AKPIA 2024 Fall Lecture Series: An Evening With: Safouan Azouzi: “Learning from Nefzawa: Design in (Re) Cultivating Commoning Practices in Oases”

Safouan Azouzi is a design researcher and designer who completed his doctoral studies in Design at Sapienza University of Rome within the department of Planning, Design, and Technology of Architecture. His research focuses on Design for Social Innovation, with a specific emphasis on perspectives from the Global South and Decolonial Thinking. Operating at the convergence of social and political Design, Futures Thinking, Participatory Action Research, and Ecological Transition, he delves into the concept of the Commons and explore the role of Participatory Design and Community Economies in reviving ancient indigenous oasis practices around commoning in Tunisia and Maghreb region. In 2024, Safouan is an Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture at MIT.

Abstract

This talk addresses the multifaceted challenges confronting the eco-social landscapes of Tunisia’s Nefzawa oases, focusing on the interplay of historical, environmental, and socio-economic dynamics. Drawing on ethnographic research, literature reviews, and Earth observation data, it critically examines the unsustainable exploitation of natural resources, exacerbated by climate change and ongoing land and water dispossession. It challenges the view of the oasis solely as a site of agricultural production, overlooking its essence and its evolution around commons, which sustain its economic and social fabric.

The talk also explores pathways for adaptation in the face of the potential collapse of these agro-ecosystems, highlighting the role of design in envisioning alternative socio-economic models for a socially and ecologically sustainable future. It emphasizes the importance of remembrance and adapting ancient oasis commoning practices, proposing “oasis connectivity” and “smart oases” as frameworks for integrating traditional commoning practices with modern technology to enhance community resilience and biodiversity conservation.