Giving Back
Architecture can and should contribute beyond projects alone. At MAZi, giving back means sharing knowledge, supporting emerging voices, engaging with communities, and contributing to public discourse.
“Architecture becomes meaningful when it supports collective life beyond the building itself.”
Community Engagement & Advocacy
-
MAZi Architects supports the Friends of Jesmond Library through ongoing voluntary architectural advice and strategic design support for the future of this much-loved civic building. Our involvement focuses on low-impact refurbishment, accessibility, energy retrofit, and long-term community-led improvement, guided by principles of environmental responsibility, inclusivity, and social value.
-
MAZi runs participatory workshops with children in primary schools, introducing spatial awareness, creativity, and design thinking. These hands-on sessions encourage young people to see themselves as active contributors to their environments.
-
MAZi is currently supporting a grassroots regeneration initiative through early-stage research, brief development, and community engagement. The work involves workshops and interviews to shape a shared vision rooted in local needs and lived experience.
-
MAZi initiated the ongoing effort to bring Europan back to Greece as a platform for emerging architects, urban research, public-sector innovation, and European exchange. The initiative brings together practitioners, academics, municipalities, central government and institutions through advocacy, strategic coordination, and public dialogue.
-
Despoina is a member of the DesigNE.ltd panel, contributing to design review and strategic discussion. The panel supports quality-driven design thinking across scales and sectors.
Education & Mentorship
-
Despoina Papadopoulou is a Design Tutor at Newcastle University’s School of Architecture (APL), working with Stage 2 undergraduate students through design studios and reviews. Her teaching focuses on civic architecture, housing, and community-led design, encouraging critical thinking, ethical practice, and spatial generosity.
-
MAZi supports the Women in Architecture UK Mentoring Programme, contributing time and experience to support emerging practitioners. This work reflects our commitment to equity, representation, and long-term cultural change within the profession.
-
Despoina previously mentored architecture students at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg via the Arkipelago programme, supporting early-career development and international exchange. The programme fostered dialogue around practice, confidence, and professional pathways.
-
Despoina has served as a jury member for RIBA regional student awards, contributing to the assessment of emerging architectural work. This role supports critical discourse and celebrates thoughtful, socially engaged student projects.
“Teaching and mentoring are ways of keeping architecture in dialogue - with new voices, new questions, and futures still being imagined.”
Research & Writing
-
Why Not Only Schools? is an ongoing research project exploring how educational spaces can be more inclusive, flexible, and embedded within everyday community life. The work questions conventional school typologies and advocates for learning environments that extend beyond institutional boundaries.
-
Let’s Get Lost is a published visual essay exploring play as a civic and spatial act. Framing play as a joyful disruption, the work reflects on how cities can invite spontaneity, inclusivity, and imagination in everyday public life.
“Through research and writing, we extend our practice beyond design - investigating urgent spatial questions and sharing knowledge across education, housing, and urban life.”