24h online Urban Design Hackathon
In the second edition of the Urban Design Hackathon, we invite you to reanimate an infamous dinosaur, Berlin's ‘Mäusebunker’. The iconic brutalist building was designed to house an animal testing laboratory, inaccessible to the public. With the development of new technologies and the rising of critical voices towards animal testing, the structure became obsolete in 2020 and is in danger of being demolished. However, the acknowledgment of its architectural value by a group of architects, politicians, and citizens is giving the building a second chance at existence.
The Mäusebunker is located in the south-west of Berlin at the shore of the Teltowkanal. Together with the adjacent “Institut für Hygiene und Mikrobiologie” and the “Klinikum Steglitz” it forms an unique ensemble of post-war Brutalism, the Benjamin Franklin Campus.
The building was completed in 1981 and is 143 x 38 metres large. Unlike the “Institut für Hygiene und Mikrobiologie” the building is not yet protected as an historic monument.
Guided by principles of grey energy assessment and urban transformation that oppose its demolition, we see an opportunity to transform it into public space, promote diversity of use, and rethink the Benjamin Franklin Campus. The Urban Design Hackathon is a 24h online workshop for international students from four European universities. In mixed teams you will be developing urban design ideas that define the future of the former animal testing laboratory. The mice are out, so let the people in!
To apply please send us your portfolio to urbandesignhackathon@uni-weimar.de until the 29.03.21. |