General Architecture Collaborative creates inclusive, thoughtfully designed projects that sustain communities and the environment. We are a 501c-3 nonprofit in the United States and a social enterprise in Rwanda. Our’s is a different approach to practice. We work with individuals, organizations, institutions, communities, and industries dedicated to the creation of a more equitable and just world through design, research, and advocacy.
A Different Approach to Practice
Design
We are an award winning nonprofit design group with expertise in architecture, landscape architecture, and strategic design. Our work is focused on designing housing, healthcare, educational and cultural projects that serve underrepresented and developing communities which use the entire project life cycle for research to construction to create thoughtful and inclusive processes. Our goal is to bring together individuals and organizations interested in contributing to innovative, impactful and empowering design projects that build sustainable and socially equitable spaces, with communities most often overlooked by contemporary design practices and global development.
Research
Our research is focused on sustainable materials and making practices which combine innovative techniques, technologies, and methods with regional and cultural making traditions that are human-centered, life-cycle conscious, fair, and equitable. This work has produced a series of collaborations with institutions and industries as well as reports for the World Bank, and the United Nations. Research also includes developing methods for skill-building, communication, and innovation. Sharing innovative research and development, and using the job sites as training grounds, so that community members are empowered with skills to build houses that are more sustainable for themselves, their families, their communities and the environment.
Advocacy
We work with communities and organizations on strategic planning, project research and development, and implementation. We help funders navigate unfamiliar building processes and cultures, and work to ensure a community’s needs and aspirations are part of a collaborative process and reflected in the spaces we create. Our approach to community and project advocacy is grounded in community engagement, training & education, and best practices. These three principles guide our design process and project implementation. Collaboration and community-centered spaces are made possible through the interplay of exceptional design, superior and sustainable construction, and dynamic research and development.
Who We Are
Founders
James Setzler - Cofounder + Principal
Patrice Ndababonye - Architect
Nicolas Kalimba Rugamba - Architect
Marie Claire Musengayire - Project Manager
Cynthia Twagirayezu
Marie Rose Ukwizabigira
Iris Gomm
Mia Shepard
Yutaka Sho
Leighton Beaman
Team
James Setzler
Patrice Ndababonye
Nicolas Kalimba Rugamba
Marie Claire Musengayire
Cynthia Twagirayezu
Marie Rose Ukwizabigira
Iris Gomm
Mia Shepard
Yutaka Sho
Leighton Beaman
Awards & Press
Awards:
James Setzler - Cofounder + Principal
Patrice Ndababonye - Architect
Nicolas Kalimba Rugamba - Architect
Marie Claire Musengayire - Project Manager
Cynthia Twagirayezu
Marie Rose Ukwizabigira
Iris Gomm
Mia Shepard
Yutaka Sho
Leighton Beaman
Partners
James Setzler
Patrice Ndababonye
Nicolas Kalimba Rugamba
Marie Claire Musengayire
Cynthia Twagirayezu
Marie Rose Ukwizabigira
Iris Gomm
Mia Shepard
Yutaka Sho
Leighton Beaman