The world's first 3D-printed school will open in Madagascar

THE American philanthropist and founder of the Thinking Huts nonprofit, Maggie Grout, has come up with an innovative concept to help make education more accessible around the world: a life-size 3D-printed school. The first such school is due to open its doors in Madagascar.

To bring this school project to life, Maggie Grout teamed up with the architectural design agency Studio Mortazavi, based in San Francisco. The pilot project will be built on the university campus of the Ecole de Management et d'Innovation Technologique (EMIT), in the city of Fianarantsoa in Madagascar, and will welcome students from preschool through high school.

"3D printing decreases construction time from months to days, reduces our carbon footprint, and addresses a real need for education infrastructure," explain the project creators in their video presentation.

With vertical farms and 3D-printed walls, this hybrid school of a new kind is designed using reusable materials and in line with environmentally responsible standards. The school is scheduled to open in summer 2021-2022 in Madagascar, which falls between December and March.

Maggie Grout hopes to expand this school model to other regions of the world once the technical process has been fine-tuned. A crowdfunding campaign titled "Thoughtful Giving" hopes to collect US$350,000 to support the pilot project in Madagascar, as well as the construction of the next three schools.