Looking Back on a Busy and Productive Year at EWAP

As EWAP moves into its sixth year, it feels like a good moment to pause and reflect on what has been a busy and productive year. 

A Growing Archive

We now have 26 projects in our online open access archive. This feels like a major milestone, and it’s been great to see the archive grow in both scale and richness. On top of this, another 11 projects are expected to wrap up in the coming month, keeping the momentum going.

These completions reflect not just the hard work of project teams, but also the fact that EWAP’s processes are now running more smoothly and consistently than ever.

Adding More Depth: Follow-On Grants

One of the most exciting developments this year was the launch of our new Follow-On Grants scheme. We offered ten awards of up to £10,000 to support short, six-month projects starting between January and April 2026. The call opened in August, with applications reviewed by the Advisory Board in September.

These grants are all about adding extra layers to existing projects. Things like glossaries of local building terms, surveys of traditional materials, or additional interviews with craftspeople add richness to the archive. We’ve already seen how valuable this kind of follow-up work can be, and it’s encouraging to be able to support more of it.

Summer Interns and Creative Ways to Engage

This year, we were joined by three summer interns, who brought fresh energy and ideas to EWAP. The Oxford Brookes students worked on two projects. The first produced two short films that visually communicate the stories and significance of endangered wooden architectural traditions documented by EWAP researchers. You can read more about this in our blog here.

Using the EWAP archive, one intern designed a LEGO® model of a house in Nepal. Building on the ‘LEGO Brick Houses of the World’ project developed by Prof Marcel Vellinga together with The Brick People and the Royal Institute of British Architects, it offers a creative way to introduce traditional buildings to young children. Representing vernacular building types from around the world, highlighting diverse forms, materials, uses, and cultural meanings, the LEGO® models have been used in schools as hands-on tools that spark curiosity and discussion about architectural heritage, sustainability, and the ongoing value of traditional building knowledge.

Taking EWAP on the Road: Indonesia

This year Kelly Reed, EWAP’s Programme Manager, travelled to Indonesia in September to take part in academic and professional activities, creating valuable opportunities to connect with researchers and practitioners working on related themes in the region. While there, Kelly also hosted an EWAP workshop at Universitas Indonesia in Jakarta, bringing together four EWAP projects based in the region to share experiences and discuss challenges and methods. The workshop also explored how EWAP’s approach to documentation and archiving can support regional research communities, helping to strengthen connections and raise the profile of EWAP. 

Looking Ahead

The final Advisory Board meeting of the year took place in late September, where members reviewed the follow-on grant applications and spent time thinking about EWAP’s long-term future. Their ongoing support and expertise continue to be hugely valuable.

Looking forward, one of the big events on the horizon is a joint conference with CEPT University in Ahmedabad, India, taking place from 25–28 February 2026. The three-day event will bring together the EWAP cohort and other partners, offering a chance to share ideas, reflect on the work so far, and think collectively about what comes next.

You can find out more about the conferences here

View the EWAP Conference Agenda here

Overall, this year has been about consolidating what we’ve built, while also finding new and creative ways to extend EWAP’s reach. From completed projects and follow-on funding, to smoother workflows, student involvement, and LEGO models in classrooms, it’s been a year that shows how the programme continues to evolve.

We’re excited to see where 2026 takes us.