berend van der lans
It is beautiful to see how perspectives are widened and the opportunities that are arising are taken. Our projects bring so much more than the direct results.
Associate
architect
Berend van der Lans (1966) has been working as an architect in Europe and Africa since 1992. In 2001, he co-founded the ArchiAfrika foundation, aiming to put African architecture and urbanism on the world map by making knowledge available, connecting people and enhancing the architectural debate on the continent. Berend facilitated the transformation of the foundation to an international organisation with - since 2012 - its base in Accra, Ghana.
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In 2010, Berend and Antoni Folkers started African Architecture Matters. He is involved in many of the projects and is responsible for the office management and communication. He has published articles, contributed to publications and given lectures on various topics on architecture and urbanism in Africa.
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As an architect, Berend van der Lans has been undertaking a wide range of projects, from rural hospitals in Africa to complicated European inner city design and execution. Since 2007 he runs Architectureplus, offering architecture and project management services.
projects involved
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Since Berend is involved in most of the projects, it goes too far to mention all of them here. Please see the projects section for an overview. Berend's general reflection on AAmatters: 'Our projects bring together people from many backgrounds in a wide variety of fields in the urban realm. Connections are made, bridges built. It is beautiful to see how perspectives are widened and the opportunities that are arising are taken. Our projects bring so much more than the direct results'.