Built by Community

Community is a word often tossed around within the design stratosphere, polished and repeated until it almost loses weight. Yet community is not a slogan. It is a living system. It requires intention, structure, and care. This month, we explore community in its many forms, and we reflect on what it truly takes to harness the power of the spaces and people around us.

In our Not from the President’s Desk, the President of Society of Landscape Architects of Nigeria, Dr Amos Alao, reminds us that even when a community rallies together, broader forces remain at play. The effort to revive a dilapidated park in Abuja demonstrates what collective will can achieve. At the same time, it highlights a sobering truth: policies that work against communities can weaken even the most passionate initiatives. Without institutional presence and supportive governance, strong projects remain vulnerable.

We also witness the transformative strength of community in the case of Historic Esna, Egypt, where a holistic, landscape-oriented approach placed local people at the heart of renewal. The project’s well-deserved recognition reflects what becomes possible when planning, heritage, and community agency move in concert rather than in isolation.

At the ILASA/IFLA COnference in Pretoria last year, we asked our community to share an image of their favourite African landscape and in the spirit of community, I will be sharing some of these images in our upcoming newsletters and will implore you to add an image of your favourite African landscape here.

As we close out February and look toward the months ahead, let us remain attentive to the opportunities for engagement that will emerge in our own contexts. From neighbourhood initiatives to regional gatherings and conferences that bring us together across borders, we are reminded that community is not accidental. It is built. It is protected. It is sustained through collaboration, courage, and continuity.

May we not only speak of community this year, but actively strengthen it, so that our landscapes and our institutions are shaped by the very people they are meant to serve.