Animal-Friendly Pods Lead Student Designs from American University in Dubai

An animal-friendly public seating and shade structure informed by the dunes of the UAE leads a new crop of student projects from the American University in Dubai, published by Dezeen as part of its school shows series.

Hadithya Chandrasekar's Purch Pod combines a built-in bench for two to four users with a recessed circular nook sheltering cats, a bird perch and a hydration point at the canopy edge. Six petal-shaped canopy elements, inspired by UAE dunes, ghaf tree roots and coral formations, provide natural shade; three tapered supports stabilise the compact structure, which Chandrasekar designed for community spaces and parks.

The Purch Pod is one outcome of Urban Pod, an initiative run by AUD's Centre for Research, Innovation and Design (CRID) at the School of Architecture, Art and Design (SAAD), in collaboration with Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) and Livescale.

According to the school's statement, "more than 110 student proposals emerged from an initiative spanning 10 courses, nine faculty members, 13 international jury members, government and industry partners, a public exhibition and a nine-minute documentary chronicling the complete journey."

The initiative drew students from architecture, interior design and the Master of Urban Design and Digital Environments (MUDDE) programmes. It "challenged students to reconsider conventional approaches to public furniture by asking how design might respond not only to human needs, but also to animals, nature and the broader urban ecosystem."

Several projects target crows, an unusual choice for urban furniture. Stephanie Hanna's Crowtopia Pod places a puzzle-based feeding system above the human seating area, "requiring crows to solve simple mechanical challenges in order to access food." Hanna says the design encourages natural problem-solving behaviour and sustained engagement while reducing food waste. Built from modular, 3D-printable components, the pod functions as both furniture and what she calls "an ecological interface."

Birds dominate the brief. Hind Chehal's Rest and Nest Pod stacks interconnected cylindrical modules resembling tree trunks, offering nesting security and feeding stations for urban birds, with solar panels integrated into the modules. Malak Shabaro's Roller's Rest draws on the Indian Roller bird, using stained glass to reflect its turquoise, blue and violet tones. Marieh Khalighinasab's Wingfold translates the open and folded states of a pigeon's wing into a sculptural seating pod.

Cats receive equal attention. Jana El Rassy's Spike, a tapered hollow cone with a cocoon-like interior, shields a cat micro-habitat beneath its elevated structure while offering users protection from wind and noise. Azka Chaudhry's Drift Pod, designed for 3D printing in recycled concrete or white PP pellets, arranges shifting rectangular slabs into seating, pathways and sheltered resting spaces, with integrated feeding stations and a tree. Haya Afify's Pawse extends the brief to dogs, combining human seating with feeding, resting and parking systems in one continuous form — "reinforcing the idea that cities belong to all beings."

Two projects root the work in regional and material traditions. Youssef Lotfy's Ṭuma'nīnah stacks clay pot-like vessels whose earth-based materiality cools the microclimate beneath, with hollows for planting, water and bird feeding. Alia Taher's Tree of Co-Existence pairs a branching canopy with mashrabiya-inspired perforations, recycled materials, water reuse and removable foundations for relocation.

The programme involved tutors Maryam Shafiei, Imad Hanna, Edoardo Rizzuti, Poupak Parvaresh, Annamaria Lambri, Nicolas Turchi, Chadi El Tabbah, Mattia Gambardella and Georges Kachaamy across courses including Advanced Computer Aided Design, Digital Design and Fabrication, Furniture Design and Detailing, and Digital Techniques for Urban Design. With a public exhibition, an international jury and government partners already in place, Urban Pod signals how design schools in the Gulf are positioning multispecies public space as a serious research agenda.