The Copperbelt region, stretching across the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, has long been a site of paradox—immense mineral wealth paired with ecological devastation and socio-economic inequality. This project offers a comprehensive transformation from extraction to exaltation, reimagining the landscape as a model of ecological and societal resilience.
Rooted in a century of colonial and postcolonial mining practices, this area now faces the urgent challenge of reversing the environmental and social scars left behind. The regional strategy addresses the territorial scale of intervention required for meaningful transformation.
This project offers a visionary blueprint to transform the Copperbelt from a symbol of extraction into a model of ecological and societal resilience. Framed around two core strategies—hacking and healing—the initiative proposes an interdisciplinary response that merges architecture, environmental science, and community engagement.
"Hacking" refers to the tactical use of green technologies and bioengineering to repurpose derelict mining sites into regenerative infrastructures such as educational parks, conservation zones, and community-based agricultural systems.
"Healing," meanwhile, relies on natural bioremediation agents including Shewanella oneidensis, a metal-reducing bacterium; Ceratophyllum demersum, an aquatic plant effective in cleansing polluted water bodies; and Urtica dioica (stinging nettle), known for detoxifying soils through phytoextraction.
By deploying these biological tools, the project remediates polluted land and water, enhances biodiversity, and restores the viability of ecosystems for future use. Importantly, this ecological repair is coupled with social renewal—empowering local communities through sustainable land use, knowledge-sharing, and new economic opportunities.
The implementation framework integrates community-based approaches with technical interventions, ensuring that transformation strategies are both locally relevant and scientifically grounded. This participatory approach builds local capacity while addressing environmental challenges.
Beyond environmental recovery, the project reimagines the Copperbelt as a "Blackhole" turned green—a once-consumed landscape now producing life and knowledge. It sets a precedent for global regeneration efforts in other post-industrial regions, offering scalable, low-tech, and community-driven models for sustainable transformation.