Sara Elhussein (I Design) UK

Sara Elhussein is an Architect and Senior Sustainability Consultant with over 10 years of experience across practice, research, and teaching. Her expertise spans sustainable and parametric design, building physics, AI, and project management, balancing environmental performance with socio-economic and operational efficiency.

A graduate of the University of Khartoum, her project was selected among the top five for the Dream Land residential development. She later earned a Master’s in Environmental Design & Engineering from University College London (UCL), where her dissertation, The Multi-Objective Optimization for Energy Consumption and Daylight of Office Buildings in London: Meshed Facade Energy Study, was an industry-led project with Foster + Partners. Using evolutionary multi-objective optimisation algorithms, she demonstrated how varying mesh densities and placements can reduce energy demand and enhance daylight performance.

One of the few female architects to break through professionally, she founded I Design in Sudan in 2013, which remains active today. She has also held teaching roles, including as a Teaching Assistant at the Faculty of Architecture, Future University. In the UK, she worked in senior roles at prominent international firms such as Hydrock (now Stantec) and ME Engineers, leading projects involving LEED, WELL, BREEAM, circular economy, and Life cycle assessment.

Her expertise spans Africa, the Middle East, and the UK. Throughout her career, Sara has contributed to prominent projects such as Qiddiya Stadium in Saudi Arabia, the largest and most expensive stadium in the world designed for the FIFA World Cup 2034; the Aylesham Centre Redevelopment in the UK, a major urban regeneration project featuring 15 blocks of new housing, retail, commercial, and public spaces; and 4 Selsdon Way in the UK, a large-scale retrofit transforming a 1980s office tower into over 200 apartments.

Sara is a winner of multiple architectural competitions, she designed the Professional Teachers Union Building in Sudan and the Sudan Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai, earning international recognition with features in Vogue Arabia and the Expo 2020 UAE website. She was the Commissioner and Curator of Sudan’s first Venice Architecture Biennale Pavilion, Nubia, The Displaced Kingdom (2016), later publishing a book based on the research and material presented at the Biennale, further cementing her contributions to architectural discourse.

As the founder of the Sudan Arts & Architecture Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to fostering community participation in architecture and the arts, she has led multiple projects. She was the curator of the Nubia House exhibition at the Karmakol International Festival in Sudan and a partner in the festival through the foundation, alongside prestigious organisations such as the British Council, UNICEF, UNDP, and Goethe-Institute. She is also a member of the Development & Advocacy Committee in the Sudan Heritage Preservation Council.

Sara is deeply inspired by African art, historical archives, and the rich history of the Nubian civilisation, a cultural legacy she proudly belongs to. Her passion for architectural heritage and archival documentation is evident in projects that preserve, restore, and reinterpret Sudan’s built history in a contemporary context. She is currently producing a documentary series on Sudanese architects, showcasing their contributions and the evolution of Sudan’s architectural identity.

A dedicated advocate for sustainability in the built environment, she promotes interdisciplinary approaches that advance environmental resilience and sustainable development across both contemporary and post-conflict contexts. Her research interests centre on climate-responsive design, building simulation, data-driven urban planning, and the preservation of architectural heritage.