The Scientific Support Group operated as a critical and pedagogical structure within the BIP ONAC workshop in Manteigas.
Positioned alongside the participants, tutors and invited guests, the group contributed to the construction of a shared field of reflection around architectural education, territorial engagement and climate-related transformation. Its role was not limited to support or observation. It introduced a parallel layer of disciplinary questioning, helping to frame the workshop as a space of collective learning, critical positioning and pedagogical experimentation.
During the workshop, the SSG developed a pedagogical manifesto that reflects on the conditions through which architectural knowledge should be produced and shared. The manifesto responds to the limits of linear teaching, hierarchical structures and passive transmission of knowledge, while affirming the need for situated, collaborative and process-based forms of education.
Rooted in the experience of Manteigas and in the broader context of Southern Europe, the manifesto positions architectural pedagogy as a common effort: one that must engage with place, society, environmental responsibility and the complexity of the world we inhabit.
WE DON’T WANT
We don’t want linear teaching.
We don’t want passive transmission, or knowledge achieved only by listening to teachers.
We don’t want architecture teachers as cult leaders.
We don’t want hierarchical schemes.
We don’t want preconceived or dogmatic notions.
We don’t want to focus only on results. We want to focus on the process.
We don’t want students who do not question teachers’ statements.
We don’t want a sad, gloomy or depressing atmosphere.
We don’t want teaching that is not rooted in place, environment or context.
We don’t want to avoid the complexity of the world we live in.
We don’t want magazine-like or empty images. We want architecture with and for people.
We don’t want to deny any tool.
We don’t want students to think that they have to do everything by themselves, or alone.
We don’t want individualism in architecture.
We don’t want to dress in black all year long.
We don’t want to fear failure. We want to learn from it.