ENSA-La Réunion is emerging from the ground in the heart of the city of Port. The first stone was laid on August 26, in the presence of many personalities, starting with Mayor Du Port, Olivier Hoarau, for which “this symbolic event brings to fruition years of commitment to offer our youth a new bioclimatic establishment, inclusive and anchored in its territory”.
Officially autonomous since March 1, ENSA-La Réunion thus joins the network of 21 national higher schools of architecture in France. This new status reflects the recognition of collective work carried out for more than ten years by training stakeholders., of the territory and the State. The new school aims to train architects in an establishment adapted to the climatic and social realities of the region. : tropical urban planning, bioclimatism, resource management, construction durable. It will offer a new teaching framework in line with the evolution of the school and its educational offering.. It aims both to promote the local anchoring of the school and to develop its openness to the Indian Ocean region and, beyond, towards tropical and island spaces. The current school accommodates 180 students, 25 candidates for project management authorization in their own name (HMONP), 45 teachers (teachers, full lecturers, associates or contractors) and 11 administrative staff. The future ENSA-La Réunion campus should accommodate 230 students by 2030. The building will offer 1,750 m2 of floor space responding to the program of the architectural competition launched in 2021. Its premises will include studios and classrooms (licence et master), administrative premises and numerous indoor and outdoor friendly spaces adapted to teaching practices. A bioclimatic amphitheater with 225 seats will allow open use for public events, beyond educational activities.
The building itself educational support
The new buildings will be part of an urban campus open to the city, dedicated to higher education and vocational training : the campus Paul-Verges, center of excellence for tropical buildings, innovation and professions of the future in the cultural and creative industries, will welcome more than 1,500 students. Note that master's students contributed to the reflection of the project via workshops and an exhibition. Their ideas nourished the design and reinforced the architectural orientations. Designed by architect Olivier Brabant, the building will function as a “climate machine” that works with the climate : natural ventilation at the heart of the device, sun protection, inertia and suitable materials. Its spaces will be so many learning supports (open-air laboratories, through rooms, visible passive devices) to connect theory and practice. Financial partners of the project : Western Territory (15 %), État (15 %), Europe (52,5 %), Would you Port (17,5 %). Commissioning : back to school 2027.
