The story
A home shaped for healing and belonging.
GLOWA asked a difficult architectural question: how can a home protect children recovering from trafficking and abuse without making safety feel like confinement? Alex Lowden’s design answers with ten small group homes instead of an institutional dormitory, each shared by five children and an onsite caregiver and gathered around a generous green courtyard. Private rooms, shaded arcades, places to play, healthcare, shared meals, and vocational workshops create a village-like setting where daily life can begin to feel stable again.
The architecture turns Bamenda’s climate into part of that care. Deep overhangs shelter outdoor circulation, operable shutters give each child control over light and air, high clerestories draw humid air upward, and rain gardens and cisterns work with the region’s heavy rainfall. Conceived as a two-phase proposal with GLOWA and Journeyman International, the rescue home is more than secure accommodation: it is a framework for dignity, identity, learning, and a path toward greater independence.