit; have completed two half marathons and cycled around London since February 2009.
My last year has been intellectually stimulating and combining my love for fitness and architecture I need a challenging expedition for the next year before continuing onto my Architecture Diploma.
Recently I won funding with Vodafone foundation to make a World of Difference so I have written a blog describing my activities within the charity (http://worldofdifference.vodafone.co.uk/uk/nyomi-rowsell/ ). I will document the built environment to learn, understand and share knowledge within the architectural community through my blog and a book I plan going to write after my trip.