Afaf Ismail is an architectural researcher from Malaysia. She has received grants from the Royal Institute of British Architects, the Norman Foster Foundation, and the Malaysian Institute of Architects to carry out research looking at community-based architecture after natural hazards or crises in Indonesia, Japan, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Afaf has presented her work at local and international conferences on the need for participatory design methods that put communities first, especially in post-disaster rebuilding. Here research outcomes have been exhibited in the UK, Shanghai and Malaysia.
Her final year project, she proposed an establishment combining the functions of hotel and health clinic in order to combat the pantomimic state of tourist cities — a solution that serves the community together with the visitor, is vital.
As a young architect, she is building her niche around community-based design, focusing on strengthening each community's capacity. She believes in policies that effectively challenge economic and political relationships between countries at the macro level, while placing communities at the centre of developmental growth at the micro level.
Image 1: A Pakistani craftsman building a low-carbon house designed by architect Yasmeen Lari
Image 2: Floorplan of Afaf's final year project on a community clinic attached to a hotel in Ipoh Old Town, Perak, Malaysia
Image 3: An Indonesian father rebuilding his house after Lombok's 2018 earthquake
Image 4: A group of Pakistani women making and serving tea at their handmade chulah (stove)
