This book follows on from the first book we put together – Unit D: Engaging students in architecture, politics and space, which describes the work, ideas and pedagogy of Unit D, one of the vertical design studios within the School of the Built Environment for undergraduate students at Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, United Kingdom. Within these pages we have captured the work for the academic year September 2013 – May 2014 where the focus of research was the capital city of the island of Cyprus: Nicosia, the last divided capital in Europe.
The brief challenged the students to investigate the impact of politics, resource choices, local construction methods, economic systems, discrimination, climate change, the ramifications of the conflict on heritage, and embark on the path of becoming a new type of architect.