Beginning with Espacio Común’s Main Floating Stage at Muyunafest 2025, winner of First Place in ArchDaily’s Building of the Year 2026, this conversation explores how architecture can emerge directly from the conditions, knowledge, and ways of life already present in a place.
Designed in response to fluctuating water levels and the local building cultures of the Peruvian Amazon, the project becomes the starting point for a broader reflection on architectural practice: how architects read a context before intervening, how local knowledge and collaboration shape design decisions, and how inventiveness and adaptation can become architectural tools.
Moving from this specific project to Espacio Común’s broader body of work, the discussion will consider what it means to practice architecture from within a particular context while engaging with questions that extend far beyond it. The conversation will also reflect on what happens when a deeply local project reaches a global audience, and on what its selection by ArchDaily readers through the Building of the Year Awards may reveal about the kind of architecture that resonates with people today.
Franco-Lebanese architect, urban planner, and Editor-in-Chief of ArchDaily, the world’s leading architecture platform. With a strong background in architecture and urban planning, she has helped shape the global architectural discourse through her editorial leadership and expertise in media and content strategy, strengthening ArchDaily’s influence across the industry.
Christele joined ArchDaily in 2019 as Content Editor and quickly advanced to Managing Editor in 2020, overseeing editorial strategy and partnerships. In 2024, she was appointed Editor-in-Chief, further consolidating ArchDaily’s role as a global reference in architecture and design.
She has played a key role in strengthening industry partnerships, positioning the brand, participating in major global events as a speaker and panelist, and driving innovative content strategies that connect journalism, architecture, and urban development.
Passionate about amplifying diverse voices in architecture, Christele is committed to empowering future generations of architects and fostering meaningful conversations about the built environment. She has led and contributed to discussions at international industry events and has written for various architecture and design publications, helping shape the dialogue around contemporary challenges and innovation.
Christele holds a Master’s Degree in Urban Design and a Master’s Degree in Architecture, combining her design expertise with a deep understanding of the role media plays in transforming the profession. She continues to push the boundaries of architectural journalism, fostering dialogue and innovation across the industry.
Architect from the University of Alicante with more than ten years of experience in architecture, research, and community and cultural management in underserved neighborhoods. She is co-founder of Espacio Común, a Peruvian association co-directed with Daniel Canchán, through which she develops projects in Lima and Iquitos that bring together design, construction, and research in collaboration with organizations and institutions.
Her work has focused on the relationship between architecture, the city, and gender, an area in which she also holds a diploma from Tecnológico de Monterrey.
Among Espacio Común’s projects are Barrios que Cuidan and MuyunaFest, which explore care infrastructures, public space, and ways of inhabiting territories shaped by their specific social, cultural, and environmental conditions. Their work has been supported by re institute and The Supporting Act Foundation, and recognized with the Ammodo Architecture Award, the ASF Award, and ArchDaily’s Building of the Year Award.
Paula was co-founder of Coordinadora de la Ciudad en Construcción (CCC), has worked as a consultant for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and has taught at UCAL. She has led and participated in architecture workshops and is regularly invited as a speaker and guest lecturer at universities and events in Peru and Spain.
