REBUILD after Dana

In autumn 2024, a cold drop caused severe flooding in several areas of Spain. In the region of l’Horta Sud and other areas of the province of Valencia, numerous educational centres were affected.

In response to this emergency, the NGO Jóvenes y Desarrollo, with the support of Plan International, launched the DANA Response and Support project, which aims to assist with reconstruction processes in 10 educational centres. Makea contributed to the project with our experience in transforming educational environments through collective design and construction, as part of our REMOBLAR line of work.

REMOBLAR Post-DANA was created as a direct response to the effects of the DANA, but with the aim of going beyond immediate repairs. It stems from an emergency situation, but it also seeks to activate a shared process of reflection, construction and collective learning, where design is a tool for regenerating spaces, but also for strengthening relationships, trust and the capacity for collective action.

The project aims to activate 10 educational centres in two phases: one between May and June, and another between September and October 2025.

Based on the needs identified, Makea developed two furniture designs adapted to these demands: a mobile book trolley and a bench with wheels. These designs are specifically intended to be built collectively in a short period of time, using recycled materials and open, sustainable systems with processes that are accessible to students.

The aim is not to apply a single model, but to adapt each intervention to the context of the centre, accompanying the process with tools, methodologies and technical support that facilitate a transformative educational experience.

Each of the ten interventions is organised into three sessions with the students (10 hours in total), aimed at primary and secondary school students between the ages of 9 and 16. Makea is responsible for the preliminary preparation of all the pieces and materials in its workshop, as well as the manuals, graphic documents and necessary tools.

The first session, facilitated in collaboration with the Youth and Development Foundation, will serve to introduce the project and motivate the students. The following two sessions will focus on the collective construction of the furniture, where the students will work with the materials using various accessible transformation processes to ultimately build the furniture.

The physical result is new, useful furniture, built by the students themselves. But the most important value lies in the shared experience: collective learning, a sense of belonging, and the ability to imagine and transform the school environment through collaboration and sustainability.

‘Rebuild after DANA’ does not seek to offer unique solutions, but rather open processes. Ways of doing things that can be replicated, adapted and shared. An invitation to turn urgency into an opportunity to build, from the common ground, more lively, resilient and habitable educational spaces.