Fair Trade Zone

The Fair Trade Zone in Akuse, Ghana, is a production campus for Global Mamas, a women-led cooperative advancing sustainable livelihoods through ethical manufacturing. Designed around principles of the circular economy, the architecture choreographs flows of materials, water, and energy across buildings and productive gardens—turning the site into a closed-loop system of reuse and regeneration.

Curved buildings follow the land’s natural contours, organizing textile, skincare, and papermaking production into modular wings, each linked with an adjacent garden that supplies raw materials. Constructed from interlocking compressed earth bricks and shaded by bamboo screens, the buildings offer natural cooling, filtered daylight, and ergonomic workspaces. Rainwater is harvested, wastewater is ecologically treated, and energy is generated on-site through solar and wind systems.

The project was developed through a participatory design process, with artisans directly shaping key spaces through collaborative workshops. Custom floor layouts, outdoor dyeing areas, and shared courtyards emerged from conversations with the women who would inhabit and operate the campus—ensuring the architecture reflects their daily rhythms and long-term needs.

With its restrained material palette, phased modular growth, and community-led design, the Fair Trade Zone becomes a working prototype for circular, climate-responsive architecture in rural West Africa.

Project Authors: Juergen Strohmayer (architect) + Chrili Car (landscape architect)

Location: Akuse, Ghana / Program: Manufacturing, agriculture, and eco-tourism / Year: 2013-2017 exploratory phase; 2018 - 2020 inception, workshops, land search; 2020 construction starts; 2021 Phase 1 opens / Client: Global Mamas / Architect: Juergen Strohmayer / Landscape Architect: Chrili Car / Design team: Abdul-Rauf Issahaque / Contractor, structural, permits: ALConstructs / MEP engineers: Jamstech / Consultants: Sophie Morley (project preparation), Mae-ling Lokko (ergonomics and material research), Ingenieure Ohne Grenzen Germany (MEP)

Press: Architectural Review (2023) , divisare (2023) , Austrian Cultural Forum Rome (Exhibition, 2022) , Shibaura House Tokyo (Exhibition, 2023)