From April 12 to 19, 2025, Africa Design School had the honor of hosting in Cotonou the very first edition of the Cumulus Student Camp organized on the African continent, in partnership with the Cumulus Association, an international network of over 300 creative institutions worldwide.

This camp, which marks the third edition of the Cumulus Student Camp globally, represented a historic milestone by bringing together students, teachers, and professionals around the theme:
“Design and Local Craftsmanship: Innovative Solutions for Sustainable Impact.”

For this edition, students came from diverse backgrounds:

• France: L’École Duperré and L’École de design Nantes Atlantique
• Spain: Elisava University
• Benin: Africa Design School

This cultural diversity fostered rich exchanges and a plural approach to the challenges explored during the camp.

The event began with an opening ceremony highlighted by inspiring speeches from:

• Christian Guellerin, Managing Director of L’École de design Nantes Atlantique
• Claude Borna, CEO of Sèmè City
• Natacha Lallemand, member of the Cumulus Board
• Kefil Saka, Executive Director of Africa Design School
  
  

The first day allowed participants to get to know each other, share their backgrounds, and lay the groundwork for effective collaboration during the week.
They then met with the founder of Couleur Indigo to better understand the different stages of traditional indigo production.

On the second day, the students visited Couleur Indigo’s showroom, followed by a tour of the workshop, where they fully immersed themselves in the ancestral techniques of indigo craftsmanship. They observed the creation process firsthand and identified challenges faced by the artisans, valuable insights that fed their reflections for developing innovative solutions.

After this immersion phase, the students, divided into three groups, collaborated to propose concepts and prototypes that combined design, functionality, and sustainability.

The fourth day was dedicated to user testing: the teams returned to Couleur Indigo’s workshop to test their solutions directly with the artisans, gather feedback, and fine-tune their projects based on real user needs.

The week concluded with a public presentation of the projects at Sèmè One, attended by the local community, design professionals, artisans, and educators.
Following the presentations, a networking session was organized with various stakeholders from Benin’s creative and entrepreneurial ecosystem, giving students the opportunity to receive valuable feedback and expand their professional networks.

Beyond their creative work, the participants also experienced the cultural richness of Benin:

• A tour of Cotonou and its impressive murals along the Port Autonome
• A visit to the symbolic Place de l’Amazone
• An excursion to the Rivière Noire
• Exploration of local museums and the Cotonou craft market

This first edition of the Cumulus Student Camp Cotonou 2025 highlights Cotonou’s emergence as a creative hub in Africa, where innovation and tradition combine to build a more sustainable future.

 Want to relive the best moments of the camp? Discover the full photo album here !