The Interlaced Edge

Commendation

OXFAM IAB Competition

2023

The City grew from the River. They shared a special bond. So did their inhabitants. River nomads thrived in its waters, while sedentary folks built a bustling City alongside. As the tides of the economy shifted, so did the landscape. Distancing itself from the River, The City grew centralized. The River, neglected and devoid of life, became a mere economic tool. The once-strong connection between the City and the River weakened, and the River nomads slowly faded away.

However,  the City suffered without the River, its greatest asset. The City became sick and suffocated from unplanned parasitic centralized sprawl. Despite the urban infrastructure's negligence, the City's inhabitants yearned for that lost connection. In the afternoons, they searched for simple enjoyment, leisure, and the ‘Life’ that the City had failed to offer. 

On the other side of the edge, the River nomads waited, eager to be reconnected.

Out of the shared desires of the land and river dwellers, a common ground emerged —  a bilateral Edge, a platform of an urban scale. It is an Edge, not as a separating border, but rather a blurred overlap. Desirable to both sides, it prevailed.

The singular Edge consisted of two distinct sides: the static and the floating.

From the city side, there was a static, grounded public realm encouraging a multitude of events welcoming all ages, genders, and statuses. Its construction was pragmatic, affordable, open for all, and familiar to the city dwellers. It morphed and reacted to the city along its path, inviting people from all corners to reconnect with the River. The steps allowed urban activities but cut off the river view. The top of the steps offered controlled river views but was narrow enough to discourage business activities or stalls. It only allowed walking around.

On the riverside, a floating modular part of the Edge was anchored to the static side, enticing the city dwellers with an extended river view - an unconstrained connection to the River. Here, the river nomads offered the city dwellers what the city could not. This side was floating, flexible, and always moving like the nomads themselves. It grew and shrunk in modules. There were limited connections to this side from the static side. To preserve their internal dynamics, only the Bede/Jele people controlled these access points. The floating modules contained flexible structures used interchangeably as various businesses and required facilities. This is their anchor, the permanent part of their address, where they dock their boats. This is their connection to the sedentary infrastructure.  

There is also a circular Bede village on the ground, providing maximum visual connectivity and security — a strong land presence to give the community a strong social status. 

The Edge continues along the river, reviving the city-river connection through eventful spaces and activities, harmonizing with, or at times conflicting with, the city. It also contained amenities for the floating side that required city connection such as restroom facilities with sewage systems. Thus, the static and the floating side were interdependent for the edge to sustain. Through the bilateral edge, urban and Bede people gradually entered each other's realms, enjoying and benefiting from the unique qualities each brings to the table.

The ever-changing, floating, freedom-loving Bede Para is now the greatest desire of the City.