In the coastal city of Tadjourah in Djibouti, where extreme heat and dry desert conditions dominate much of the year, architects designed a children’s village that functions without conventional air conditioning. The project, known as the SOS Children’s Village Tadjourah, was created by Urko Sanchez Architects for SOS Children’s Villages International. Instead of relying on glass towers, sealed interiors and energy-intensive cooling systems, the architects turned to centuries-old climate-responsive design principles used across North Africa and the Middle East. Narrow shaded streets, wind-catching towers, reflective surfaces, vegetation and carefully planned airflow work together to keep the settlement naturally cooler. The result is a rare modern project where the architecture itself acts as the climate-control system.
