When I was in primary school, I loved to play with LEGO and PLAYMOBIL. I imagined a world where different people and cultures lived happy lives, like the toys’ characters. I couldn’t dream of a world where people suffered due to a lack of food or water.
I grew up in one of the richest countries in the world. Consumption, or shopping, has become a daily activity and part of our culture, and we seem
to have forgotten our past as an industrialized nation. In secondary school, I learned about our history and how we became wealthy due to several events and choices taken in the past. Some of these choices led to slavery, where people were forced to work in dangerous and unhealthy conditions, and deforestation, damaging our natural environments. I started to question if these events were that different from those on the news.
In 2013, a building that housed several sewing factories collapsed in Dhaka. The clothes made there were sold abroad—in richer countries far away. Even today, in our modern world, the world’s most vulnerable people are working in similar conditions. We buy clothes, unaware of the bad factory conditions. I came to realize that my daily actions and choices are connected to events in other countries. They affected the health and education of the most vulnerable, and contributed to an increase in waste, pollution, and the overconsumption of resources such as water. I began to examine product supply chains, questioning if what I bought was sustainable and ecological. I tried to inform myself and look further than the end-product. Today, I share this with my family, friends, and even colleagues, and we advise each other if more sustainable options are available.
People are becoming aware that we must change our consumption habits if we want to combat injustice and poverty worldwide. I decided to become an architect to save lives while bringing equity and empowerment to vulnerable communities. My first concern as an architecture student is to choose sustainable materials. Careful research, such as knowing where materials come from, how and by who they are produced, is crucial. To preserve the environment and architectural traditions, we should choose local materials that can be recycled or reused.
I will strive to do more and better with less, promoting sustainable lifestyles. To house every family in a safe environment with dignity. That is my dream!
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